Originally Posted by fatcats
i had a question would live sand count for cycling and how long would u need to cycle before u can put any fish in the tank, I have heard 2,4, and 10 weeks
Yes, you can cycle with live sand. It would be better to add live rock as well at this point, but if it's not in your plan that's ok. You can either put the dead shrimp in the tank, or put in a small amount of fish food each day.
It is impossible to predict how long a cycle will take. It depends on the bacteria you are starting out with, how much photosyntisis is going on in the tank, and how much ammonia supply there is. You need to have ammonia, nitrite and nitrate test kits. Ammonia and nitrite will spike during the cycle. When you have seen ammonia and nitrite spike and return to 0, and nitrate goes up, then you can do a big water change and add your first fish.
Don't count on a certian period of time, and don't trust your local fish store to test the water for you. (Water that hasn't started to cycle yet will test safe for fish, but without sufficient bacteria the first fish that goes in will make the water toxic rather quickly.) Buy the test kits, test daily, and watch the cycle. Once your cycle is over, you will only need to test occasionally, and the reagents eventually go bad if not used up, so don't be afraid to go hog-wild with the testing at the beginning.
