Still cycling....is it suppused to look nasty

[pearsont74]

OK...my tank is hopefully in its 3rd week of cycling and the tank has alot of brown, some purple and alittle green algae...Its hard to tell if the water is clear or not (goin to get a glass cleaner thingy today, on of those maganites(SP))
I also plan to do about a 10gal water change....will this help?
BTW...I have 80 gal + about 15-20 in my sump
ETSS Reef devil skimmer and aobut 10lb of LR rubble in my sump.

 

[steve-s]

It can get pretty nasty depending on what's used as the ammonia source and amount. The algaes are part and parcel of a new tank, especially nearing the end of the cycle. If you used tap water as the initial fill, there will be additional nutrients fueling the algae. Once the cycle is done, do a large water change with well aged/aerated SW to correct any chem issues. You can then consider a clen up crew addition to help with the algae. Looking at your tag line though, you already have those?

What are your readings?

Cheers
Steve

 

[pearsont74]

lol....unfortantely some have died off...
I dont know the numbres but my nittrites were high and so was my ammonia...PH is about right (8.1ish)
I did start with tap water but did a partially what change with Sw from the LFS and just got about 10 gals of distilled to mix for another water change...should I want though until my levels come down? also should i remove some of teh lil crabs that have died?
some of LR has white junk on it and its annoing me...is that common when cycling with LR?

 

[steve-s]

Sounds like you are using freshly harvested rock? You should really be doing daily water changes if you want to preserve the hitchikers within the system. Especially since you have "added" life to the soup.

Best suggestion really is take back the animals you have urchased and use the credit to get an ammonia, nitrite and nitrate test kits. This is the only way of knowing how the cycle is progressing. With the die off from the rock you really don't need any additional ammonia sources. They will only elevate the nutrient increasing the die off increasing the "nasty" appearance. Doing daily water changes to keep the ammonia and trites lower will mean a higher survival rate but will not prolong the cycle time.. The "white junk" can be siphoned off at each water change which will help improve toxic conditions.

Anything that has died should definately be removed, it will only add to the ammonia build up.

Cheers
Steve

 

[dr.diggler]

While cycling, if you are having a issue with alage I would just keep your lights off, reduce the chance of any alage blooms. When you are doing your water changes vacuum the sand bed to remove anything that died off. I just put my hand in the tank and make a fanning motion which will remove anything that is dead off the rock.

 

[pearsont74]

ok...a few things to update you all on this
the smell was from the top of my skimmer leakin abit....ooo....stinky...and I fixed that and cleaned the skimmer (have cleaned it twice already cause it just got nasty looking in the top cup. It if doing a good job i assume)
ok.....the tank is definitly looking better and life it looking like it coming out. no more white junk on the LR.
Tested my water and my SS is 1.024
PH is about 8.1
Ammonia is at 0.02
Nitrite is about 10
Nitrate is about 20
I plan to get some more water at the LFS and do another water change but this weekend i did about a 5gal water change with distilled water.
I added some carbon to see if it helps clear up the water some.
Should I use any type of mechincal filter in my sump....like a filter pad or the filter floss?
and yes steve i know I shouldnt ahve gotten all those critters...most of the hermits are still there and I got rid of the fish. lost only one shrimp and a few crabs that came on the rock.

 

[steve-s]

I added some carbon to see if it helps clear up the water some.
Should I use any type of mechincal filter in my sump....like a filter pad or the filter floss?

The carbon will pretty much do the same thing as the floss would to a certain degree. You can add some floss to help remove larger free floating debris, just be sure to rinse it regularly. If the skimmer's working efficiently, the floss really isn't needed though.

Cheers
Steve

 

[pearsont74]

thanks for the info....