Jigsaw Posted October 23, 2018 Author Share Posted October 23, 2018 @AlmightyJoshaeus Yes! I love catalina gobies and they are part of the reason I built this tank 😄. For a 5G tank with a catalina or two, I think a thermoelectric chiller would suffice for you, but anything larger than maybe a 10G (no sump), I'd suggest a 1/15th hp chiller. @Tamberav I know used a thermoelectric chiller in their 7G tank, but eventually switched to a chiller, right? Perhaps you could give your advice as well :D. @Justind823 Just a beach I go to sometimes that's somewhat isolated ;). Quote Link to comment
Jigsaw Posted October 23, 2018 Author Share Posted October 23, 2018 BTW just an update on the tank: Anemone is still doing great and the tank is _definitely_ cycling! Ammonia: 0.25-0.5 Nitrates: 25 mg/l Is it worth it to test Nitrites as well in a cycle? Been forever since I've cycled a tank. 1 Quote Link to comment
Firefish15 Posted October 23, 2018 Share Posted October 23, 2018 1 hour ago, Jigsaw said: BTW just an update on the tank: Anemone is still doing great and the tank is _definitely_ cycling! Ammonia: 0.25-0.5 Nitrates: 25 mg/l Is it worth it to test Nitrites as well in a cycle? Been forever since I've cycled a tank. I test nitrites because the API test kit I have is known to have false positives on the ammonia test. If the nitrites are at zero in a cycling tank that's over a few weeks old, the ammonia should also be at zero. I use a little color-sensor tool that reads the exact colors of the test solutions and charts too. Quote Link to comment
Jigsaw Posted October 23, 2018 Author Share Posted October 23, 2018 Thanks @Firefish15! Btw I just ordered a cheap nitrite kit to go along with the ammonia one lol. 1 Quote Link to comment
Firefish15 Posted October 23, 2018 Share Posted October 23, 2018 Check out Aquarium Note, or a similar app, if you haven't already. It's got some pretty handy tools. Graphs from your test results, journals, reminders, the color reading tool. I like it a lot. Quote Link to comment
Jigsaw Posted October 24, 2018 Author Share Posted October 24, 2018 On 10/23/2018 at 12:42 PM, Firefish15 said: Check out Aquarium Note, or a similar app, if you haven't already. It's got some pretty handy tools. Graphs from your test results, journals, reminders, the color reading tool. I like it a lot. You know, I usually just use an excel spreadsheet; Apps are cool and all, but I absolutely hate typing data in on a tiny screen 😩 1 Quote Link to comment
Jigsaw Posted October 30, 2018 Author Share Posted October 30, 2018 Hey all! Sorry for the lack of updates; I'm still going through a pretty intense cycle. Ammonia is SLOOWWWWLY going down and Nitrites are up! So we are indeed still in the cycling period. The good news is, the anemone isn't affected AT ALL. Neither are the snails, they are totally happy and a few of the tiny ones are growing 😱. I have a bit of a brown algae problem right now though (I'll post some pics of this), but I attribute it to the natural cycling process as a whole. Tank puberty 😉 Also, just for those curious: I have compared my electric bills from last year to this year and have noticed no big difference in energy consumption since having this 1/15th HP chiller. The myth of coldwater tanks being more expensive is hogwash! In this tank, I have 3 plugs: One for lights, one for the Sicce pump and one for the chiller. Eventually I'm going to add my DIY controller I've been working on as well 😄 Happy Tuesday! 3 Quote Link to comment
Jigsaw Posted November 8, 2018 Author Share Posted November 8, 2018 Hey all, not much of a huge update here, but here's the ammonia/nitrite as it stands now: Ammonia: 0.5 Nitrite: 2.0-3.0 Diatoms (I think that's what this is) are BLOOMING right now; a lot of sites I am seeing are saying that reef tanks usually have diatom blooms after the cycle is over, but I'm not quite seeing that yet. If this goes on another week, I may add more bioballs to the sump to increase surface area for "good" bacteria. Anyway, here's a few pics to keep you interested 😉 Happy Thursday! 4 Quote Link to comment
Firefish15 Posted November 9, 2018 Share Posted November 9, 2018 Hey, sorry if you had mentioned it earlier, but what test kit are you using for your parameters? Quote Link to comment
Jigsaw Posted November 9, 2018 Author Share Posted November 9, 2018 @Firefish15 No worries at all! For most everything I use Salifert, but for Nitrite I just got an API test kit because it's so simple. Quote Link to comment
Firefish15 Posted November 9, 2018 Share Posted November 9, 2018 31 minutes ago, Jigsaw said: @Firefish15 No worries at all! For most everything I use Salifert, but for Nitrite I just got an API test kit because it's so simple. I was going to say - I was always reading ammonia with my API test kit, about 0.25. Something was fishy when my nitrites and nitrates were reading 0 and 2.5ppm. I did some online research, and apparently, API ammonia tests are notorious for false positives. I was wondering if you might be having the same problem. 1 Quote Link to comment
Christopher Marks Posted November 24, 2018 Share Posted November 24, 2018 On 11/8/2018 at 3:57 PM, Jigsaw said: Glad to hear the cycle is nearly done, those definitely look like diatoms to me, a good sign of progression! Do you suppose the cycle has progressed more slowly because of the colder temperatures? In this hobby, slow and steady is usually good though! 🙂 1 Quote Link to comment
Jigsaw Posted November 26, 2018 Author Share Posted November 26, 2018 @Christopher Marks Yes definitely! The ammonia is now @ 0! Nitrites are still super high though, so the wait continues... 😅. And to answer your question YES, in coldwater environments, biological processes (such as ammonia eating bacteria multiplying), move much much slower and hence a much slower cycle! This cycle has been going on since SEPTEMBER 10TH! Talk about patience... lol 2 Quote Link to comment
Tamberav Posted December 2, 2018 Share Posted December 2, 2018 Mine took so long to cycle..like wow! Looks good 🙂 Quote Link to comment
Jigsaw Posted December 12, 2018 Author Share Posted December 12, 2018 (edited) Just an update, folks! Ammonia still at zero, but Nitrites still sky high :(. One issue I found is that these snails POOP SO MUCH! I took a turkey baster to my "rubble" rock that's my substrate and it's filled with snail 💩. I'm going to vacuum this all out (it's been there since I put the snails in) and do a 2G water change when I simultaneously suck this all out. Hoping my nitrites get a little better with this. I guess I'll be "vacuuming" this tank somewhat often...or will be getting rid of some snails 😶 Also. I'll get a few pics again! The diatoms are slowly going away as well, so it's definitely positive signs! I started the cycle on September 10th. It's been 3 MONTHS for a 10 gallon coldwater to cycle!!! Crazy. I considered adding more bioballs (I probably will) to the sump and have changed/cleaned the filter floss twice thus far. Getting there, but I am super impatient! Edited December 12, 2018 by Jigsaw 1 Quote Link to comment
Jigsaw Posted December 20, 2018 Author Share Posted December 20, 2018 Not sure who is still following this, but FINALLY, after 3+ months, THE DAMN THING IS CYCLED! Ammonia at 0, Nitrites at 0. Testing Nitrate tonight. Regardless, I've been waiting WEEKS for Nitrites to go down (constant purple until last night, after I went out of town and came back!). Anyway, I'm super excited and need to revisit my livestock list 😍 7 Quote Link to comment
WV Reefer Posted December 20, 2018 Share Posted December 20, 2018 Just now, Jigsaw said: Not sure who is still following this, but FINALLY, after 3+ months, THE DAMN THING IS CYCLED! Ammonia at 0, Nitrites at 0. Testing Nitrate tonight. Regardless, I've been waiting WEEKS for Nitrites to go down (constant purple until last night, after I went out of town and came back!). Anyway, I'm super excited and need to revisit my livestock list 😍 Yay!!! 😀 Quote Link to comment
Tamberav Posted December 20, 2018 Share Posted December 20, 2018 haaha ya the cycle is sooooooo slow in cold water 😛 2 Quote Link to comment
caas1496 Posted December 20, 2018 Share Posted December 20, 2018 Coldwater tanks are so cool! Can't wait to see what else you add. Following along! 2 Quote Link to comment
Jigsaw Posted December 29, 2018 Author Share Posted December 29, 2018 @caas1496 Thank you so much! It's definitely appreciated :). Not too much of an update YET, but I am working on getting some Strawberry Anemones from someone in the PNW! Those pics coming in a few weeks 🙂 In the meantime, here's what I think is Coldwater Caluerpa growing in the tank from the shells I got off the coast. I thought everything on here was 100% dead, but...life finds a way I guess 😉 3 Quote Link to comment
Jigsaw Posted January 11, 2019 Author Share Posted January 11, 2019 Okay people, BIG UPDATE! In fact, perhaps the update YOU'VE BEEN WAITING FOR!! First, let's get stats outta the way: Ammonia: 0 Nitrites: 0 Ammonia: 0 Cycle Complete? YES! For about a MONTH now, the cycle has been complete and I was in kind of a "hibernation" mode (aka the holidays), so I didn't do much but let that macroalgae grow. ~~~HOWEVER~~~ Recently, a fellow hobbyist and I were talking about strawberry anemones and that they had some extras to give away. WELL, I GOT THEM YESTERDAY AND THEY ARE FANTASTIC. The true test of this tank begins! I'm hoping the failsafes of the sump and bio balls are enough to handle daily feedings of these beautiful specimens! Ok ok, on with the photos! The first two are from when I first put them in the tank (about an hour later). The last 3 are from this morning! More pictures to come soon 😄 3 Quote Link to comment
Firefish15 Posted January 11, 2019 Share Posted January 11, 2019 They're pretty little guys! Could we get a FTS, just to get a sense of their size? Quote Link to comment
Jigsaw Posted January 11, 2019 Author Share Posted January 11, 2019 @Firefish15 Yes! I will take a pic when I get home tonight 😄 Quote Link to comment
Jigsaw Posted January 17, 2019 Author Share Posted January 17, 2019 @Firefish15 Took a few days, but here are some more pics, plus a FTS as promised! Tried to give perspective with this 10ml syringe I feed these guys with! 3 1 Quote Link to comment
Jigsaw Posted January 17, 2019 Author Share Posted January 17, 2019 And actually, here's a few more good ones with the blue actinics on! 4 1 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.