please help to make sure i cycle my tank right

[djplace]

i had my 65 gallon up for a while but i couldnt keep anything alive for a good period of time and my nitrates were unbelievably high. after my stuff basically died i decided to start over. when i first started some old employees of my lfs (whom are no longer working there, what a surprise) told me that if i added some bacteria i would be able to put fish in the next week. to my surprise they had no idea what they were talking about and i couldnt get my tank to stabalize after that. so i started over. i just added new sand and cleaned all my rock and added all new water. i got rid of what was alive first. my tank has been up for about 3 days now with just water and rock. i have a red sea protien skimmer. yes i know i need a better one but that is what i was able to afford. i will be testing my tank tomorrow to see if my ammonia is up yet. i would like some help making sure i make it thru the cycling period okay. i added a bit of fish food to try to help it along some but not much. i also have not turned my lights back on yet but i have 4 t5 39w bulbs 2 white 2 blue and plan on getting one more set of 2. i am planning on having a refugium in my sump. should i start that now or wait? here is a beginning pic of my tank. thanks i learned a very valuble and expensive lesson. DONT RUSH!!!!
I did read the tips on this forum.

 

[fretfreak13]

And a peice of raw table shrimp, like the kind you eat in a shrimp cocktail. It'll help start your cycle When you see the ammonia spike, remove it. =) You've come to a great place to get help. I wouldn't have been able to do anything without the people on this site. =)

 

[mecc]

I'm new to the salt world myself been reading and posting my own wquestions I saw this post and had a question concerning cycling with the shrimp.
Do you test the water daily till you see a spike in amonia, and do you do a water change at that point and if so how much of a water change?

 

[djplace]

im not that new at the saltwater game. i just made this post so i could get good advice due to the last advice i got when starting a cycle. i do know that you dont wanna do a water change until your ammonia and nitrite have dropped to 0 at that time you should see a nitrate spike. that is what i have read but i guess i could be wrong.

 

[fretfreak13]

Nah, personally I wouldn't waste the test chemicals on daily tests if theres nothing expensive (meaning hitch hikers) living in your tank that you can kill. Give it about a week and then test it to see where you're at.
And you're right. Don't do a water change until the end, because that's just messing up the bacteria that's trying to grow. Your cycle never really stops, but the spiking toxic part should be over within six weeks at the most.

 

[srfisher17]

Originally Posted by Fretfreak13
http:///forum/post/3163877
Nah, personally I wouldn't waste the test chemicals on daily tests if theres nothing expensive (meaning hitch hikers) living in your tank that you can kill. Give it about a week and then test it to see where you're at.
And you're right. Don't do a water change until the end, because that's just messing up the bacteria that's trying to grow. Your cycle never really stops, but the spiking toxic part should be over within six weeks at the most.
Water changes won't harm the good bacteria colonies, they live in the live rock, substrate, filter media, etc., not in the water column. This is one of the biggest misconceptions in the hobby. IMO. But, unless something is out of whack, there is no reason to change water while a tank is cycling.

 

[peasofme]

i've tried cycling with shrimp 2x. both times left my tank covered in slime. horrible. i'd rather use flake food. think about what would happen to your tank if u left some flakes in there. then think about the shrimp.

 

[mkroher]

Originally Posted by srfisher17
http:///forum/post/3164183
Water changes won't harm the good bacteria colonies, they live in the live rock, substrate, filter media, etc., not in the water column. This is one of the biggest misconceptions in the hobby. IMO. But, unless something is out of whack, there is no reason to change water while a tank is cycling.
you are right, the majority of the bacteria live on the surface areas, not so much the water column.
but when you do a water change during an ammonia spike, you're removing ammonia for the bacteria to feed on. so basically your bacteria colony will be smaller after it cycles.
I personally wouldn't do a water change during ammonia or nitrite spike. That's just me.