Help me cycle my tank

[Nanoreefjoe]

Hi guys I just recently ordered all of my stuff . I would like to make sure I have all the steps down for the cycling process. What equipment should I keep on during this process? should I keep a filter inside of my Aqueon filter? Should I keep my lights on? How often should I test?

 

I have an API salt water test kit I have ammonia drops I have dry rock and live sand I also ordered bio Spira that I will add to the tank

[fishfreak0114]

There's no need to run chemical filtration or a protein skinner during the cycle. The lights are up to you, obviously having the lights on would grow more algae. You can use mechanical filtration like filter floss or. Similar and change it out every few days. I'm not sure how often to test, I would say at least every 3 days. You can add fish food or a raw table shrimp ( if using shrimp remove after cycle) to cause ammonia. I'm a newb, but I recently did this, hope someone who has done this many times can chime in. I probably missed something. Good luck?

[Nanoreefjoe]

Can I run this during the cycle? http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B004SISTC6/ref=ox_sc_act_image_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

[ajmckay]

Sounds like you've already researched this since you bought your equipment and the bio-spira and ammonia drops.

 

Just follow the instructions on those products. If you ask "Help me cycle my tank" you're going to get a bunch of responses that are all over the place. It's better to list your plan as you have it and ask for comments on your plan - that way the responses will be directed toward what you have in mind rather than potentially taking you a completely different direction.

 

If you follow the instructions on the bio spira you should be able to start stocking within a week. If that's the case I would just run the tank exactly like you plan to once you add fish. Run whatever filtration lighting, etc. you plan to use.

 

When someone suggests you add a raw shrimp, leave filters out, or leave lights off those are methods typically used for a longer cycle - like 4-8 weeks. If you want a long cycle by all means but then you've wasted $$ on the bio-spira, so I would just follow the instructions on the bottle and enjoy the tank soon. Note that the only real exception I can think of to using the bio-spira is if your dry rock is really dirty (like if it has a bunch of dried algae, dead crabs/worms, etc...). If the rock is dirty you need to cure it, that is, stick it in a bucket or whatever of SW with a powerhead and leave it for several weeks until all the dead stuff on/in the rock has had a chance to decompose.