Cycle complete, but still a little fuzzy.

[Zer0]

Ok so, two days ago, my cycle completed. Nitrites 0, Ammonia 0. And they've been 0 for the past two days. Now i have a couple of questions regarding what to do now. First off, my pH is at 7.8, and im really confused why its still there. The surface of my tank is not stagnant at ANY area. Every single bit of the surface water is moving around constantly. How do i bring the pH up into the 8.0+ zone? Also, when my cycle was completed, my nitrates were pretty high. Around 40ppm. Now, two days AFTER my cycle was complete, i did a 50% water change. I went back to test it like 5 minutes ago, and it still says my nitrates are at 40ppm. Everything else is still at zero though. How do i get rid of nitrates that high? I tried the 50% water change, but obviously that didnt work, at all. So i need some help on that. Also, how do i get my pH higher to where i need it. I don't want to start throwing chemicals in the water, but i will if i need to. I have a bottle of pH increase, that i could use if need be, but i think there are other ways. Need some assistance here, so thanks in advance to all that help me.

 

[thincat]

Okay I've been away for a bit so clue me in on a few things.
1) what did you use for your ammonia source?
2) How old is your testing chemicals?
3) What is the temp. of your AQ?

 

[Zer0]

I used uncured LR as my ammonia source.

I just bought my API test kit for saltwater, and the expiration date is not until 2010. Or at least i think thats what it says lol.

My temperature is 80F

 

[CaptainAhab]

7.8 isn't a killer. What time of day are you taking the readings? PH will fluctuate. The usual advice is that a constant PH in an acceptable range is better than adding chemicals and bouncing it around. Certainly can't argue with that.

re nitrates: You may still have decay happening from the rock but enough bacteria to consume the ongoing decay. As such your nitrates will continue to rise though rising at that extreme is odd.

 

[Zer0]

Alright, i was testing the pH around 5am so i don't really know whats up with that. But is there anything i could get for the tank that would chow down on some things on the rock? Like any shrimp or snails etc.. But it isn't hard to believe that my nitrates could possibly be coming from my rocks because it did have an abundance of death on it. Any suggestions as to how i could lower the nitrates?

 

[CaptainAhab]

macro in your sump, water changes, a denitrator will help with existing nitrates. Food quality and quantity, skimmer, purigen, GAC, macro, denitrator will all help with limiting nutrients and the creation of nitrates.

PH will test lower at night and early in the morning.

 

[Zer0]

Alright, so what do you mean by a denitrator? Could i use something like AmQuel+ ?? I know its a chemical, but as of now, its the only thing that i have that "says" it will lower nitrates. I don't have an lfs that sells macro either, so i would have to order it online, and i would rather order things in bulk then just as needed. There's nothng in the tank so i dont feed it.

 

[CaptainAhab]

Hopefully you do still have decay going on or else your bacteria will starve.. With no fish , they still need an ammonia source to eat and live.

Read the bottle closely, their claim isn't that it removes (which is doesn't).
'A primary purpose in using AmQuel+ in aquariums and ponds is to protect aquarium and pond fishes and invertebrates by quickly eliminating (actually detoxifying) the harmful components of the biological nitrogen cycle - ammonia, nitrites, and nitrates, without slowing the nitrogen cycle'.

Google sulfur denitrator....

You can pick up a bunch of macro on RC from sellers for about $15 shipped if intrested

 

[Zer0]

Alright then, whats RC? Also, do you think that getting fish with this high nitrates would be bad? Or could i go out and get the fish i wanted?

 

[Zer0]

Also, another quick question. As soon as i do a water change, how long after i just did a water change, would it be safe to complete another water change?

 

[CaptainAhab]

Reef Central Online Community

My FOWLR hoovers in the 40 range when I get lazy and miss a pwc (or 2). I don't do corals but my inverts and fish seem happy.

I have macro (well sometimes) and it grows like a weed (yea nitrates) but I get frustrated with it invading my return section etc and rip it out. Then I give in and get some more.. instead of fixing the problem with the sump baffle (there's a lesson and personal insight there somewhere)

I'd suggest maybe doing another big pwc and see if they come down. Or starting with a hardy species and not inverts since they are likely to come from a low nitrate environment if it's a good lfs.

 

[Zer0]

Ok that sounds good. Thanks for all that help. I've come to learn that ocellaris clownfish are pretty hardy. Is this correct? These were two fish i planned on getting. But aside from that, i wasn't going to get any corals or inverts until my nitrates droped down to at least 15 or below. I just wanted two fish two start out with and see how they fair in the tank.

 

[CaptainAhab]

From a nitrate perspective I agree. I'd never advise any fish in a tank showing ammonia or nitrites though.

Good luck w/ it

 

[Zer0]

Alright then. But also, i have been testing both ammonia and nitrites for the past two days and have not had a single bit of either of them. And i agree with you as well, no matter how little the level is, i would never put anything in the tank with ammonia or nitrites.

Thanks for you're help Captain. Appreciated very much. Thincat as well.

 

[m3drver]

Zer0,

I'll have some macro ( Chaeto ) for you as well as the other stuff when you are ready...

 

[Zer0]

Really!? That's awesome! Thanks so much!

 

[match55]

someone just gave me the site last night for macro algae and I think the price r pretty good.
ReefCleaners.org | Clean Up Crews and Macro Algae - Plants/Macroalgae