Water parameter question?

[jphendren]

I'm 8 days into cycling my first 55 gallon saltwater tank, and these are my readings as of this morning.

Temp 75.2ºF
Salinity 1.0235
Ammonia 3 ppm
Nitrite 3 ppm
Nitrate 40 ppm
Alkalinity appears to be in excess of 300 ppm
pH Somewhere between 7.8 and 8.0

I have about 25 pounds of live rock, and 40 pounds of live sand in the tank. I added an entire bottle Smart Start for saltwater (it claims to instantly cycle your tank) on Wednesday. So what should I do now? 10-20% water change, or leave it alone? I know that I still cannot add fish due to the high ammonia and nitrites.

Jared

 

[frankenfishhelp]

That is good and I am sure you will get to add fishes soon once the ammonia level is down.

 

[Ziggy953]

You need to keep testing and watch the ammonia level drop and the NitrIte level rise then drop and NitrAtes will go up. Once you are at 0 ammonia and 0 NitrIte do a large PWC and then you are ready to start adding things.

 

[abdhalim2]

let your tank cycle...monitor your water parameter until amonia and nitrite is 0....then u will see higher reading for nitrate....when this happen,u shud do PWC maybe 50% then u can add fish slowly....

 

[melosu58]

During the cycling process only worry about Ammonia, nitrites and nitrates. The other readings will be be off due to the high readings of ammonia.

 

[jphendren]

Today is day 11.

Temp 75.7º F
Salinity 1.0235
Ammonia 3 ppm
Nitrite 5 ppm
Nitrate 40 ppm
Alkalinity in excess of 300ppm
pH somewhere between 7.8 and 8.0

I put in a bottle of SmartStart when I started the tank, I have also been using Nutrifin Cycle, so far neither product has cycled the tank as quickly as the manufacture claims. SmartStart claims to cycle the tank "instantly." My local fish shop said he added fish to his aquariums right after putting it in, and has suffered no losses, but my tank would probably kill fish at this time. My ammonia seems to be holding steady at 3 ppm, while nitrites and nitrates are climbing. My live rock was suppose to be already cured, as claimed by my LFS that sold it to me, but I am wondering if that is not the case. Should I be doing anything other than waiting? Am I suppose to be vacuuming the sand, or cleaning the filter or anything while this is going on?

Jared

 

[reefdiver]

That stuff doesn't work at all. Just let nature take its course.

 

[Ziggy953]

I agree. Let time do it's thing and keep testing.

 

[cmor1701d]

All I can do is pass on the advice I got while I waiting for my tank to cycle. If you need to see something in the tank get a bathtub rubber duckie <lol>.

Just wait for the ammonia to drop. Once it does it will dropt quickly, then the nitrite loving bacteria need to start growing...

 

[reefdiver]

Funny cmor, very funny !!!!!!!!!!

 

[scottkraft]

patience is your friend at this time, though your temp seems a little lowbut not bad.Temp should be near 79/80 at least with my personal experience.
But just keep testing when amonia and nitites 0 your should be cycled.

 

[jphendren]

My LFS recommended 75º, and I noticed that most fish sites recommend 72º-78º, so 75º is right in the middle.

I just ordered another 20 pounds of Premium Deco Gulf Live Rock, my guess is that it will cause my tank to cycle again/longer. Now I should have around 45 pounds, which should be enough.

Jared

 

[scottkraft]

it may cause another cycle but a very small one, prolly only a day at most but it will help your tank in the long run. I have learned\observed 1lb of rock for each gal. of tank is a good rule of thumb.
And ya 75 ok personal exp. has shown me near 80 not over that though make fish more active.
personally i have about 120lb of rock for my 90g reef w/fish but i have a fairly heavy bioload of fish and inverts
Scott

 

[jphendren]

Out of curiosity I just checked my water again:

Nitrates are now somewhere between 40 and 80 ppm, and nitrites are around 10 ppm! Ammonia is still 3 ppm, it has been there for nearly a week. It is
amazing that anything is still alive in this tank.

Jared

 

[melosu58]

I too would suggest a higher temp. 75 degrees is for your cold water species like seahorses and some gobies. 78-80 is a good for a reef tank. The main thing when it comes to temps is stability.

 

[abdhalim2]

your tank in a cycle process....dont add anything and let it be like that...if u had anything food sources for bacteria like raw shrimp in your tank, u may now remove it...

 

[jphendren]

Last night I picked up an API Master Saltwater test kit, and measured my water again this morning.

Ammonia 0.5 ppm (so ammonia has dropped from 3 to 0.5 ppm)
Nitrite 1.0 ppm (nitrite has dropped from 10 to 1 ppm)
Nitrate is either 10 or 15 ppm, I'm not quite sure. The test strip shows like 160 ppm!

I measured ammonia with my test strips also, and it has confirmed that it has dropped to 0.5 ppm. So it seems my tanks is on its way to being cycled. I still have 20 pounds of live rock on the way, it should be here either tomorrow, or Friday. My guess is that it will cause the cycle to start over, but I'm not certain. I also added a Hydro circulation pump/fan, it is rated at 750 GPH.

Jared

 

[abdhalim2]

make sure u have the cured LR...if not, u might having another mini cycle...since u dont have any LS, IMO its fine...make sure to monitor your water parameter....

 

[David S]

First off get a liquid test kit,strip test kits aren't the best to use,your tank could take at least another 1-2 weeks before totally cycled, be patient,we all know its hard and you just want to stock your tank but the wait is worth it in the long run.Once cycled DONT over stock straight away,eg 2 small unmessy eating fish clowns maybe,then maybe add 1 fish per month.You should be thinking about adding your cuc now as well,that'll give you something to watch.Just keep testing and dont add any more quick cycle junk.
You've been getting good advice here from people who have all been in your shoe's and are trying to stop you making any mistakes we may have made,Patience is the key.
good luck

 

[sdergar]

LOL Cmor...