[Phayes]

Just a few simple questions consistent with my newbiness

1) Just startd my tank up (cycling), and wondering how long it should take before I see ammonia levels start to spike?

2) Also, looking into a sump type setup. I understand how the water gets down and out of the sump, but in case of a power outage, what makes the water stop siphoning into the sump? Would this not cause my new ocean reef to end up as a shallow bank on my hardwood floors?

3) After spending much of my funds on the initial tank setup, I can't afford a RO/DI unit at the moment. Is using big 5g jugs of water (such as Culligan) to mix up my new salt water a bad idea, and why?

Thanks in advance!

[NOSAJ214]

WELL FIRST OF ALL CYCLING SHOULD TAKE AT LEAST 6 WEEKS,IT ALL DEPENDS.SECOND GO TO HOME DEPOT AND BUY 5 GALLON BUCKETS TO MIX YOUR Water BECAUSE YOU SHOULD USE A POWERHEAD AND AN AIRSTONE TO MAKE YOUR WATER,YOU CANT DO THAT WITH 5 GALLON DRINKING WATER CONTAINERS.AND FINALLY BE PATIENT.NO REEF FORMS OVER A WEEK,6 WEEKS,6 MONTHS.JUST BE PATIENT.A WORD OF ADVICE IF YOU HAVE ALREADY PUT IN LIVE ROCK DONT BUY DAMSELS,YOULL NEVER GET THEM OUT.GOOD LUCK.

[NOSAJ214]

By The Way Do You Have An Overflow Box?if So It Wont Overflow Because It Only Suck Up So Much Water.

[stacef]

Hello 1) here are a couple of links about cycling

Beginner FAQ: The Nitrogen Cycle

Nitrogen Cycle

2)Here is how an overflow works---
Google Image Result for http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2003-01/gt/images/overflow-dynamic-labeled.gif

When R/O water is not readily available. I personally believe that Culligan is the next best thing. This is what I use, and my parameters are perfect! I tested it awhile back, on three different groups of water from Culligan to make sure it was somewhat consistant. I came up with Nitrate-0 Nitrite-0 Ammonia-0 and Ph 7.4