OK to add clean up crew?

BHF · 09/12/2006, 05:59 PM

Hey all. I've been cycling my tank for about a week now, and for the past few days I've been getting an amm and nitrite reading of 0 and a nitrate reading of 40-70 (varies on day). Yesterday I started to see algae on the glass and in the sand, and I came home from work today to a full blown bloom.

"GREAT," says I, "time to order the cleanup crew!"

Not so fast, grasshopper.

I did a 25% water change, and went to work on deciding between two different sites to get my crew from. After about a hour, and before I had hit "submit" on my order, I went to test the water one last time.

Nitrates at about 50.
Ammonia at about 0.5!!!

Didn't bother with the nitrite after that.

Now, right now I've got a couple blue leg hermits that I picked up the other day (guinea pigs, as it were), a small serpent star (hitchiker), and a tiger goby (also a hitchiker) that seem to be doing just fine (lost one, maybe two of ten hermits -sucked away promptly in a baster).

So...do I go ahead and get the cleaners to deal with the algal bloom, or hold off another week and introduce them to a veritable algal buffet?

demonsp · 09/12/2006, 06:45 PM

well are you running a light? 2 wekks maybe a little early for clean up crue. also they say to add a shrimp to help cycle. i started my clean up crew at week 3 and really didnt lose any. just add a few snails and crabs every week.

BHF · 09/12/2006, 06:47 PM

4 96w PC (2 10K, 1 blue act, 1 50/50) on a 12 hour cycle).

demonsp · 09/12/2006, 06:49 PM

yea in first weeks you want to start with a few hours and and more time evey week. to much light at first will cause excessive algea at first. i went thru same thing .

BHF · 09/12/2006, 06:51 PM

Ok, so throttle back the lighting some. Fair enough. Hold off on the crew as well, or bring them on in and hit the water changes hard?

demonsp · 09/12/2006, 07:06 PM

well water changes are good keep that up 20 % once a month.sounds like the light was your biggest problem.some people go all out right away and most go slowly. with all the horror stories i read in here slower is better. but each case is differant. i used 80 lbs live sand and 60 lbs live rock. amo never left 0 and all others stayed 0 except my ph . now im going on 4 month and working on my low cal. Never ending story but worth it all very fun hobby.also dont forget your shrimp it does help,drop 1 in tank over night and remove left over in morning this will help you bacteria ( cant spell ) gl have fun

nmprisons · 09/12/2006, 07:35 PM

at this point, do not add a shrimp ... they are used to kickstart a cycle, but your tank is cycling already.

if you had an ammonia spike after adding new water, i would suspect there was something messed up with your water that caused things in your tank to perish or, more likely, there was a problem with the water you used.

are you using ro/di water? are you using a good salt brand? are you mixing your salt in a clean bucket?

kass03 · 09/12/2006, 07:45 PM

Ammonia is the start of a cycle.

I wouldnt add anything else until the ammonia is 0 and nitrite is 0.
I would also worry about the inverts in there already. Ammonia can kill them.

You did'nt say how you started the cycle? with live rock?
If it was with live rock it depends on how much die off there is as for how long the cycle will take. It can take more than 2 weeks and often does.

kass

BHF · 09/12/2006, 08:05 PM

IO salt, bucket rinsed and air dried after each use, and TBS rock. Just did another amm test, and it looks to be rising slightly.

*insert stream of annoyed, impatient expletives here*

Probably a sponge under or between some rocks. Going to have to go digging for it tomorrow and hope for the best.

Only bad things happen quickly, right?

BHF · 09/17/2006, 05:04 PM

Well, almost week later, and the ammonia levels don't seem to want to move yet. Not a huge deal. It will get there in time. I'm starting to achieve a zen state regarding the cycle.

But this is what I'm finding absolutely FASCINATING.

The cup corals are opening every night (and occasionaly during the day).

The TUBE corals have started to open.

I have more duster worms now then I did when this thread started.

My tiger goby is doing fine. As are my hermits, limpets, and recently discovered serpent stars.

WHAT is going on here?

nmprisons · 09/17/2006, 05:06 PM

here is my guess ... i bet you have a sponse in there somewhere (maybe inside a rock) that has died and is slowly wasting away. this may make your cycle a little longer. thankfully, you have TBS rock and so there is tons for you to look at while you wait (I would love to see some pics). make sure you follow their care instructions regarding water changes and feedings and just enjoy the explosion of biodiversity that rock brings to your tank.

BHF · 09/17/2006, 05:28 PM

Yup...the sponge theory is the one I'm working on as well. But I guess I'm stunned by the fact that everything seems to be doing fine with an ammonia level over one. Weird. Just weird.

09/12/2006, 05:59 PM	#1
BHF Premium Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Baltimore, MD Posts: 127	OK to add clean up crew? Hey all. I've been cycling my tank for about a week now, and for the past few days I've been getting an amm and nitrite reading of 0 and a nitrate reading of 40-70 (varies on day). Yesterday I started to see algae on the glass and in the sand, and I came home from work today to a full blown bloom. "GREAT," says I, "time to order the cleanup crew!" Not so fast, grasshopper. I did a 25% water change, and went to work on deciding between two different sites to get my crew from. After about a hour, and before I had hit "submit" on my order, I went to test the water one last time. Nitrates at about 50. Ammonia at about 0.5!!! Didn't bother with the nitrite after that. Now, right now I've got a couple blue leg hermits that I picked up the other day (guinea pigs, as it were), a small serpent star (hitchiker), and a tiger goby (also a hitchiker) that seem to be doing just fine (lost one, maybe two of ten hermits -sucked away promptly in a baster). So...do I go ahead and get the cleaners to deal with the algal bloom, or hold off another week and introduce them to a veritable algal buffet? Last edited by BHF; 09/12/2006 at 06:52 PM.

09/12/2006, 07:35 PM	#7
nmprisons Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Chicago Posts: 1,520	at this point, do not add a shrimp ... they are used to kickstart a cycle, but your tank is cycling already. if you had an ammonia spike after adding new water, i would suspect there was something messed up with your water that caused things in your tank to perish or, more likely, there was a problem with the water you used. are you using ro/di water? are you using a good salt brand? are you mixing your salt in a clean bucket? __________________ 25gallon tank up and cycling since 7/29/06 Mostly LPS reef (lords, micros, duncans, etc.) with some ricordia florida and zoanthids. Current Tank Info: 25 gallon, 28lbs of Marshall Island and Kaelini Live Rock, 2x65 power compact lighting, IFS Protein Skimmer

09/17/2006, 05:06 PM	#11
nmprisons Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Chicago Posts: 1,520	here is my guess ... i bet you have a sponse in there somewhere (maybe inside a rock) that has died and is slowly wasting away. this may make your cycle a little longer. thankfully, you have TBS rock and so there is tons for you to look at while you wait (I would love to see some pics). make sure you follow their care instructions regarding water changes and feedings and just enjoy the explosion of biodiversity that rock brings to your tank. __________________ 25gallon tank up and cycling since 7/29/06 Mostly LPS reef (lords, micros, duncans, etc.) with some ricordia florida and zoanthids. Current Tank Info: 25 gallon, 28lbs of Marshall Island and Kaelini Live Rock, 2x65 power compact lighting, IFS Protein Skimmer

09/12/2006, 06:45 PM	#2
demonsp Moved On Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: el paso tx Posts: 7,634	well are you running a light? 2 wekks maybe a little early for clean up crue. also they say to add a shrimp to help cycle. i started my clean up crew at week 3 and really didnt lose any. just add a few snails and crabs every week.

09/12/2006, 06:47 PM	#3
BHF Premium Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Baltimore, MD Posts: 127	4 96w PC (2 10K, 1 blue act, 1 50/50) on a 12 hour cycle).

09/12/2006, 06:49 PM	#4
demonsp Moved On Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: el paso tx Posts: 7,634	yea in first weeks you want to start with a few hours and and more time evey week. to much light at first will cause excessive algea at first. i went thru same thing .

09/12/2006, 06:51 PM	#5
BHF Premium Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Baltimore, MD Posts: 127	Ok, so throttle back the lighting some. Fair enough. Hold off on the crew as well, or bring them on in and hit the water changes hard?

09/12/2006, 07:06 PM	#6
demonsp Moved On Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: el paso tx Posts: 7,634	well water changes are good keep that up 20 % once a month.sounds like the light was your biggest problem.some people go all out right away and most go slowly. with all the horror stories i read in here slower is better. but each case is differant. i used 80 lbs live sand and 60 lbs live rock. amo never left 0 and all others stayed 0 except my ph . now im going on 4 month and working on my low cal. Never ending story but worth it all very fun hobby.also dont forget your shrimp it does help,drop 1 in tank over night and remove left over in morning this will help you bacteria ( cant spell ) gl have fun

09/12/2006, 07:45 PM	#8
kass03 Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Kaukauna, Wi Posts: 2,937	Ammonia is the start of a cycle. I wouldnt add anything else until the ammonia is 0 and nitrite is 0. I would also worry about the inverts in there already. Ammonia can kill them. You did'nt say how you started the cycle? with live rock? If it was with live rock it depends on how much die off there is as for how long the cycle will take. It can take more than 2 weeks and often does. kass

09/12/2006, 08:05 PM	#9
BHF Premium Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Baltimore, MD Posts: 127	IO salt, bucket rinsed and air dried after each use, and TBS rock. Just did another amm test, and it looks to be rising slightly. insert stream of annoyed, impatient expletives here Probably a sponge under or between some rocks. Going to have to go digging for it tomorrow and hope for the best. Only bad things happen quickly, right?

09/17/2006, 05:04 PM	#10
BHF Premium Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Baltimore, MD Posts: 127	Well, almost week later, and the ammonia levels don't seem to want to move yet. Not a huge deal. It will get there in time. I'm starting to achieve a zen state regarding the cycle. But this is what I'm finding absolutely FASCINATING. The cup corals are opening every night (and occasionaly during the day). The TUBE corals have started to open. I have more duster worms now then I did when this thread started. My tiger goby is doing fine. As are my hermits, limpets, and recently discovered serpent stars. WHAT is going on here?

09/17/2006, 05:28 PM	#12
BHF Premium Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Baltimore, MD Posts: 127	Yup...the sponge theory is the one I'm working on as well. But I guess I'm stunned by the fact that everything seems to be doing fine with an ammonia level over one. Weird. Just weird.