Question regarding live rock cycle. Fluval evo

[Bluereefer]

Hello reefers! 
 

Having owned a marine aquarium some ten years ago, I’ve decided to get back into the hobby and give it a good go this time. (Ten years ago I was a teenager who lost interest pretty quickly and wasn’t prepared for the amount of work that actually goes into owning a reef tank, added to that a very bad LFS giving me the wrong advice, so I feel like I owe the hobby by doing it right). 
 

I’ve just wet my fluval evo 13.5 with saltwater from a new LFS, along with 10lbs of ‘nature’s ocean argonite live sand’ and 3kg of live rock. I’ve taken out the stock filter and build my own using egg crate. I’m running filter floss and Eheim sintered glass bio-media. I have some stock activated carbon that came with the evo but I’m reluctant to use it until after the cycle due to what I’ve read and watched elsewhere on the net. 
 

Anyway! There’s so many different journals, videos and points of reference here there and everywhere that I thought I would join up, say hello and ask all you lovely people myself lol. 
 

With what’s in my tank now, will it cycle as is, should I add a quarter of a raw prawn or should I add some bacteria in a bottle to kickstart it?

 

Hope you can help, happy to be here 🙂

[WV Reefer]

21 minutes ago, Bluereefer said:

Hello reefers! 
 

Having owned a marine aquarium some ten years ago, I’ve decided to get back into the hobby and give it a good go this time. (Ten years ago I was a teenager who lost interest pretty quickly and wasn’t prepared for the amount of work that actually goes into owning a reef tank, added to that a very bad LFS giving me the wrong advice, so I feel like I owe the hobby by doing it right). 
 

I’ve just wet my fluval evo 13.5 with saltwater from a new LFS, along with 10lbs of ‘nature’s ocean argonite live sand’ and 3kg of live rock. I’ve taken out the stock filter and build my own using egg crate. I’m running filter floss and Eheim sintered glass bio-media. I have some stock activated carbon that came with the evo but I’m reluctant to use it until after the cycle due to what I’ve read and watched elsewhere on the net. 
 

Anyway! There’s so many different journals, videos and points of reference here there and everywhere that I thought I would join up, say hello and ask all you lovely people myself lol. 
 

With what’s in my tank now, will it cycle as is, should I add a quarter of a raw prawn or should I add some bacteria in a bottle to kickstart it?

 

Hope you can help, happy to be here 🙂

 

sounds like you are off to a great start. 😊

 

if you used good live rock you may not see much of a cycle depending on what’s on it. Have you checked for any ammonia?

[Clown79]

Welcome to nano

 

Is it wet liverock you are using or dry reef rock because cycling will be different depending on the rock you used.

[Bluereefer]

Hi WV and Clown!
 

Thanks for the quick responses! I’m using cured wet live rock from a Frag tank at my LFS. I’ve not tested for ammonia yet as I only added the sand, rock and water about an hour ago. I’m using a Red Sea test kit, should I do a test? I was going to wait until tomorrow.

 

Cheers 

[Tired]

You can definitely wait until tomorrow. 

 

Do you know if they got the rock from the ocean? 

 

Does it look like it's covered in stuff? Different kinds of algae, weird bits growing off of it, that sort of thing. Really good ocean rock looks like it's been at the bottom of the ocean for awhile.

[Bluereefer]

@Tired

 

Hi mate,

 

It’s definitely either come from the ocean or an established tank, looks like you’ve described and it was expensive as well if that’s any indication haha plus it’s completely green.

 

I’ve been to this new LFS three times now and from what I overhear them talking about with their customers, and myself, I can trust them, they seem to want everyone to succeed. They told me it was cured live rock so I guess it is! Haha 

 

 

[Tired]

Excellent! Cured live rock means it's rock from the ocean that's been left to sit until everything dying on it rotted off. So that means your tank is very likely cycled, because the rock is already cycled. You should test tomorrow to confirm no ammonia, but I wouldn't be remotely surprised if your cycle is done. 

 

Sneak up on the tank at night with a flashlight, preferably one with red tissue over the lens, and see what critters you can spot. There should be loads. The vast majority of things you'll find on live rock are harmless and quite possibly beneficial, but some of them are pretty creepy-looking. When in doubt, catch it alive and find out what it is. 

 

Get a turkey baster. Very multipurpose tool for reef aquaria. One of the ones where you can add or remove a tip to make the opening smaller is ideal. You will probably also want some long, rust-proofed tweezers (they make 'em for planted aquaria) to move things, like coral frags, without having to stick your hands in your tank. Try not to touch your live rock with bare hands, it has a great deal of bacteria and likely some sharp edges. And bristleworms.

[Bluereefer]

@Tired thank you!

 

it was my understanding that when you transport the live rock home, there is some die off which in turn starts the cycle in the aquarium at home, so I am expecting to see an ammonia spike soon... I wasn’t expecting to cycle my tank in 24 hours! Haha cheers for your help 

[Cole.mormon]

Put a little bio spira in the tank about 5 ml

[Tired]

Actually, you shouldn't really have any dieoff from the rock, assuming it was in a plastic bag to keep it wet. Dieoff happens when it's shipped long distance, and is damp but not wet for at least a day. If it was just out of the water for an hour or so, the things on it should be fine. It's possible you'll have a tiny ammonia spike, but you'll also have the bacteria to rapidly deal with it.

 

No need for biospira. All the bacteria you need is on the rocks. 

[Garf]

3kg is what, a bit under 7lbs? Depending on your planned bioload, you may need a bit more rock to establish an effective bio filter.  I wouldn't buy more expensive live rock, get some quality dry rock, the more porous the better, rinse it well, and add at some point. 

[mcarroll]

On 8/22/2020 at 9:57 AM, Bluereefer said:

fluval evo 13.5 with saltwater from a new LFS, along with 10lbs of ‘nature’s ocean argonite live sand’ and 3kg of live rock.

live rock as in real Live Rock?  Sweet!

 

Looks like you're at about half of a pound of rock per gallon (plus bio-media).  More particulars on this below!

 

On 8/22/2020 at 9:57 AM, Bluereefer said:

I’ve taken out the stock filter and build my own using egg crate. I’m running filter floss and Eheim sintered glass bio-media.

I'm not sure what the stock filtration was like or if it needed to be removed.  But you definitely don't need filter floss or bio-media for a reef tank with live rock and corals.

 

Live rock is your bio-media. Even at .5 pounds per gallon I think you're OK....but I think it'll be even more important than it usually is for you to follow a good stocking plan.  (See below.)

 

And you want corals eating the stuff that filter floss would catch (or at least I do).  👍

 

I would have the back chamber as empty as possible for maximum system water volume and maximum flow-through so food and detritus is less likely to get trapped back there.

 

Optionally, you could place a nano skimmer back there like the Tunze 9001.  Otherwise it should pretty much just be your heater and ATO sensor.  Maybe a very small flow pump to keep detritus from settling.

 

On 8/22/2020 at 9:57 AM, Bluereefer said:

I have some stock activated carbon that came with the evo

Save it for someday when you may need it.

 

On 8/22/2020 at 9:57 AM, Bluereefer said:

There’s so many different journals, videos and points of reference here there and everywhere

Indeed there are!  There's even quite a bit of bad info out there on The Webs.  It can be quite confusing.

 

Do you have any books?  

 

The nano-reef community makes an excellent supplement to good reading material such as the classic Marine Aquarium Handbook Beginner to Breeder by Martin Moe.  (Many other greet reef books.  Check out this thread on the topic: Your Reef Aquarium-Oriented Reading List! )

 

On 8/22/2020 at 9:57 AM, Bluereefer said:

With what’s in my tank now, will it cycle as is, should I add a quarter of a raw prawn or should I add some bacteria in a bottle to kickstart it?

Live rock should mean that it's already cycled and you can start adding critters.

 

Regardless, still start small with your livestock additions.  

 

Herbivorous snails are often a good place to start.  One snail is probably enough in a tank this small.  

 

Wait at least a week (a few weeks or a month is better) before adding anything else.  Then you can add another snail or two...or a coral or two.  Then another wait...1-4 weeks.  Repeat until your cleanup crew is partly built and you have some corals doing well.  Then you can think about adding a fish.  Only one at a time.  (Maybe only one at all...or even none...in this size tank.). If you have plans for other inverts, they can be added before you begin adding fish, or after depending on their needs.

 

Stick with that slow pace and lots of waiting in between additions though. 👍  You get more time to observe the tank for changes (good or bad) after the critters get added, and more time to make any changes or corrections needed in preparation for the next round.  Anything bad that happens along the way is also minimized to only the critters added so far...a much better proposition than adding all the animals at once, or even within a short timeframe, where it's pretty common that you have little or no time to see a problem develop before it's already out of control.

 

This strategy goes nicely with the unofficial Reefkeeper's Motto:  Nothing Good Happens Fast In A Reef Tank 

 

 

[Leoito]

Do you have anything in the middle chamber of the back right now?

You probably won't need to take advantage of the included activated carbon, especially if a cycle has already been established (even during a cycle you're trying to let the levels of ammonia/nitrite/nitrate build up). It'd be safer to keep it on hand for if/when you do need to remove something more specific from the water, such as a medicine or spike in organics 😙.

[Bluereefer]

Hi guys, thanks for all the responses. In the end I’ve decided to go down the route of introducing nitrifying bacteria along with an artificial ammonia source, as I want to be absolutely sure before I start adding anything. Dr Tim’s one and only along with the ammonium chloride additive should arrive tomorrow! I did add another 3kg piece of cured live rock, which came with what looks like its own little Kenya tree coral! Sure it’s already growing since I got it home, so at least it’s happy at this early stage. 
 

Thanks for your all your help!

[Tired]

I would avoid dosing ammonia if you already have coral, and if there's good stuff on your live rock. You don't want to hurt any of that. Cured live rock means your tank is either cycled now, or will be very soon with no more ammonia input than a sprinkle of food.

[Clown79]

16 hours ago, Bluereefer said:

Hi guys, thanks for all the responses. In the end I’ve decided to go down the route of introducing nitrifying bacteria along with an artificial ammonia source, as I want to be absolutely sure before I start adding anything. Dr Tim’s one and only along with the ammonium chloride additive should arrive tomorrow! I did add another 3kg piece of cured live rock, which came with what looks like its own little Kenya tree coral! Sure it’s already growing since I got it home, so at least it’s happy at this early stage. 
 

Thanks for your all your help!

You realize you shouldn't use ammonia dosing with cured live rock or with anything alive in your tank.

 

Ammonia dosing is for dry rock cycling

 

 

[Bluereefer]

This hobby 😂 I might have to look for a better LFS, thank you all for your time. The nitrifying bacteria’s already gone in, the ammonia hasn’t. I’m guessing my tank will be alright to start adding fish? I’m not keen on adding a CUC because I’ve not been running a light at all. (Unrelated story regarding a terrible combination of the company I ordered the tank from forgetting to put the light, and THEN the plug adaptor for the light in the tank. Followed by DPD parcel service not being able to do their jobs and deliver it 😕) so there’s really nothing to clean up yet! 

[Tired]

If your tank has no ammonia, no nitrites, and some nitrates, then yes, one fish should be fine. Any ammonia or nitrites mean it needs a bit longer.

 

Smart to not add the CUC yet. 

[mcarroll]

I favor adding CUC vs fish....a fish is a huge addition to the bio-load whereas a single herbivore snail is virtually inconsequential.  Just right for the beginning.

 

When you add lights, you can add a few more cleanup crew snails (2-3) once you see a sign of algae growth somewhere.  One or two Corals could be added too.

 

After a month with lights and a few cleanup crew, and some corals that seem to be doing well, then I would add your first fish.  👍

 

Wait a month or so in between all additions so you can observe any changes the tank goes through and have time to react and make any changes before the next round of livestock has to be considered.