cycling

[bv_reefer]

-it's been exactly a week and no trace of ammonia or nitrite, i have 25 pounds
of fiji,tonga, and jarkarta in my 33-gallon and was wondering if i needed 2 th-
row in a couple pieces of raw shrimp 2 start the ammonia spike a little faster
or shud the live rock be enough of a source?

[michika]

Before you go tossing in shrimp, what are you other parameters?

[Der_Iron_Chef]

What she said.

Was this rock cured before you got it? Where did you get it?

[StirCrazy]

If you used already cured rock with that amount in a smaller tank you most likely won't see the cycle and it is probably done.

Steve

[bv_reefer]

-water parameters are as follows: pH=8.4 Ammonia=undetectable
nitrite=0.5 (on the salifert test it says that 0.1 is too high and 0.4 is danger)
calcium=460 -and by the way ya the rock is cured for an year or so in an
established tank-and i thought ur supposed 2 have ammonia and nitrite spikes
even in smaller tanks?

[michika]

What about nitrate? Do you test for it as well?

[digital-audiophile]

You should have 0PPM nitrite if the cycle is finished.

You should also test for Nitrates as I imagine they will be through the roof right now. I would aso suggest testing Calcium if you are planning on keping corals.

[bv_reefer]

-ok i will look into a good nitrate test, but ya my nitrites are thru the roof!

[bv_reefer]

-oh god what can i do about this ugly brown mat of algae thats starting 2 cover my sand? -hermits are supposed to be really good @ controlling algae
aren't they?

[skylord]

Its called time...pretend its not so ugly ....get used to it and then it will go away.

Scott

[bv_reefer]

-if anything doesn't it get worse

[christyf5]

No its part of the cycle. It will feed off the excess nitrates in your water. Once the nitrates are used up the algae will die off. However if you keep adding livestock to your tank you will only continue the cycle and prolong the life of the algae by giving it more fuel to survive.

[bv_reefer]

-ok so no snails are needed then right?

[Chaloupa]

not until the cycle is complete do you need to worry about adding anything...just gotta live with "ugly" for a bit ... and imagine what it will look like in a few months!

[bv_reefer]

-so by then end of the cycle it'll be probably be gone right, in another month or two?