Did I miss the ammonia peak?

[TeamTrash]

I'm cycling my 28 gallon tank using the raw shrimp method. The shrimp went in Thursday last week. On Saturday ammonia was at 0.5. Thursday morning it was at 2.0. This evening (Friday) it was down to 0.5 again. Nitrite is at 5.0 (tested it for the first time today), and nitrate is at 4.0 (also tested for the first time today). My substrate is aragonite, and I have app. 20 lbs of base rock and 8 lbs of live rock. I thought I was going to see the ammonia peak at 4, but could I have missed it in the 36 hours I didn't test The shrimp itself has gone from translucent to pink to silky-fuzz coated to producing some "air bubbles" and now the silky fuzz is deteriorating and looking kind of gross . Quite fascinating, actually I don't see any algae, though. Just wondering if my cycle sounds to be going okay.

Also, I'm debating what should be the first I put in the tank once the cycle is complete. I'm thinking some snails (how many?) and a two hermit crabs. Is that too many? Also, I'm planning on converting my FOWLR to a reef tank, so I wonder if I need to be careful with the kind of snails/crabs I put in. I'm planning on getting a couple of clown fish and a cleaner shrimp after New Years. Sounds good?

 

[crister13]

I would get the clowns first. If you get the snails without enough algae theyll die. Also, if th ecrabs dont have enough to eat theyll die.

 

[TeamTrash]

Oooh, hadn't thought about that! What if I get a goby and a snail and a crab? We are going to be gone for two weeks over Christmas and I don't want to chance the clowns with my neighbor looking after them...

 

[crister13]

Depends on the goby. If its a sand sifting goby they need very established tanks.

 

[TeamTrash]

Well, I just want to put a cheaper fish in there while we r gone. I was going to get a sand sifting goby, but I wonder if a cuc consisting of a couple of hermit crabs, snails and a cleaner shrimp (that one down the road) wouldn't be just fine. I just don't want to overstock the tank... So, max 3 fish and then the cuc, but is the above cuc too big for a 28 gallon tank?