tank status

[Mike87SS]

I took the advice I was given in an earlier thread, and I am proud to say that my tank is almost half way through it's cycle now

I tested my ammonia and nitrites last night, and the ammonia is down to about .35 ppm and that nitrite test that is supposed to take about 5 mins. to develop instantly went off the chart. I started the tank with some live rock, that I wasn't very happy with when I got, it had a large amount of die-off, but I figured that the dead stuff would spike the ammonia and get the cycle going, so I used it anyway. The rock has come around nicely and started to form nice coloring. I have new uncured rock going in the tank tomorrow after a quick scrub, bringing me up to 95 - 100 lbs. of live rock in my 75 gallon. I can hardly wait for the next month or so for the cycle to finish so I can get the cleaner crew in there, and then a few weeks later start adding some fish.

Thanks again for all of the great info.

On a side note, is it a good idea to purchase larger size fish when available over the small sizes? I am thinking that I want to eventually end up with around 3 green chromis, a flame angel, and a volitan lion, and a couple of cleaner shrimp, in addition to the invert cleaner crew. What do you all think of that combo?

 

[OrionGirl]

The size of the fish depends on the fish. With some fish, you'll be better off with a juvenile, since it will be more flexible and easier to get feeding. Flame angels and lions are on this list--the larger, wild caught fish will not acclimate to the aquarium as well. Captive raised fish won't matter--they'll acclimate more readily to your feeding and such.

However--lions will eat anything small enough to fit in their mouth--and they have huge mouths. The chromis and shrimp may be eaten, and the angel won't be entirely safe until it's full grown. Volitans get to the size of basketballs, and can handily eat a fish 4-5 inches in length. You may be better off going with a smaller variety, like the radiata, although the chromis still might be eaten, at least the angel will be safe. Motile inverts are a tough call--some lions won't touch them, other's pop them like reeses pieces.

 

[Mike87SS]

Follow Up:

It has been a little while since the original post, and there are a few new developments with my tank.

The pH has been consistent around 8.0 now that I started using Kent's Buffer dKH. I tested my tap water and found that it has a pH of 7.4. Should I be adding the buffer on my change water until it reaches the 8.1 level?

I am going to experiment tonight, and take a few gallons of my water and let it sit with the powerhead in it with no top to see if I have enough gas exchange going on, as I have a glass lid. More to come on that.

I also am experiencing some brown algae on my sand and a little on the live rock, which seems to be common among the folks that used the Garden Basics play sand from Walmart. This sand is not aragonite based, rather it is silica based. How should I deal with this new algae?

On a brighter note:

It appears that my cycle is coming to an end. This is a very exciting time for me

I tested my ammonia, nitrites, nitrates, and pH the other night and here were the results:

Ammonia: 0
Nitrite: 0
Nitrate: 20
pH: 8.0

I am going to test my alkalinity tonight.

At this point, I am confused as to whether or not I am ready to add the algae cleanup crew. Is the acclimation process the same as it is for fish?

Would it be wise, until I can afford my RO/DI setup to use some kind of Phosphate/Silica sponge like the on that Marc Wiess offers? Would there be any adverse effects?


When should I do my first water change also?

 

[OrionGirl]

Brown algae is pretty common to all new setups, no matter what substrate you use. As long as the ammonia/nitrite is stable at 0, you can start adding cleaners. Nassarius and cerith snails are my favorites for keeping the sand tidy. Acclimation will be the same for your inverts as for fish.

I don't think there would be any adverse reactions, other than a bigger drip from the old wallet. Have you tested your water for either?

 

[Mike87SS]

I don't think there would be any adverse reactions, other than a bigger drip from the old wallet. Have you tested your water for either? [/B]

That is next on the list.

How many snails and crabs should I start with?

Could I go with one of the algae cleaner packs from LiveAquaria?