helen2 Posted July 12, 2018 Share Posted July 12, 2018 Hey Nano-Reef! It's been a while, but I still lurk here from time to time. The 10 gallon nano that I started in 2015 is still running, but I've decided to finally start my 40 gallon with a tank that I bought in 2016. Having this giant, empty tank sitting in my living room was no bueno. It's currently cycling, and that's one of the reasons I decided to start this journal.....I have a question! I kickstarted my cycle using the dead table shrimp method about two weeks ago. I've watched my ammonia and nitrite levels rise and fall back to 0. My nitrates are now at around 20ppm. Soo...is my cycle over or nah? Two weeks seems kinda like a short time. I am starting my tank with dry rock and live sand (I went with live sand instead of dry sand since that was the only sand my LFS carried). Here's a picture of my very rustic aqua-scaping in case anyone is curious! 1 Quote Link to comment
Christopher Marks Posted July 12, 2018 Share Posted July 12, 2018 Welcome back @helen2! It sounds to me like your cycle is indeed over, you could begin to add some life after you do a water change. The live sand is what gave you the shorter timeline, it's pretty effective! If you're still uncertain though, you could always dose a little more ammonia and watch it filter out in your tests. Two weeks isn't unheard of though 🙂 Quote Link to comment
helen2 Posted July 12, 2018 Author Share Posted July 12, 2018 Thanks @Christopher Marks! I'm hoping to be more active now that I've created one of these journal things 😛 How much water (% wise) would you recommend for this initial water change? Quote Link to comment
dpoltsdsu Posted July 12, 2018 Share Posted July 12, 2018 Good luck with your setup. I have this exact same tank! What equipment are you running? Quote Link to comment
dpoltsdsu Posted July 12, 2018 Share Posted July 12, 2018 Once your nitrite and ammonia is 0. The cycle is generally considered over. I'd recommend a 25 to 40%water change and start to add livestock slowly! 1 1 Quote Link to comment
helen2 Posted July 13, 2018 Author Share Posted July 13, 2018 48 minutes ago, dpoltsdsu said: Good luck with your setup. I have this exact same tank! What equipment are you running? Oh nice! It's such a sleek looking tank. For circulation, I currently have the included 500gph pump running (it's a JEBO [insert model number]), but will add a Koralia 750 after I start adding livestock. For heating, I have both a 100W and 150W Hydor heater running. I prefer the EHEIM ones, but thought I'd try something new 😕 And for lighting (the best part!), I have a Kessil A360WE. Do you think one will be enough? The diameter of the light is 24", but the width of the tank is 30" I'm not running a skimmer right now, and will probably rely on natural filtration and handy-dandy filter sock for the first couple of months. Thoughts on my setup? 1 Quote Link to comment
dpoltsdsu Posted July 14, 2018 Share Posted July 14, 2018 On 7/12/2018 at 5:34 PM, helen2 said: Oh nice! It's such a sleek looking tank. For circulation, I currently have the included 500gph pump running (it's a JEBO [insert model number]), but will add a Koralia 750 after I start adding livestock. For heating, I have both a 100W and 150W Hydor heater running. I prefer the EHEIM ones, but thought I'd try something new 😕 And for lighting (the best part!), I have a Kessil A360WE. Do you think one will be enough? The diameter of the light is 24", but the width of the tank is 30" I'm not running a skimmer right now, and will probably rely on natural filtration and handy-dandy filter sock for the first couple of months. Thoughts on my setup? Nice! What do you plan on adding? Thats a good light but I dont think that will be enough for that entire width. Corals in the middle will be fine though Quote Link to comment
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.