feeding the cycle with shrimp

[MinnFish]

Originally Posted by scott3569

I have always seen don't do water changes during you cycle..if I am wrong cool..I am still learning

Due to ammonia, nitrites are in the water columns. Rid the tank of these and you will stall the cycle. Water change at the end of cycle to bring the nitrates down and replenish trace elements for future residents.

[Mark426]

Originally Posted by scott3569

I have always seen don't do water changes during you cycle..if I am wrong cool..I am still learning

Depends.... If you are starting with live rock then the purpose of water changes are to keep ammonia and nitrites at a level that wont kill as many of the beneficial critters that rode in on the rock. This will lengthen the cycle but supposedly with fewer casualties. Starting with dead dry rock then no need to change water till the tank is established, nothing to kill. Several large water changes when the initial cycle is well over to export the excess nitrates. That's the way I understand the argument anyway.

[Lucky Lefty]

I will look into the water change while cycling theory a but more. Pretty cool to know that even that I had a rocky start, something survived. I looked at Bodybag as soon as I woke up and the stocking was COVERED with those tiny bug like creatures.

Frogdog, that's a great idea about the blog. Not sure if you saw my original thread in the "new to the hobby" forum but check it out. It's title " a noob learning the hard way" or something close to that. I detailed the beginnings of my fish tank adventures.

Thanks all for the advice. Keep it coming!! Thanks again.

[scott3569]

Originally Posted by Lucky Lefty

I will look into the water change while cycling theory a but more. Pretty cool to know that even that I had a rocky start, something survived. I looked at Bodybag as soon as I woke up and the stocking was COVERED with those tiny bug like creatures.

Frogdog, that's a great idea about the blog. Not sure if you saw my original thread in the "new to the hobby" forum but check it out. It's title " a noob learning the hard way" or something close to that. I detailed the beginnings of my fish tank adventures.

Thanks all for the advice. Keep it coming!! Thanks again.

either way, sounds like you headed down a better road, just research everything before you do it..I am sure you will be fine..I am quite excited myself with the progress I have made, I have learned a ton!! I am also able to read through these forums all day if I want(workers comp).

[Lucky Lefty]

Thanks again, I feel like I'm in the right direction here. Really falling in love with my tank. I can only imagine what it's going to be like to have fish. The pods that are everywhere, will they eventually become food for my future fish? Could these be copepods?

If so, is there a way to harvest these things for feeding? They must be hardy to survive this far so I can't imagine it would take a complicated setup. I've been wrong before though.

Now, I'm off to plant a money tree in my backyard because I want... Need a bunch of stuff for my tank.

[Lucky Lefty]

Just checked levels after 24 hours with Bodybag in the tank.
They appear to be identical to yesterday.
Ph 8.2
Ammonia .25
Nitrite .1
Nitrate .25 - 12.5

Will check tomorrow and then every other day from there.

Man, a blog would be great, huh.

After another look, wife says ammonia looks more like .5.. Can't wait to check tomorrow.

[snorvich]

Hey you are on a roll! Just think of all the joy a single shrimp can bring into your life.

[Lucky Lefty]

Originally Posted by snorvich

Hey you are on a roll! Just think of all the joy a single shrimp can bring into your life.

Haha.. He's a good pet. He will be remembered after he's long gone. Bodybag - The Sacrificial Shrimp

[Dustin Thompson]

Hey Lucky, how long did you keep the shrimp in your tank? I threw a piece in my tank to jumpstart my cycle, and it brought the ammonia up a smidge after less than a day. It has just started to discolor after 24+ hours, and I have tons of the little white critters going to work on mine too.

I wish I had gotten into this ten years ago. What a blast it is!

[oh207]

You've got lots of good info and advise on how to kick start the cycle. So I will add some non-cycle info. It's a very bad idea to steal your wife's stockings or anything else for that matter in order to support the tank. Unless of course she willingly offers it. And in that case, it means she is reef safe and you are one lucky guy! I read the body bag part and had a good laugh. It would appear you are both in this together! That's awesome, keep it that way.
Good luck with the tank.

[Lucky Lefty]

Originally Posted by oh207

You've got lots of good info and advise on how to kick start the cycle. So I will add some non-cycle info. It's a very bad idea to steal your wife's stockings or anything else for that matter in order to support the tank. Unless of course she willingly offers it. And in that case, it means she is reef safe and you are one lucky guy! I read the body bag part and had a good laugh. It would appear you are both in this together! That's awesome, keep it that way.
Good luck with the tank.

Hahah, she really is the greatest wife ever, and reef safe haha!

[Lucky Lefty]

Originally Posted by Dustin Thompson

Hey Lucky, how long did you keep the shrimp in your tank? I threw a piece in my tank to jumpstart my cycle, and it brought the ammonia up a smidge after less than a day. It has just started to discolor after 24+ hours, and I have tons of the little white critters going to work on mine too.

I wish I had gotten into this ten years ago. What a blast it is!

Bodybag has been in for a few days now. 4 I believe. I check my levels the day after, and then skipped a day and checked yesterday. My levels didn't really change much as of yesterday, which is why I didn't record my resting results here because I was bummed about it.

Bodybag is still in there. Cannot see what it looks like though because of, well, his body bag (black nylon stocking). There is a photos in my earlier posts of this thread.

I think I've figured out that this point right here during the cycle, is the part everyone has been stressing to me about one thing... PATIENCE. I'm just acting like I own a rock tank right now, a lousy and underweight rock tank, but a rock tank that may one day develop all the parameters I need for fish.

I don't mind the wait. It makes it all worth it.

Happy reefing dude. Welcome to the club.

[Lucky Lefty]

Oh yea one more thing.

In my research over the past couple days, I believe I've narrowed down the type of pod in my tank. I'm pretty sure they are Harpacticoids.

[frogdog]

Originally Posted by Lucky Lefty

Oh yea one more thing.

In my research over the past couple days, I believe I've narrowed down the type of pod in my tank. I'm pretty sure they are Harpacticoids.

[Lucky Lefty]

What's up FrogDog?

Me, just cycling...waiting.... And cycling.

[snorvich]

Originally Posted by Lucky Lefty

Hahah, she really is the greatest wife ever, and reef safe haha!

Which is critical. Plus she contributed to body bag's stylish accoutrement.

[Lucky Lefty]

Checked my water parameters yesterday.

All levels still very much the same.
Ph 8.0
Ammonia .25 but looking slightly towards the yellow (0) and actually lower than my last 2 recorded reading of .5 although I don't remember seeing .5, that is what is recorded.
Nitrite 0.1
Nitrate 2.5 - 12.5

Bodybag (dead shrimp) still at the bottom of the tank, much much less pods swarming the stocking, still present, but greatly reduced in numbers on the stocking, can still be seen all over the tank and glass.

I've run into a serious issue with mold growth in my stand on the sump end. Because of the drips on my threaded fittings, i stapled up a curtain with contractor bags to direct the drips into either the sump or a bucket on the other end. The contractor bags must be created a barrier form moisture and promoting mold growth. White fuzzy mold and even some low lying green mold. NOT GOOD.

So my list of thing to do immediately, most likely this weekend, are:

Make side panel of stand a door
Cut out plumbing, replace all threaded fittings with slip fittings
Wipe down all areas affected by mold with paint thinner or acetone
Buy more live rock (most likely this Tuesday) to greatly increase area for bacteria inside DT and get some rubble rock for sump box.

Aside from that drama, I don't know if this is going accordingly. I was expecting more ammonia by now, and some sort of fluctuation in values. Perhaps I am just WAYYY underweight with rock to allow a cycle.

Not sure, but the mold is freaking me out.

[frogdog]

Hey Lucky, how's it going? You might want to deal with the mold (other than superficially) until you redo your pipe connections. How's bodybag?

[Lucky Lefty]

Originally Posted by frogdog

Hey Lucky, how's it going? You might want to deal with the mold (other than superficially) until you redo your pipe connections. How's bodybag?

Yea the mold has me pretty freaked out. Thinking of cutting the side panel off today just to open up the stand and thoroughly wipe down the interior with paint thinner to kill the mold on the wood.

Bodybag seems the same as yesterday, still a bunch of life crawling all over the stocking. Just surprised the shrimp didn't seem to really change my levels at all. Could this be a direct result of not enough rock.