yeah when it is cycled i will move the fish and nems.and all the rock.. but i want most of that rock in the 50 gal now so it can go under the rock i have in it.. just wanted to know if i will kill the system by removing the rock. so with the sand and the canister filter on the 30 gal do you think i can take out some rock?
i need a little help please with tank upgrade
- Thread starter bigford84
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mr_X
Aquarium Advice Addict
eh..i would wait till it's cycled, then move everything at once, then aquascape. if you put your existing rock from the 30 in now, it will go through the cycle of the new tank and many of the things on it will not survive.
Soundtrigger
Aquarium Advice Regular
- Joined
- Dec 1, 2010
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- 51
Mr X everything you've told him was great advice it's good to know some people still no how to doit right
well i started the cycle on the 1st.. i think its going good.
and i got some sand for the fuge,now it looks nice,and allready getting brown stuff on the sand in the dt. i put 2 shrimp in since i have 55 gal tank and about 20 gal sump. i put one in the dt and one in the fuge, good move?? and here are some pics.. i have the shrimp in nets, the one in the dt is hanging in the middle up top,and the one in the fuge is sitting on the sand in a net,good move??
and i got some sand for the fuge,now it looks nice,and allready getting brown stuff on the sand in the dt. i put 2 shrimp in since i have 55 gal tank and about 20 gal sump. i put one in the dt and one in the fuge, good move?? and here are some pics.. i have the shrimp in nets, the one in the dt is hanging in the middle up top,and the one in the fuge is sitting on the sand in a net,good move??
mr_X
Aquarium Advice Addict
sure. you'll be growing bacteria in no time!
ok iv had the shrimp in the dt and fuge for 5 days now... do i leave it for a full 7 days?? at what point do i take it out?
iv got a ton more brown,but only on the sand that is in the front, why is it only in the front?? is it cause i have the power heads in the back?? if yes should i move them to the front? does it even matter?in the pic i have allready moved one power head to the middle.
and should i be running my skimmer, and filter sock while i cycle?
iv got a ton more brown,but only on the sand that is in the front, why is it only in the front?? is it cause i have the power heads in the back?? if yes should i move them to the front? does it even matter?in the pic i have allready moved one power head to the middle.
and should i be running my skimmer, and filter sock while i cycle?
mr_X
Aquarium Advice Addict
it would probably help you to not run the lights. there is no need for them and all you are doing is helping any algae to grow.
i wouldn't run the skimmer or use a filter sock at the moment.
did you get a decent ammonia spike? have you tested the water yet?
if so, you can take the shrimp out.
i wouldn't run the skimmer or use a filter sock at the moment.
did you get a decent ammonia spike? have you tested the water yet?
if so, you can take the shrimp out.
yeah yesterday i got 1.0 or higher for the ammo.
todays test is=
sal=1.026
ph=8.0
ammo=.50
nitrite=5.0 ppm
nitrate=40 ppm
so first the ammo goes away,then the nitrite,then do pwt to bring down the nitrate?? and bring it down to what?
and im thinking its time to get ride of the shrimp?
onto another question... i have a 3 section sump,if my heater wont fit in the returne section,can i put it in the fuge?
todays test is=
sal=1.026
ph=8.0
ammo=.50
nitrite=5.0 ppm
nitrate=40 ppm
so first the ammo goes away,then the nitrite,then do pwt to bring down the nitrate?? and bring it down to what?
and im thinking its time to get ride of the shrimp?
onto another question... i have a 3 section sump,if my heater wont fit in the returne section,can i put it in the fuge?
mr_X
Aquarium Advice Addict
i would put the heater in the intake section actually. it's a good practice to use multiple, smaller heaters instead of one large heater. the idea is that in the event one goes bad, the other will take up the slack until it can be addressed. if you use one heater, and it gets stuck on or fails to come on, you have no heat at all.
i always used multiple heaters and put them at different locations in the system.
i'd feel pretty good adding fish to a tank with nitrates at about 20ppm.
as for removing the shrimp, i've never used the shrimp method- i've always used uncured live rock to cycle a new tank. i don't know, but if i had to guess, i'd say it's done it's job.
i always used multiple heaters and put them at different locations in the system.
i'd feel pretty good adding fish to a tank with nitrates at about 20ppm.
as for removing the shrimp, i've never used the shrimp method- i've always used uncured live rock to cycle a new tank. i don't know, but if i had to guess, i'd say it's done it's job.
test results
cycling since the 1st
ok test on the 5th
sal=1.026
ph=8.0
ammo=.50
nitrite=5.0
nitrate=40
test on the 7th
sal=1.027
ph=8.0
ammo=.50
nitrite=2.0
nitrate=80
do i do anything esle to the tank at this point?? pwt? more shrimp?buy pods? cheato in fuge? or just sit and wait??
and can i clean the brown stuff off all the glass and pumps? or will the cycle just bring back more?
i also got a nice peice of live rock for the tank since all the other rock in there died b4 i put it in... looks nice ans has a few polyps on it and alot of green... i askes lfs guy if i could put in the cycling tank and he said it would be fine,i hade him test my water yestarday so he knows what stage im in... will the polyp live???
cycling since the 1st
ok test on the 5th
sal=1.026
ph=8.0
ammo=.50
nitrite=5.0
nitrate=40
test on the 7th
sal=1.027
ph=8.0
ammo=.50
nitrite=2.0
nitrate=80
do i do anything esle to the tank at this point?? pwt? more shrimp?buy pods? cheato in fuge? or just sit and wait??
and can i clean the brown stuff off all the glass and pumps? or will the cycle just bring back more?
i also got a nice peice of live rock for the tank since all the other rock in there died b4 i put it in... looks nice ans has a few polyps on it and alot of green... i askes lfs guy if i could put in the cycling tank and he said it would be fine,i hade him test my water yestarday so he knows what stage im in... will the polyp live???
mr_X
Aquarium Advice Addict
just sit and wait. this tank is not ready for livestock of any kind yet. ammonia and nitrite must be ZERO. i would leave the lights off, but yes, you can clean the diatoms off of the glass and power heads.
thanx mr x im in no hury for livestock.. just wanna make sure im not missing anything... thats good cause im good a sitting back and doing nothing..ha ha
what about those polyps? you think lfs guy was rite??
and no i took the shrimp out at day 5. it was nasty!!
what about those polyps? you think lfs guy was rite??
and no i took the shrimp out at day 5. it was nasty!!
mr_X
Aquarium Advice Addict
well, they may live, but i wouldn't have coral in a tank that was cycling. that guy lied to you.
now that they are there, you might as well leave them.
btw, an important word of advice:
don't add corals to the tank unless you really, really, really, like the look of them. i've seen it many times- folks adding live coral just to have living things in the tank and they turn out to be ugly brown, or quite invasive, or both.
like kenya tree for instance. kenya tree coral is not attractive at all. people add it because it grows fast and is super hard to kill.
it's a mistake to add it to your tank, if your plan is to have a beautiful reef.
you will be surprised how fast you run out of real estate in that tank.
now that they are there, you might as well leave them.
btw, an important word of advice:
don't add corals to the tank unless you really, really, really, like the look of them. i've seen it many times- folks adding live coral just to have living things in the tank and they turn out to be ugly brown, or quite invasive, or both.
like kenya tree for instance. kenya tree coral is not attractive at all. people add it because it grows fast and is super hard to kill.
it's a mistake to add it to your tank, if your plan is to have a beautiful reef.
you will be surprised how fast you run out of real estate in that tank.
ok great.. it looks ok to me,i just got that rock cause it had life to it. unlike the other 30 or 40 lbs of rock that died after i was told i could store it at any temp. great lfs guys rite..ill test the tank when i get home and post them..
mr_X
Aquarium Advice Addict
well, "live" rock is nothing more than rock with bacteria on it. all the hitch hikers that may or may not come with it are bonuses, or curses, depending on the hitch hiker.
we use rock from the ocean because we are sure it's safe to use, and is what the natural marine habitat is made out of.
actually, it's probably better to use man-made rock or base rock that you are sure is void of life, just so that you can start your ecosystem from scratch. then you are sure you won't get a single bad hitch hiker.
IMO, leaving rock in 40 degree water for an extended period is almost the same as drying it out. a good portion of the critters won't survive.
we use rock from the ocean because we are sure it's safe to use, and is what the natural marine habitat is made out of.
actually, it's probably better to use man-made rock or base rock that you are sure is void of life, just so that you can start your ecosystem from scratch. then you are sure you won't get a single bad hitch hiker.
IMO, leaving rock in 40 degree water for an extended period is almost the same as drying it out. a good portion of the critters won't survive.
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