BB cycled - now what?

[tzink]

I recently rebuilt my tank. Was transferring from old system to new... whole thing crashed... sadness... whatever.

 

New tank is BB 20 gal long with sump. 20G display, 10 gal sump with about 8 gal of water in it. Protein skimmer, UV runs 1 hour every night in the sump, carbon filter bag, about 20 lbs of rock, most of it LR from the LFS.

Anyway, it has been up for about five weeks now, and completed its cycle last week. Stocked with lawnmower blenny, purple goby, four zoa frags, CUC, with about 8 more assorted frags going in Friday.

 

In the old setup with a sand substrate, I was routinely battling GHA and cyano. I'm hoping that with no substrate for detritus to collect on, cyano will be history and with starting with some P and N users early on, I can get a jump on the GHA.

 

What I read was that BB is harder to get cycled but easier after that. What should I be looking out for next with the BB setup? What pitfalls are awaiting me that are unique to a BB setup?

 

(Should we start a subforum in the "special interest" section for BB tanks?)

[Clown79]

Yoyr biological filter is in the rocks, there are many hobbyists with bb tanks that don't have any more or less issues than with sand.

 

Unfortunately, both sand and bb still can still have issues with gha, cyano, and dino. 

[tzink]

Thanks. Aside from the rock you see, there is also about 4-5 lbs in the sump. Should I leave it? Slowly take it out? I added it for more surface area for bacteria during cycle but I'd like cleaner flow through the sump in the long run.

[mcarroll]

On 2/9/2021 at 9:37 PM, tzink said:

UV runs 1 hour every night

Either this should be running 24/7 (ie you actually need it) or it should be removed from the system until you need it.  The bulb has a limited number of usage hours where its effective, so save it.  👍   If you've added new fish to the system, then it might be a good idea to run it for a month or two until they're well settled in and at peace

 

On 2/9/2021 at 9:37 PM, tzink said:

Anyway, it has been up for about five weeks now, and completed its cycle last week. Stocked with lawnmower blenny, purple goby, four zoa frags, CUC, with about 8 more assorted frags going in Friday.

That's a lot all at once for a newly cycled tank.  Are you still testing for ammonia, pH, etc?

 

After only five weeks is there any algae for the lawnmower blenny or CUC to eat?

 

On 2/9/2021 at 9:37 PM, tzink said:

In the old setup with a sand substrate, I was routinely battling GHA and cyano. I'm hoping that with no substrate for detritus to collect on, cyano will be history and with starting with some P and N users early on, I can get a jump on the GHA.

You can't starve algae out.  Nutrients don't make it bloom.  Other than that, you're one the right track with this – corals DO tie up space and compete in other important ways with algae, among the other positive benefits they bring to the tank!  👍   But keeping pressure on the algae through removing it by hand and your CUC is the main point. 

On 2/10/2021 at 12:53 PM, tzink said:

Thanks. Aside from the rock you see, there is also about 4-5 lbs in the sump. Should I leave it? Slowly take it out? I added it for more surface area for bacteria during cycle but I'd like cleaner flow through the sump in the long run.

If it's live, don't kill it....sell it or re-use it elsewhere in the display.  But no, you don't really want/need it down there.

[tzink]

Thanks for the detailed reply, @mcarroll

- Why run the UV with the addition of new fish? For parasites?

- Does running the UV continuously lower the spread of coralline algae? I want the dryrock on the left to eventually be covered like the one on the right.

- Yeah, it is a lot at once on coral, but I have a low fish bioload, so I am hoping it's ok. That was a week ago, and so far, so good--everything looks very happy, actually. I did just add a royal gramma and a sharknose goby yesterday. During the cycle I kept dosing small amounts of ammonia daily to simulate the higher bioload I was anticipating. Not sure if this helped. Definitely made the cycle take longer, but I'm hoping I ended up with a more robust population of bacteria to handle the fish and coral.

- Yes, I'm still monitoring ammo, pH, nitrates, and PO4. All stable.

- The CUC is all still alive - definitely algae starting, but seems to be keeping pace with what the CUC can handle. The snails are great at getting it before it really sprouts. Will probably need to add a turbo once things really get going.

- Yeah maybe I'll leave the LR in the sump until things are really established and then sell it or give it away locally.

 

thanks again!

[mcarroll]

1 hour ago, tzink said:

Why run the UV with the addition of new fish? For parasites?

Yes.

 

1 hour ago, tzink said:

Does running the UV continuously lower the spread of coralline algae? I want the dryrock on the left to eventually be covered like the one on the right.

Not significantly since you'll only run it for a limited time frame.

 

1 hour ago, tzink said:

During the cycle I kept dosing small amounts of ammonia daily to simulate the higher bioload I was anticipating. Not sure if this helped.

Only if that's what the directions said to do.

 

1 hour ago, tzink said:

nitrates, and PO4

Remember to keep these in the positive.  ≥0.03 ppm for phosphates, more is fine.  ≥5-10 ppm for nitrates.

 

👍

[fishez4alivin]

Depending on how old the live rock is, looks like half of it is pretty new.  Another factor would be how porous the rock is.  If it's liferock, it is like concrete and doesn't really have a lot of surface for the bacteria to colonize on.  As stated above, BB will not be a cure all for the tank.  You will still have to go through all the algae issues as everyone else but there is one thing that will make it easier.  It's a bare bottom, so scraping algae or cyano or dinos will be a lot easier.  Also you can blast flow to keep detritus suspended so getting rid of the excess nutrients is far easier than a sand bottom.  I would remove that rock in the sump unless its fully  cured rock, that is much older than the display rock. That would aid in biodiversity, however if it's the same age, it's not worth the possible negatives being a detritus trap.

[spazizz]

Ocean sourced lr or lr from a healthy tank are important so a pound of it can be beneficial. Loading the tank up with corals helps to since they will compete with other stuff you don’t want. More rock is beneficial but coral can take up that role in the future but you should be happy with your aquascape too. I like various snails too since they will keep the bottom glass free of algae, if algae starts growing on the bottom it traps detritus and it feeds itself. Have your flow set up so detritus collects in a accessible area so you can siphon it easily. I’ve had no issues with bb flowing these steps. 

[kcamp317]

Im kinda in the same boat.   Had been running a 29G bio cube (modded with an MP10, LED lighting, upgraded filtration, a MJ 1200, etc) for about 6-7 years but the sand bed finally went bad and I was having a terrible time with hair and bubble algae no matter what I tried or maintenance was performed.    I just got it filled today with the addition of a black cutting board type material bottom (looks nice) that I used black aquarium silicone around the perimeter to try to keep stuff from getting under it, let that cure and dry for several days....and obviously no sand.   Had bleached the rocks in buckets, vinegar in the tank both for a few weeks, flushed and dried everything thoroughly, and starting over fresh with a cycle, rocks and fresh RO/DI salt water in and operating it today.   Even splurged and freshened the RO/DI unit with new filters and a membrane.   I am curious how it will go.   I have quite a bit of rock, an InTank media basket that I plan to run filter bags of carbon, filter floss, and matrix in once it gets going.    Livestock plan is pretty simple.   Just a pair of pink skunk clowns and a BTA, some various soft and LPS corals and maybe another small fish and shrimp suitable for this size tank and obviously a clean up crew suitable for a BB setup which I am still looking into.  My first go with a BB type aquarium so it should be interesting.  

 

Instead of doing there traditional cycle of rotting a grocery store shrimp I am trying some live bacteria (I think it was Dr. Tims).  I'll start testing soon.....bought a brand new test kit as well....and see if that works.   If not I'm in no hurry and can cycle it the old fashioned way if need be.    I'm trying to avoid using any water or live rock out of the old setup for any of it because I fear it may be full of algae spores I don't want to add to the new/sterilized setup. 

[mcarroll]

34 minutes ago, kcamp317 said:

Im kinda in the same boat.

It's hard to pin point what the problem was here from the present, but it's unlikely that it was the rock or the water.  Having no substrate isn't a cure-all for things that cause algae to grow to problematic levels or for things that cause a sand bed to "go bad", although it should allow you to have higher flow.  👍  Sand beds don't mix all that well with many of the wide flow powerheads....or they mix too well...which is it?  😁

 

Some of the things in your current recipe seem like you might be heading off in the same direction as before....algae town.  The stock level you have planned is heavy.  The filter plan you have is probably too much.  The rock being sterile is not helpful.  I would suggest cycling the old fashioned way, but check out the relevant sections in Martin Moe's "Marine Aquarium Handbook: From Beginner to Breeder" (at least as a refresher if you've been there before) before you go much further...and then consider what's available in your local fish store to start a tank vs going verbatim out of the book.    (A damselfish probably isn't the smallest organism you can start with.)  Bottled bacteria is a fine compliment to the natural method, BTW, if you do want to start with a fish – that is the whole purpose of the Dr Tim's product you mentioned.  I've never been a fan of the shrimp/ammonia/ghost feeding method as it just doesn't seem to fit right....but it obviously works too.

 

And before you add anything alive, add a Seachem AmmoAlert so you can know about ammonia spikes before they become a problem.  At minimum be diligent with your ammonia test kit.  Being in no hurry as you go along is going to be your biggest asset in the long run. 👍

[tzink]

So far, I have to say I'm pleased with the progress on my tank. No diatom bloom, no GHA. I've got a fairly heavy bioload, but nitrates are under control. Phosphate is at zero, which I don't love, but I'm sure it will climb eventually. I do love not having to worry about the sandbed. I can suck up detritus with water changes and blow things aroudn with the baster without clouding the water. Really liking the BB setup, even if I do miss the visual appeal of a nice white sandbed.