Is It That Time to add fish???

[badfish]

well my tank has been cycling for the past 4 1/2 weeks using a fishless cycle. after two weeks i added 20LR and 30lb Base. I saw both my ammonia, and nitrite peak and they are both at 0. The Ammonia has been at zero to trace a mounts for at least a week and a half, and my nitrite has been at 0 for three days. PH is a little low at 8.0. Would i be able to add 2 O. Clowns and a small clean up crew? Should i do a water change first. Im so happy cause i can see the light at the end of the tunnel.

 

[seaham358]

Any nitrate?
Sounds good glad to see your taking your time..... The only thing that i see is that you say trace amounts of ammonia still. In a cycled tank you should see 0 amm unless there is something wrong with the tank.
I would play it safe and wait till at least the weekend before adding the fish, checking for amm every day and if you see none add the fish.....
A small WC can be done and a small clean up to start.. in a new tank there may not be enough food/algae for them so start small.
Read up on proper acclimation before adding them..... Good Luck..

What the 60lbs soon ls??? have you added that yet? If not i would hold off on the fish till after you add the LS.....

 

[badfish]

Sorry, i was typing fast. My ammonia has been reading zero for a week, i just looked at my log. when my ammonia was declining my nitrite and nitrate spiked, the nitrite was almost at zero three days ago, and was at zero today. My Nitrate is between 5-10 using the seachem test kit. When i said 60lb of soon to be Livesand, i meant i have 60 lbs of sand and my liverock is currently seeding it, i can see how it is confusing, The sand was added at initial fill. Thanks for your help seaham, i will wait until the weekend.

 

[seaham358]

As long as the amm and nitrite is at 0 i would add a clean up crew and fish. And if nitrate is up then a water change is a good idea also. good luck

 

[malkore]

I'd add the clean up crew first. Its cheaper, and just as susceptible to death if your water isn't actually ready. I think it probably is, but I like to play the cautious card.
Dump in some hermits, a cleaner shrimp, let em go a few days, and if all's well, get your clowns.

 

[badfish]

what would you recommend for a cleanup crew, diatoms are starting to form. I got 5 blue legs, and two margareta snails, how much more should i get, or is this enough for now.

 

[EJS4]

I would let them go for a few days, their not going affect water quality, no real bioload. Have you got your pH up yet, that would be my concern. Eventually you'll need more snails.

 

[badfish]

PH is still around 8.0, i have powerheads gently breaking water and a glass canopy, any idea on how to raise the PH?

 

[EJS4]

Have you tried leaving the canopy open. Glass traps CO2 which can lower pH. Here how to test. Take a cup of tank water test pH then put the cup of water outside exposed to breeze. After an hour test pH of water in cup. If pH went up CO2 is a problem.
What type of water are you using? when I was using tap water I had to use a buffer to keep the pH up when I switched to DI water buffer was not necessary.

 

[badfish]

I will try that, that is a good idea. My main concern is my cat, i have seen him jump up on it before, so i want to be careful, i was thinkin of using part eggcrate and part glass. I know its bad, but i used tap for my initial fill up, but i will be using ro/di water for top offs and water changes from now on. I had my water tested for phosphate at my LFS and there is no trace, i dont know if this is relevant for PH however.

 

[EJS4]

In this case its not the phosphates but the type of salts in the water. Although the pH of your water may be 7 if there are natural buffers in the water it will be harder to change the pH. DI removes the ions that buffer the water so its easier to change the pH and maintain.

 

[badfish]

i checked it last night and it is now at 8.1, so it appears to be rising.

 

[EJS4]

Problem solved. shopping time.

 

[cardinal]

watch for them nitrates..
personally i think they should rise more yet ..after a cycle...
and can be hard to get rid off...
above 20ppm starts to cause fish stress
after my cycle i need a nitrate remover in my filter ..seemed to work..
although some people do say nitrates r not a problem..
but it IS a indication of overall poor water quality..
good luck and let us know how u go on with your clowns..
pics if possible

 

[seaham358]

Did u add the fish yet..... IMO 20 ppm is not bad in a FO system, in a reef then there can be issues. Keep us posted

 

[badfish]

Yes, i added the fish at the end of last week, and all is well, my ammonia and nitrite are at 0, p 8.1, and nitrate is around 15. I am preparing for my water change as we speak, i added six gallons to a ten gallon tank, added the salt and put a heater in, i will change it tommorow. Is this sufficient for a water change, i have a 50 gallon tank, but only 40 gallons is actually in the tank after displacement. How often do you think i should do water changes, i heard most people say 2-4 weeks. TIA

 

[GoodFish]

in addition to badfish's post....for a water change, can i just change the water in my sump and will that be the same thing??

 

[EJS4]

Confused about your question goodfish. Changing the water in the sump is changing the water in the tank since they are connected. When I change water, I use the sump so there is less stress on the fish.
This is probably obvious but I marked the sump with a marker so that when I siphon out the water, I know how much water to remove. That way I dont have to use buckets and measure. I have a full line (determined by how much space I need in sump when power goes out so that sump does not over flow) and a water change line, no measuring required

 

[GoodFish]

okay bieng confused still helped me out thnks

 

[seaham358]

6 is fine if your doing smaller amounts then i would say you may need to do them every 2-3 weeks depending on your nitrate readings.