Newbie: JBJ 12 gallon nano build

[ahoDMV]

I want to have a coral reef tank in the future but right now I just want to get the tank cycled with sand, base rocks, and live rocks.

I just mixed my water with salt how long should I let it sit? and will i be able to get the rocks today? and have everything in my tank by tonight?

[ahoDMV]

Got my rocks and got my salt and water mixed.

Hopefully I got everything set up correctly.

This what it looks like now.

[ahoDMV]

The tank cleared up pretty well today. The sand seems to be settled now.

[ahoDMV]

I decided to move my rocks around today and it got really cloudy again. Is there anything I can do to make it less cloudy?

[Cfox]

TIME is $$$$$$

[bskerrichard27]

Overtime it will get better

[Jmkb02]

You can turn your Powerheads off for a bit but it will clear up eventually

[ahoDMV]

Thanks for the tip. Moved the rock around this morning and the cloudy water has somewhat gone away. Will probably move the rocks around again...

Do i need to check my parameters every other day? and Should i do a partial water change at the end of the week?

[bskerrichard27]

What is yur amonia source?

[NyteGTI]

Originally Posted by ahoDMV

I dont have a rodi so I have to use either tap or distilled.

is it bad to use distilled?

no distilled is fine, but it'll be cheaper down the road ot get a RODI unit since you'll probably catch the bug and want to go bigger soon lol.

Originally Posted by ahoDMV

Did I buy the right pump to replace my original pump?

the MJ900 is perfect for the NC12

Originally Posted by ahoDMV

Thanks for the tip. Moved the rock around this morning and the cloudy water has somewhat gone away. Will probably move the rocks around again...

Do i need to check my parameters every other day? and Should i do a partial water change at the end of the week?

drop in an uncooked shrimp into a filter bag or directly in your tank and let it start to rot. it'll provide the ammonia you need. another alternative is to go buy the "janitorial strength" ammonia from ace hardware. 1.5ml/10G is good to get the cycle going. once you do that go ahead and check your parameters every day for a few days to see how its doing. if it's not converting ammonia yet you can go ahead and test every 4-5 days.

[ahoDMV]

Is it okay to throw in a thawed shrimp in the tank to help with cycling? and should the skin be peeled or just throw the whole shrimp in?

[NyteGTI]

Originally Posted by ahoDMV

Is it okay to throw in a thawed shrimp in the tank to help with cycling? and should the skin be peeled or just throw the whole shrimp in?

as long as it's raw, uncooked yea go for it. it doesn't even have to be defrosted. you can peel it or not. either way it will rot away creating ammonia

[ahoDMV]

got it! thanks NyteGTI

[ahoDMV]

Add the shrimp in the tank (6/19/12)

Checked my parameters today (6/20/12):
PH - 8.0
Ammonia - 0.25
Nitrite - 2.0
Nitrate - 20.0
Temp - 80

[spoonman]

Looks like its moving along. You might want to consider putting the shrimp in a media bag or old nylon. It will be easier to remove the remains that way.

[ahoDMV]

Spoon man do you think I can just put the shrimp in a ziplock bag and just drop it in the tank? Don't have any media bags or nylon available

[spoonman]

You need to use something that the water can flow through.

[ahoDMV]

So the shrimp seem to look a little funky.

I couldn't find nylon or anything so I poked holes on the ziplock bag and left it open and hanging

[ahoDMV]

Should I do a water change during my cycle? It has almost been a week it's been running and a couple days since the shrimp has been in there

[Jmkb02]

What are your numbers?