help with cycling tank....
- Thread starter aarontg88
- Start date
hawkfish203
Member
Gives you a more accurate reading then a hydrometer. Your glass hydrometer the water must be the same temp as the water the hydrometer was calibrated at if not you have to refer to a conversion chart. The refractometer adjusts to temp and easy to calibrate.
hawkfish203
Member
Live sand is expensive you could always use play sand its cheaper. Should be good with 1-2". Depth of the sand also depends on what your going to house too.
hawkfish203
Member
or like jeff said use that argonite sand at ***** that will work fine too!
deejeff442
Active Member
i brought up the debate of play sand here a while ago.mmmm didnt go to good .just get some argonite .now i like only one inch of sand but most prefer 2-3 inches.not sure how much just google aquarium sand calculator.its easy to find on google put the base of the tank and the height of sand you want and it will tell you how many pounds.its just better to get sand than try to figure out why you cannot get rid of nitrates later.the course crushed coral just holds alot of gunk like fish poo and just gets stuck .
btldreef
Moderator
Welcome to the forum
I agree with a lot of what is being said here.
Definitely switch out to sand now before going any further. Since you are new to the hobby, crushed coral (CC) will make it that much harder for you to maintain proper water parameters, specifically nitrate levels, which can be dangerous to corals, and fish if it gets too high. CC will limit what you can keep as far as fish and inverts as well and just overall is really not a good idea. Since there isn't much live rock (LR) in your tank right now and you're just starting, my suggestion is to remove as much water as possible into buckets with the LR and dump out the CC into a container, then, put the LR back in, then sand, then water SLOWLY. I usually add water through a strainer. This will cause less sand to get kicked up and helps to keep the water a little less cloudy. Adding the rock BEFORE the sand is preferred, this gives your rock a more stable foundation. I will tell you from experience, I have done both, so either can be done, but rock first is easier. I, too, think that a sand bed should be 2-3" deep, especially for a beginner. I have found the best calculation to be around 1lb of sand per gallon. If you have a local reef club in your area, you can add bagged live sand such as CaribSea and see if you can get a few cups of live sand from peoples tanks and place that on top of the bagged sand.
You have a test kit, what brand? Are they test strips or test tubes that you must add water and chemicals to?
Once you swap out to sand, add in a raw shrimp and start the cycling process. There are many great threads on this forum and others as to how to properly cycle a tank with raw shrimp and NOT fish, please look into this method, it is much more humane. The idea behind using fish is basically you're placing them in the tank to produce waste. As they produce waste, it turns to ammonia, then nitrite, etc and kick starts the cycling process. The problem with this is that the fish are stuck in ammonia and it burns their gills and 95% of the time, very painfully kills them. Raw shrimp will decay and produce the same ammonia and kick start the cycling process without killing the fish.
If you have any questions about cycling your tank and/or what your readings are/should be, feel free to ask at any time. Many people post pictures of their test kit readings the first few days as they can be tricky to read sometimes.
Since you're cycling your tank, I'd recommend adding more rock now, you can get uncured or "dead" LR. If you wait until after your tank is cycled to add more rock, you'll need to add cured rock, which is usually more expensive.
As for water and salt:
Get yourself RO/DI water, or at the very least RO water. Don't get in the habit of using tap water. You can purchase RO water from most reputable local fish stores (LFS) and some Walmart's carry it as well (not if you live on Long Island). Look into purchasing a RO/DI unit, it will save you money in the long run. I happen to like Coralife's model and Water General's model. Tap water contains many unnecessary and sometimes harmful substances such as copper and chlorine that you don't want to introduce to your tank, especially once it gets more established.
As for salt, everyone has their preferred brand. If you live in an area that has many LFS's, you can shop around for the best salt, best brand, etc. If you live in an area that does not have many stores, stick with a national brand that is easy to find such as Instant Ocean (IO) or IO Reef Crystals.For cycling your tank, go with I), or Reef Crystals, as they are both easy to find, consistent and cheap. I've even seen people using *****'s brand of salt to cycle a tank. Do not cycle a tank with expensive salt, you'll be wasting your money.
Get yourself a refractometer before adding any critters to the tank. The glass hydrometer will work for now, but a refractometer is much, MUCH more accurate.
Don't be too upset that you were given bad information by your LFS, unfortunately good LFS's are hard to find, you're not alone. The best thing you can do is ask questions here and see if there are local reef clubs in your area. Where are you located?
So, can you tell us what equipment you were sold for this tank (filter, heater, lights, etc)?
I agree with a lot of what is being said here.
Definitely switch out to sand now before going any further. Since you are new to the hobby, crushed coral (CC) will make it that much harder for you to maintain proper water parameters, specifically nitrate levels, which can be dangerous to corals, and fish if it gets too high. CC will limit what you can keep as far as fish and inverts as well and just overall is really not a good idea. Since there isn't much live rock (LR) in your tank right now and you're just starting, my suggestion is to remove as much water as possible into buckets with the LR and dump out the CC into a container, then, put the LR back in, then sand, then water SLOWLY. I usually add water through a strainer. This will cause less sand to get kicked up and helps to keep the water a little less cloudy. Adding the rock BEFORE the sand is preferred, this gives your rock a more stable foundation. I will tell you from experience, I have done both, so either can be done, but rock first is easier. I, too, think that a sand bed should be 2-3" deep, especially for a beginner. I have found the best calculation to be around 1lb of sand per gallon. If you have a local reef club in your area, you can add bagged live sand such as CaribSea and see if you can get a few cups of live sand from peoples tanks and place that on top of the bagged sand.
You have a test kit, what brand? Are they test strips or test tubes that you must add water and chemicals to?
Once you swap out to sand, add in a raw shrimp and start the cycling process. There are many great threads on this forum and others as to how to properly cycle a tank with raw shrimp and NOT fish, please look into this method, it is much more humane. The idea behind using fish is basically you're placing them in the tank to produce waste. As they produce waste, it turns to ammonia, then nitrite, etc and kick starts the cycling process. The problem with this is that the fish are stuck in ammonia and it burns their gills and 95% of the time, very painfully kills them. Raw shrimp will decay and produce the same ammonia and kick start the cycling process without killing the fish.
If you have any questions about cycling your tank and/or what your readings are/should be, feel free to ask at any time. Many people post pictures of their test kit readings the first few days as they can be tricky to read sometimes.
Since you're cycling your tank, I'd recommend adding more rock now, you can get uncured or "dead" LR. If you wait until after your tank is cycled to add more rock, you'll need to add cured rock, which is usually more expensive.
As for water and salt:
Get yourself RO/DI water, or at the very least RO water. Don't get in the habit of using tap water. You can purchase RO water from most reputable local fish stores (LFS) and some Walmart's carry it as well (not if you live on Long Island). Look into purchasing a RO/DI unit, it will save you money in the long run. I happen to like Coralife's model and Water General's model. Tap water contains many unnecessary and sometimes harmful substances such as copper and chlorine that you don't want to introduce to your tank, especially once it gets more established.
As for salt, everyone has their preferred brand. If you live in an area that has many LFS's, you can shop around for the best salt, best brand, etc. If you live in an area that does not have many stores, stick with a national brand that is easy to find such as Instant Ocean (IO) or IO Reef Crystals.For cycling your tank, go with I), or Reef Crystals, as they are both easy to find, consistent and cheap. I've even seen people using *****'s brand of salt to cycle a tank. Do not cycle a tank with expensive salt, you'll be wasting your money.
Get yourself a refractometer before adding any critters to the tank. The glass hydrometer will work for now, but a refractometer is much, MUCH more accurate.
Don't be too upset that you were given bad information by your LFS, unfortunately good LFS's are hard to find, you're not alone. The best thing you can do is ask questions here and see if there are local reef clubs in your area. Where are you located?
So, can you tell us what equipment you were sold for this tank (filter, heater, lights, etc)?
mr. limpid
Active Member
The refractor does the same thing as the float type, except it doesn't break as easy, and easier to read. I bought one will never go back to the float type again. Just to let you know if you don't want to change the crushed coral you don't have too. It a little more maintenance you'll need to monitor your nitrite levels allot and gravel grunge a third of your bed every four months. I have a 20gal long with this set up because of the plate coral I have like this substrate. Just saying you have options, sand is easier with fish only tank. Also you'll need a separate container to mix your water change water, minimum equipment is 5gal. bucket (I use the ones that come in the large salt mix containers) small air pump, as for heater small heater or I just heat water on stove till I reach the temp. of DT. As someone said earlier patience is the key, ask question and don't believe what LFS is trying to sell you.
spanko
Active Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by BTLDreef http:///forum/thread/382739/help-with-cycling-tank/20#post_3342627
Welcome to the forum
I agree with a lot of what is being said here.
Definitely switch out to sand now before going any further. Since you are new to the hobby, crushed coral (CC) will make it that much harder for you to maintain proper water parameters, specifically nitrate levels, which can be dangerous to corals, and fish if it gets too high. CC will limit what you can keep as far as fish and inverts as well and just overall is really not a good idea. Since there isn't much live rock (LR) in your tank right now and you're just starting, my suggestion is to remove as much water as possible into buckets with the LR and dump out the CC into a container, then, put the LR back in, then sand, then water SLOWLY. I usually add water through a strainer. This will cause less sand to get kicked up and helps to keep the water a little less cloudy. Adding the rock BEFORE the sand is preferred, this gives your rock a more stable foundation. I will tell you from experience, I have done both, so either can be done, but rock first is easier. I, too, think that a sand bed should be 2-3" deep, especially for a beginner. I have found the best calculation to be around 1lb of sand per gallon. If you have a local reef club in your area, you can add bagged live sand such as CaribSea and see if you can get a few cups of live sand from peoples tanks and place that on top of the bagged sand.
You have a test kit, what brand? Are they test strips or test tubes that you must add water and chemicals to?
Once you swap out to sand, add in a raw shrimp and start the cycling process. There are many great threads on this forum and others as to how to properly cycle a tank with raw shrimp and NOT fish, please look into this method, it is much more humane. The idea behind using fish is basically you're placing them in the tank to produce waste. As they produce waste, it turns to ammonia, then nitrite, etc and kick starts the cycling process. The problem with this is that the fish are stuck in ammonia and it burns their gills and 95% of the time, very painfully kills them. Raw shrimp will decay and produce the same ammonia and kick start the cycling process without killing the fish.
If you have any questions about cycling your tank and/or what your readings are/should be, feel free to ask at any time. Many people post pictures of their test kit readings the first few days as they can be tricky to read sometimes.
Since you're cycling your tank, I'd recommend adding more rock now, you can get uncured or "dead" LR. If you wait until after your tank is cycled to add more rock, you'll need to add cured rock, which is usually more expensive.
As for water and salt:
Get yourself RO/DI water, or at the very least RO water. Don't get in the habit of using tap water. You can purchase RO water from most reputable local fish stores (LFS) and some Walmart's carry it as well (not if you live on Long Island). Look into purchasing a RO/DI unit, it will save you money in the long run. I happen to like Coralife's model and Water General's model. Tap water contains many unnecessary and sometimes harmful substances such as copper and chlorine that you don't want to introduce to your tank, especially once it gets more established.
As for salt, everyone has their preferred brand. If you live in an area that has many LFS's, you can shop around for the best salt, best brand, etc. If you live in an area that does not have many stores, stick with a national brand that is easy to find such as Instant Ocean (IO) or IO Reef Crystals.For cycling your tank, go with I), or Reef Crystals, as they are both easy to find, consistent and cheap. I've even seen people using *****'s brand of salt to cycle a tank. Do not cycle a tank with expensive salt, you'll be wasting your money.
Get yourself a refractometer before adding any critters to the tank. The glass hydrometer will work for now, but a refractometer is much, MUCH more accurate.
Don't be too upset that you were given bad information by your LFS, unfortunately good LFS's are hard to find, you're not alone. The best thing you can do is ask questions here and see if there are local reef clubs in your area. Where are you located?
So, can you tell us what equipment you were sold for this tank (filter, heater, lights, etc)?
Just wondering where you got that stat. As you may know the way tanks were cycled when the hobby first started was to add a fish, most of the time a Damsel because of their hardiness. Not condoning this method, but it was the accepted way and I don't remember people losing as many fish as you say here.
Originally Posted by BTLDreef http:///forum/thread/382739/help-with-cycling-tank/20#post_3342627
Welcome to the forum
I agree with a lot of what is being said here.
Definitely switch out to sand now before going any further. Since you are new to the hobby, crushed coral (CC) will make it that much harder for you to maintain proper water parameters, specifically nitrate levels, which can be dangerous to corals, and fish if it gets too high. CC will limit what you can keep as far as fish and inverts as well and just overall is really not a good idea. Since there isn't much live rock (LR) in your tank right now and you're just starting, my suggestion is to remove as much water as possible into buckets with the LR and dump out the CC into a container, then, put the LR back in, then sand, then water SLOWLY. I usually add water through a strainer. This will cause less sand to get kicked up and helps to keep the water a little less cloudy. Adding the rock BEFORE the sand is preferred, this gives your rock a more stable foundation. I will tell you from experience, I have done both, so either can be done, but rock first is easier. I, too, think that a sand bed should be 2-3" deep, especially for a beginner. I have found the best calculation to be around 1lb of sand per gallon. If you have a local reef club in your area, you can add bagged live sand such as CaribSea and see if you can get a few cups of live sand from peoples tanks and place that on top of the bagged sand.
You have a test kit, what brand? Are they test strips or test tubes that you must add water and chemicals to?
Once you swap out to sand, add in a raw shrimp and start the cycling process. There are many great threads on this forum and others as to how to properly cycle a tank with raw shrimp and NOT fish, please look into this method, it is much more humane. The idea behind using fish is basically you're placing them in the tank to produce waste. As they produce waste, it turns to ammonia, then nitrite, etc and kick starts the cycling process. The problem with this is that the fish are stuck in ammonia and it burns their gills and 95% of the time, very painfully kills them. Raw shrimp will decay and produce the same ammonia and kick start the cycling process without killing the fish.
If you have any questions about cycling your tank and/or what your readings are/should be, feel free to ask at any time. Many people post pictures of their test kit readings the first few days as they can be tricky to read sometimes.
Since you're cycling your tank, I'd recommend adding more rock now, you can get uncured or "dead" LR. If you wait until after your tank is cycled to add more rock, you'll need to add cured rock, which is usually more expensive.
As for water and salt:
Get yourself RO/DI water, or at the very least RO water. Don't get in the habit of using tap water. You can purchase RO water from most reputable local fish stores (LFS) and some Walmart's carry it as well (not if you live on Long Island). Look into purchasing a RO/DI unit, it will save you money in the long run. I happen to like Coralife's model and Water General's model. Tap water contains many unnecessary and sometimes harmful substances such as copper and chlorine that you don't want to introduce to your tank, especially once it gets more established.
As for salt, everyone has their preferred brand. If you live in an area that has many LFS's, you can shop around for the best salt, best brand, etc. If you live in an area that does not have many stores, stick with a national brand that is easy to find such as Instant Ocean (IO) or IO Reef Crystals.For cycling your tank, go with I), or Reef Crystals, as they are both easy to find, consistent and cheap. I've even seen people using *****'s brand of salt to cycle a tank. Do not cycle a tank with expensive salt, you'll be wasting your money.
Get yourself a refractometer before adding any critters to the tank. The glass hydrometer will work for now, but a refractometer is much, MUCH more accurate.
Don't be too upset that you were given bad information by your LFS, unfortunately good LFS's are hard to find, you're not alone. The best thing you can do is ask questions here and see if there are local reef clubs in your area. Where are you located?
So, can you tell us what equipment you were sold for this tank (filter, heater, lights, etc)?
Just wondering where you got that stat. As you may know the way tanks were cycled when the hobby first started was to add a fish, most of the time a Damsel because of their hardiness. Not condoning this method, but it was the accepted way and I don't remember people losing as many fish as you say here.
mr. limpid
Active Member
I'm interested in the burning of the gills also, because when I QT my fish most of the time my ammonia is at .25. I use Amquil and water changes never can get down lower than .25.
deejeff442
Active Member
well then the tank isnt cycled.what kind of filtration do you have on the qt?ammonia doesnt stick around very long.it surely isnt constant.make sure your test kit is good.
drewsbrews
Member
What's wrong with 1.021 if it's a fish only tank?
deejeff442
Active Member
because the ocean is 1.025.so why wouldnt you keep it the same?sure you could keep it at 1.021 but whats the point .we are trying to mimic its natural enviornment.
gemmy
Active Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by aarontg88 http:///forum/thread/382739/help-with-cycling-tank#post_3342569
yes so what does the refractometer do?
It is a more accurate way to measure the salinity of the tank water. Hydrometers are infamous for being inaccurate.
Originally Posted by aarontg88 http:///forum/thread/382739/help-with-cycling-tank#post_3342569
yes so what does the refractometer do?
It is a more accurate way to measure the salinity of the tank water. Hydrometers are infamous for being inaccurate.
btldreef
Moderator
Quote:
Originally Posted by spanko http:///forum/thread/382739/help-with-cycling-tank/20#post_3342710
Quote:
Originally Posted by BTLDreef http:///forum/thread/382739/help-with-cycling-tank/20#post_3342627
Welcome to the forum
I agree with a lot of what is being said here.
Definitely switch out to sand now before going any further. Since you are new to the hobby, crushed coral (CC) will make it that much harder for you to maintain proper water parameters, specifically nitrate levels, which can be dangerous to corals, and fish if it gets too high. CC will limit what you can keep as far as fish and inverts as well and just overall is really not a good idea. Since there isn't much live rock (LR) in your tank right now and you're just starting, my suggestion is to remove as much water as possible into buckets with the LR and dump out the CC into a container, then, put the LR back in, then sand, then water SLOWLY. I usually add water through a strainer. This will cause less sand to get kicked up and helps to keep the water a little less cloudy. Adding the rock BEFORE the sand is preferred, this gives your rock a more stable foundation. I will tell you from experience, I have done both, so either can be done, but rock first is easier. I, too, think that a sand bed should be 2-3" deep, especially for a beginner. I have found the best calculation to be around 1lb of sand per gallon. If you have a local reef club in your area, you can add bagged live sand such as CaribSea and see if you can get a few cups of live sand from peoples tanks and place that on top of the bagged sand.
You have a test kit, what brand? Are they test strips or test tubes that you must add water and chemicals to?
Once you swap out to sand, add in a raw shrimp and start the cycling process. There are many great threads on this forum and others as to how to properly cycle a tank with raw shrimp and NOT fish, please look into this method, it is much more humane. The idea behind using fish is basically you're placing them in the tank to produce waste. As they produce waste, it turns to ammonia, then nitrite, etc and kick starts the cycling process. The problem with this is that the fish are stuck in ammonia and it burns their gills and 95% of the time, very painfully kills them. Raw shrimp will decay and produce the same ammonia and kick start the cycling process without killing the fish.
If you have any questions about cycling your tank and/or what your readings are/should be, feel free to ask at any time. Many people post pictures of their test kit readings the first few days as they can be tricky to read sometimes.
Since you're cycling your tank, I'd recommend adding more rock now, you can get uncured or "dead" LR. If you wait until after your tank is cycled to add more rock, you'll need to add cured rock, which is usually more expensive.
As for water and salt:
Get yourself RO/DI water, or at the very least RO water. Don't get in the habit of using tap water. You can purchase RO water from most reputable local fish stores (LFS) and some Walmart's carry it as well (not if you live on Long Island). Look into purchasing a RO/DI unit, it will save you money in the long run. I happen to like Coralife's model and Water General's model. Tap water contains many unnecessary and sometimes harmful substances such as copper and chlorine that you don't want to introduce to your tank, especially once it gets more established.
As for salt, everyone has their preferred brand. If you live in an area that has many LFS's, you can shop around for the best salt, best brand, etc. If you live in an area that does not have many stores, stick with a national brand that is easy to find such as Instant Ocean (IO) or IO Reef Crystals.For cycling your tank, go with I), or Reef Crystals, as they are both easy to find, consistent and cheap. I've even seen people using *****'s brand of salt to cycle a tank. Do not cycle a tank with expensive salt, you'll be wasting your money.
Get yourself a refractometer before adding any critters to the tank. The glass hydrometer will work for now, but a refractometer is much, MUCH more accurate.
Don't be too upset that you were given bad information by your LFS, unfortunately good LFS's are hard to find, you're not alone. The best thing you can do is ask questions here and see if there are local reef clubs in your area. Where are you located?
So, can you tell us what equipment you were sold for this tank (filter, heater, lights, etc)?
Just wondering where you got that stat. As you may know the way tanks were cycled when the hobby first started was to add a fish, most of the time a Damsel because of their hardiness. Not condoning this method, but it was the accepted way and I don't remember people losing as many fish as you say here.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mr. Limpid http:///forum/thread/382739/help-with-cycling-tank/20#post_3342714
I'm interested in the burning of the gills also, because when I QT my fish most of the time my ammonia is at .25. I use Amquil and water changes never can get down lower than .25.
Honestly, it's a common "statistical expression" for lack of a better way of explaining it. I am aware that this is the way tanks used to be cycled, but I for one would not condone it and have seen many people kill a good portion of the damsels when using this method, especially people with zero experience in the hobby. That being said, I've also seen people use damsels to cycle and not kill them, but these are usually people that have some knowledge in the hobby.
Mr Limpid, you're using a QT, it's cycled and has beneficial bacteria so 1) the ammonia won't stick around for long and b) you're adding Amquel and doing a water change quick enough that you're not seeing any ill effects.
Have you guys ever seen a fish that has had its gills burned due to high ammonia levels (more than .25ppm)? It's ugly.
Originally Posted by spanko http:///forum/thread/382739/help-with-cycling-tank/20#post_3342710
Quote:
Originally Posted by BTLDreef http:///forum/thread/382739/help-with-cycling-tank/20#post_3342627
Welcome to the forum
I agree with a lot of what is being said here.
Definitely switch out to sand now before going any further. Since you are new to the hobby, crushed coral (CC) will make it that much harder for you to maintain proper water parameters, specifically nitrate levels, which can be dangerous to corals, and fish if it gets too high. CC will limit what you can keep as far as fish and inverts as well and just overall is really not a good idea. Since there isn't much live rock (LR) in your tank right now and you're just starting, my suggestion is to remove as much water as possible into buckets with the LR and dump out the CC into a container, then, put the LR back in, then sand, then water SLOWLY. I usually add water through a strainer. This will cause less sand to get kicked up and helps to keep the water a little less cloudy. Adding the rock BEFORE the sand is preferred, this gives your rock a more stable foundation. I will tell you from experience, I have done both, so either can be done, but rock first is easier. I, too, think that a sand bed should be 2-3" deep, especially for a beginner. I have found the best calculation to be around 1lb of sand per gallon. If you have a local reef club in your area, you can add bagged live sand such as CaribSea and see if you can get a few cups of live sand from peoples tanks and place that on top of the bagged sand.
You have a test kit, what brand? Are they test strips or test tubes that you must add water and chemicals to?
Once you swap out to sand, add in a raw shrimp and start the cycling process. There are many great threads on this forum and others as to how to properly cycle a tank with raw shrimp and NOT fish, please look into this method, it is much more humane. The idea behind using fish is basically you're placing them in the tank to produce waste. As they produce waste, it turns to ammonia, then nitrite, etc and kick starts the cycling process. The problem with this is that the fish are stuck in ammonia and it burns their gills and 95% of the time, very painfully kills them. Raw shrimp will decay and produce the same ammonia and kick start the cycling process without killing the fish.
If you have any questions about cycling your tank and/or what your readings are/should be, feel free to ask at any time. Many people post pictures of their test kit readings the first few days as they can be tricky to read sometimes.
Since you're cycling your tank, I'd recommend adding more rock now, you can get uncured or "dead" LR. If you wait until after your tank is cycled to add more rock, you'll need to add cured rock, which is usually more expensive.
As for water and salt:
Get yourself RO/DI water, or at the very least RO water. Don't get in the habit of using tap water. You can purchase RO water from most reputable local fish stores (LFS) and some Walmart's carry it as well (not if you live on Long Island). Look into purchasing a RO/DI unit, it will save you money in the long run. I happen to like Coralife's model and Water General's model. Tap water contains many unnecessary and sometimes harmful substances such as copper and chlorine that you don't want to introduce to your tank, especially once it gets more established.
As for salt, everyone has their preferred brand. If you live in an area that has many LFS's, you can shop around for the best salt, best brand, etc. If you live in an area that does not have many stores, stick with a national brand that is easy to find such as Instant Ocean (IO) or IO Reef Crystals.For cycling your tank, go with I), or Reef Crystals, as they are both easy to find, consistent and cheap. I've even seen people using *****'s brand of salt to cycle a tank. Do not cycle a tank with expensive salt, you'll be wasting your money.
Get yourself a refractometer before adding any critters to the tank. The glass hydrometer will work for now, but a refractometer is much, MUCH more accurate.
Don't be too upset that you were given bad information by your LFS, unfortunately good LFS's are hard to find, you're not alone. The best thing you can do is ask questions here and see if there are local reef clubs in your area. Where are you located?
So, can you tell us what equipment you were sold for this tank (filter, heater, lights, etc)?
Just wondering where you got that stat. As you may know the way tanks were cycled when the hobby first started was to add a fish, most of the time a Damsel because of their hardiness. Not condoning this method, but it was the accepted way and I don't remember people losing as many fish as you say here.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mr. Limpid http:///forum/thread/382739/help-with-cycling-tank/20#post_3342714
I'm interested in the burning of the gills also, because when I QT my fish most of the time my ammonia is at .25. I use Amquil and water changes never can get down lower than .25.
Honestly, it's a common "statistical expression" for lack of a better way of explaining it. I am aware that this is the way tanks used to be cycled, but I for one would not condone it and have seen many people kill a good portion of the damsels when using this method, especially people with zero experience in the hobby. That being said, I've also seen people use damsels to cycle and not kill them, but these are usually people that have some knowledge in the hobby.
Mr Limpid, you're using a QT, it's cycled and has beneficial bacteria so 1) the ammonia won't stick around for long and b) you're adding Amquel and doing a water change quick enough that you're not seeing any ill effects.
Have you guys ever seen a fish that has had its gills burned due to high ammonia levels (more than .25ppm)? It's ugly.
btldreef
Moderator
Quote:
Originally Posted by mkroher http:///forum/thread/382739/help-with-cycling-tank/20#post_3342689
wow. another fail start.. jeeze....
Was this really necessary? Many people overlook this area of the forum, or don't even know it exists. Steering them here is exceptable but basically saying they've "failed" because they overlooked this isn't really the warm welcoming one is looking for, especially after 29 posts of people trying to help out.
Originally Posted by mkroher http:///forum/thread/382739/help-with-cycling-tank/20#post_3342689
wow. another fail start.. jeeze....
Was this really necessary? Many people overlook this area of the forum, or don't even know it exists. Steering them here is exceptable but basically saying they've "failed" because they overlooked this isn't really the warm welcoming one is looking for, especially after 29 posts of people trying to help out.
acrylic51
Active Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by BTLDreef http:///forum/thread/382739/help-with-cycling-tank/20#post_3343045
Honestly, it's a common "statistical expression" for lack of a better way of explaining it. I am aware that this is the way tanks used to be cycled, but I for one would not condone it and have seen many people kill a good portion of the damsels when using this method, especially people with zero experience in the hobby. That being said, I've also seen people use damsels to cycle and not kill them, but these are usually people that have some knowledge in the hobby.
Mr Limpid, you're using a QT, it's cycled and has beneficial bacteria so 1) the ammonia won't stick around for long and b) you're adding Amquel and doing a water change quick enough that you're not seeing any ill effects.
Have you guys ever seen a fish that has had its gills burned due to high ammonia levels (more than .25ppm)? It's ugly.
I have see the gills burned....but as Henry pointed out way back in the beginning this is how it was done. I think the problem is a lot of times people are really educated in the correct way....I've never lost damsels during a cycle using this method, and you are correct in the individual having an idea what is going on. I also don't dump tons of damsels into a setup to cycle. I start my cycle small maybe 3-4 and then increase the load depending on tank size. The idea or thought of seeing nasty, smelly shrimp floating in my tank.....
turns me off....I'd rather see a little movement in the tank, but again be aware of what is going on inside the tank.....
Originally Posted by BTLDreef http:///forum/thread/382739/help-with-cycling-tank/20#post_3343045
Honestly, it's a common "statistical expression" for lack of a better way of explaining it. I am aware that this is the way tanks used to be cycled, but I for one would not condone it and have seen many people kill a good portion of the damsels when using this method, especially people with zero experience in the hobby. That being said, I've also seen people use damsels to cycle and not kill them, but these are usually people that have some knowledge in the hobby.
Mr Limpid, you're using a QT, it's cycled and has beneficial bacteria so 1) the ammonia won't stick around for long and b) you're adding Amquel and doing a water change quick enough that you're not seeing any ill effects.
Have you guys ever seen a fish that has had its gills burned due to high ammonia levels (more than .25ppm)? It's ugly.
I have see the gills burned....but as Henry pointed out way back in the beginning this is how it was done. I think the problem is a lot of times people are really educated in the correct way....I've never lost damsels during a cycle using this method, and you are correct in the individual having an idea what is going on. I also don't dump tons of damsels into a setup to cycle. I start my cycle small maybe 3-4 and then increase the load depending on tank size. The idea or thought of seeing nasty, smelly shrimp floating in my tank.....