Hi experienced people!
I have been following Eco23's fishless cycling 'bible' and things are happening! Very excited but very new to this and I don't know what I should do at this stage...
Im at a point where I put ammonia in daily (to 4ppm) and 24 hrs later = 0ish.
I tested Nitrite =0 and Nitrate = ~80ppm. I haven't done any water changes. Should I? What am I looking for re Nitrate levels (how many ppm?) before I can say my tank has finished cycling and I can add some of my fish?
Thanks
Lynne
If your adding ammonia and its gone 24 hrs later than your cycled .
with 80ppm of nitrates I would suggest a 75% water change your looking for a range in the 0 to 20 ppm range but the closer to 0 the better .
You should have about a lb to a lb and a half of rock per gallon if you have less rock decrease the amount of fish you add as you don't have a lot of surface area for the bio load to support your fish .
when adding fish go slow you don't want to overload the tank sending it back into a cycle possibly killing fish , depending on the size tank you have will determine how many fish to add 1g to 30g 1 small fish per week giving the bio load a chance to build , Be sure not to over stock !
With a bigger tank 40g and up you have a choice 3 small fish or 1 med fish if your adding med fish give it 2 weeks between fish so the bio load can build , be sure not to over stock !
I myself always waited about 6 months before adding the bigger fish
it's like a safety net giving the tank time to build a nice healthy strong bio load . a lot of the bigger fish cost more and no one wants to loose one of those right off the bat.
take your time don't rush you will find your fish to be more healthy and it will also give you time to decide your next fish , rushing will only bring up the fatality rate !
corals don't really take from the bio load so you could add a few frags along with the fish .
would love to see some beginning picts than as the tank progresses ,
nothing is more satisfying than looking back to see how things grew out , over a period of time .
Good luck and enjoy your new tank
