new to the hobbie and new tank

[TomStav]

no not yet i just built my tank on weds and i put more salt water in it today before asking the quest dummy me lol is that going to affect my cycle or not and if so how can i fix it

Do you have a test kit? If not it HAS to be your next purchase, you can't run a tank without one.

At this point you basically want to add some ammonia, this will get the cycle started. You could just throw a raw shrimp in there (from the supermarket), as it decays it will produce ammonia. Then you test the water weekly until your ammonia, nitrates, nitrites are all at zero, this will take a month or so. When it is at zero your tank has the needed bacteria to breakdown fish waste (ammonia) and your tank is ready for its first fish. When you a half way through your cycle you can start to get a clean up crew (hermit crabs, snails etc), then when it's cycled and you are getting fish be sure to add one at a time so the bacteria can grow to combat the added ammonia.

 

[joseramentol]

Do you have a test kit? If not it HAS to be your next purchase, you can't run a tank without one.

At this point you basically want to add some ammonia, this will get the cycle started. You could just throw a raw shrimp in there (from the supermarket), as it decays it will produce ammonia. Then you test the water weekly until your ammonia, nitrates, nitrites are all at zero, this will take a month or so. When it is at zero your tank has the needed bacteria to breakdown fish waste (ammonia) and your tank is ready for its first fish. When you a half way through your cycle you can start to get a clean up crew (hermit crabs, snails etc), then when it's cycled and you are getting fish be sure to add one at a time so the bacteria can grow to combat the added ammonia.

thats great help man i owe you big time lol also can i buy the bacteria or just do it with the shrimp its the first time i hear about this,also my nitrates,nitrites how do i get them to 0 is that a special liquid and what happens if lets say 1 of them is at 0 and the other 1 is not how do i fix that and whats the amonia level supposed to be 0 ?

 

[TomStav]

thats great help man i owe you big time lol also can i buy the bacteria or just do it with the shrimp its the first time i hear about this,also my nitrates,nitrites how do i get them to 0 is that a special liquid and what happens if lets say 1 of them is at 0 and the other 1 is not how do i fix that and whats the amonia level supposed to be 0 ?

You have all the bacteria in your live rock, that's why its "live". You just need to give that bacteria some food in the way of ammonia, do this by throwing in a raw shrimp. Your nitrates, nitrites, and ammonia will all spike, you want them to go down to 0 before adding fish, your ph should be around 8.2. It will take time but that's what you have to do. I always think that the less chemicals you put in to the tank the better it is for your fish. Just take your time with it all otherwise you will have loads of problems, I'm currently setting up a 55g with a 10g sump, it's taken me months to plan it, I haven't even got the tank yet! You can check it out if you like here http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f45/55g-folr-build-diy-ats-184556.html

Before you buy that 75g have a think about what you want, trust me it will save you a lot of time, I went through 3 tanks in my first two years with SW before I got a setup I was happy with.

As far as fixing the levels, that is a HUGE question with many answers, your best bet is to worry about that once your cycle is finished. Simply put, the easiest way to fix your levels is to do a water change, but that doesn't get to the source of the problem, cross that bridge when you come to it.

There's sooo much to learn in this hobby, that's what makes it so addicting.

 

[Sniperhank]

thats great help man i owe you big time lol also can i buy the bacteria or just do it with the shrimp its the first time i hear about this,also my nitrates,nitrites how do i get them to 0 is that a special liquid and what happens if lets say 1 of them is at 0 and the other 1 is not how do i fix that and whats the amonia level supposed to be 0 ?

For your cycle just toss in a shrimp or pure ammonia. It'll go from there. Bacteria will grow to eat the ammonia and produce nitrite. Bacteria will grow to eat the nitrite and produce nitrate. You remove nitrates via your water changes. If you have a fuge, the algae in there will consume them. If you have algae in your tank, it can throw your nitrate readings off as it will be consuming them, but when you clean the algae out of the tank the nitrates will rise.

 

[AquaRick]

Take a look at a fishless cycle:
The (almost) Complete Guide and FAQ to Fishless Cycling

 

[joseramentol]

Take a look at a fishless cycle:
The (almost) Complete Guide and FAQ to Fishless Cycling

that is perfect it answers all my questions

 

[joseramentol]

that setup looks amazing hopefully one day i will get to that level loli will go buy my dead shrimp tomorrow lol

 

[AquaRick]

that setup looks amazing hopefully one day i will get to that level loli will go buy my dead shrimp tomorrow lol

If you have a local Ace hardware, I'd suggest getting the pure ammonia. Much easier to dose with and goes a lot more quickly.

 

[joseramentol]

If you have a local Ace hardware, I'd suggest getting the pure ammonia. Much easier to dose with and goes a lot more quickly.

yea but how do i know how much to put in does it come with a measuring thing and i believe its 4ppm or something like that right?

 

[AquaRick]

yea but how do i know how much to put in does it come with a measuring thing and i believe its 4ppm or something like that right?

A little goes a long way. Start out with a teaspoon and test. Add as needed and remember how much you need to dose to 4ppm.

 

[joseramentol]

For your cycle just toss in a shrimp or pure ammonia. It'll go from there. Bacteria will grow to eat the ammonia and produce nitrite. Bacteria will grow to eat the nitrite and produce nitrate. You remove nitrates via your water changes. If you have a fuge, the algae in there will consume them. If you have algae in your tank, it can throw your nitrate readings off as it will be consuming them, but when you clean the algae out of the tank the nitrates will rise.

do i throw the shrimp in the tank or do i put it in a little bag with wholes and how many just 1, and is this a 1 time process or am i ganna have to do it more than once

 

[TomStav]

do i throw the shrimp in the tank or do i put it in a little bag with wholes and how many just 1, and is this a 1 time process or am i ganna have to do it more than once

You can put it in a bag or a net to make less mess, just 1 will be fine, keep checking the water until the ammonia spikes then remove it.

 

[joseramentol]

finally did my first water change n it was succesful i had to do it because my salt was off the charts its supposed to b between 1.020 & 1.025 correct?

 

[Sniperhank]

1.025 - 1.028

 

[TomStav]

finally did my first water change n it was succesful i had to do it because my salt was off the charts its supposed to b between 1.020 & 1.025 correct?

I always keep my tanks between 1.022 & 1.026, if your using a hydrometer and not a refractometer I suggest 1.023 - 1.024 as they are not very accurate.

Have you added an ammonia source yet? Got a test kit?

 

[joseramentol]

I always keep my tanks between 1.022 & 1.026, if your using a hydrometer and not a refractometer I suggest 1.023 - 1.024 as they are not very accurate.

Have you added an ammonia source yet? Got a test kit?

yea im using a hydrometer and i measured around 1.023,i havent gotten my test kit but i took my water to my local shop and they test it for free and my ammonia was super high so they gave me bio-spira and told me the bacteria should start lowering everything and about 3 days my tank should be done

 

[AquaRick]

finally did my first water change n it was succesful i had to do it because my salt was off the charts its supposed to b between 1.020 & 1.025 correct?

Aim for 1.026. It's the salinity of natural sea water.

 

[joseramentol]

is this light any good and would it sustain life?
Photo Gallery
http://www.ebay.com/itm/20-T5-Aquar...159?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item460183426f

 

[Sniperhank]

I want to say that is an aquaticlife 2 bulb unit. They can snap together for larger units, up to 6 bulb I think.

 

[joseramentol]

i believe ima go with this 1
20" T5 Aquarium Light HO 72W Cichlid Marine Reef LED 4 Lamps 18W Odyssea Nano | eBay