marine_phoenix Posted March 19, 2004 Share Posted March 19, 2004 I've just started my tank for one month and i think that i have cycled the tank the wrong way.....(i turn on the skimmer during cycling) But during this month,many things happened in my tank and i hope that u big bros out there could help me solve my problem. This is what happen during the one month. Week 1: Added water and liverock Week 2:Father brought home a mandarin dragonet.(he dun no that i am cycling) Week 3:He brought home 2 tomato clowns. :2 Tomato clown and mandarin died this week Week 4:added 2 more liverock.Anemone grew on the rocks. So what can i do now to properly cycle the tank again?I would like to keep those anemones. Thanks:) Link to comment
drewmd. Posted March 19, 2004 Share Posted March 19, 2004 >Week 1: Added water and liverock< what type of water did you add?(ro/di is the best way to go) >Father brought home a mandarin dragonet.(he dun no that i am cycling< you really need to read up on what you purchase. mandarins require a lot of copepods and amphipods. (for a healthy diet and their main diet.) which you won't be able to produce in a tank that is cycling. ( and if it's a nano you really shouldn't put these beauties in their at all they will consume all traces of copepods and amphipods before they can reproduce) >He brought home 2 tomato clowns. :2 Tomato clown and mandarin died this week< well duh... your tank is not cycled yet!!! you need to read and understand the nitrogen cycle before adding any inhabitants into your aquarium. during the nitrogen cycle your tank is very toxic to fish and invertebrates. marine aquaria is a lot different than fresh water. to inform your father. and if he would like i will inform him of it. >added 2 more liverock.Anemone grew on the rocks.< anemones are very fragile and you being a new salt water aquarist i would not recommend even keeping anemonies. (not to mention what you have is probably aiptasia anemones.(which you don't want at all) read up on the nitrogen cycle. there is many things to learn and if you want me to explain everything to you just let me know. and make sure your father is reading as well. i know it's not his fault that he wanted your tank to look good but you have to respect mother nature and let her do her course. Link to comment
SeaSide Posted March 19, 2004 Share Posted March 19, 2004 DO NOTHING for a month if you want to solve the problem. That's all. Link to comment
drewmd. Posted March 19, 2004 Share Posted March 19, 2004 and also please do not put a skimmer into a new tank that is cycling!!!! what are you going to gain from it? (nothing!!!!!!!?) you need to let your tank cycle for about 3-4 weeks and also test all your parameters. nitrites, ammonia, nitrates, ph, calcium, iodine. the essentials. and if you really want (but i think it is a waste of money) you could test for boron, phosphates ect. but once you let you let your tank fully cycle you really do not have to worry about those. and the main thing (after a fully cycled tank) to test for is nitrates. you really don't want your nitrates to rise above 10ppm. the higher the nitrates the more acidic your water will become. and that will lead to either gill failure or break down either the fish or inverts immune system and they will be susceptible to many diseases. i will explain in grave detail how to properly set up an aquarium so that you will enjoy your inhabitants for a long time. (if you or your father don't understand.) we are in this hobby to save lives (marine wise) not to kill them. Link to comment
marine_phoenix Posted March 19, 2004 Author Share Posted March 19, 2004 Thanks for your reply. I've already told my father to stop buying any fishes before the cycling is done. The anemones in the liverock are not those pest anemones you are talking about and they appear on their own without any reason.And i am thinking about keeping them as they look much like BTA...From what i know,pest anemones are tranparent in colour and mine is green so i am 95% sure that the anemone is not a pest. The saltwater was brought by my LFS. I dun no what kind of water they use to mix with the salt but i think it should be alright because i am not the only one buying from them,others are doing the same too and there doesn't seems to be any complain. As for my mandarin,my father didn't know that that was a complicated fish to have as the LFS owner told my dad that mandarins are hardy...But for now,I've banned him from buying anymore so i think he will not bring home any fish before i tell him to. And can you big bros explain in detail how i can cycle my tank again.Thanks:):) Link to comment
marine_phoenix Posted March 19, 2004 Author Share Posted March 19, 2004 .....and by the way,there are some brown stains on my sand and tank.So i am thinking that should i get a cleanup crew as my tank is cycling? If yes,what are some recomended ones for a two feet tank. Thks. Link to comment
drewmd. Posted March 19, 2004 Share Posted March 19, 2004 >And can you big bros explain in detail how i can cycle my tank again.Thanks< the easiest way to decribe it without taking up a whole page is first add sand. then the water, then live rock, (promotes bacteria) next you want to wait. let the nitrogen cycle complete. test all parameters of your water before adding any livestock. now you can speed up the cycle time if you want without having to use fish and if you wanna know how just let me know. you could put some astrea snails in there for now to get rid of the algae your getting. if you need a very detailed description of properly cycling a tank then let me know. i just summed it up so you wouldn't be stuck reading a whole lot of mess. Link to comment
marine_phoenix Posted March 20, 2004 Author Share Posted March 20, 2004 Yes,i would like to have a detail description on how to properly cycle a tank. Just visited some websites today and i've read that we have to introduced a source of ammonia into the tank to allow the cycling process to take place and most of them recommended to put a market prawn in.So should i listen to them?Or should i just not do anything now and just wait? Link to comment
milhouse74 Posted March 20, 2004 Share Posted March 20, 2004 The live rock and sand are all you need to introduce to the tank. Now you just sit back and do nothing (well you shuold unplug the skimmer, I guess thats something). Link to comment
MGXsport Posted March 20, 2004 Share Posted March 20, 2004 haha for many larger tanks people use urine as a source of ammonia. Link to comment
TroyT Posted March 21, 2004 Share Posted March 21, 2004 Originally posted by MGXsport haha for many larger tanks people use urine as a source of ammonia. ??? Do you work at an LFS or something? Link to comment
MGXsport Posted March 21, 2004 Share Posted March 21, 2004 Nope but a lot of people do that as a natural way for starting a cycle. Link to comment
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