[nemo all the way]

i was wondering what type of cycle live rock has to go through for you to be able to put fish in the tank...how do i know when to add the fish?

[Taras1]

Did you put your live rock directly in your tank? Did you buy a basic test kit for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate? How about water changes, light, etc.

Live rock, like any living thing, gives off nitrogen in the form of ammonia, which is converted by bacteria in your substrate and filter into nitrite and finally nitrate.

If you haven't gotten any books, I reccommend "The Consciencious Marine Aquarist" by Fenner who explains the nitrogen cycle and basic water chemistry. It's a must have.

[nemo all the way]

yes i put it directly in my tank, yes i have to basic test kits...everything was at the normal readings...i dont know what you mean about lighting... i do leave it on for 12 hours a day.... what else should i be doing?

[WorkinMan]

What are your "normal readings"?

[nemo all the way]

they were all 0 except the ph which is 8.4

[Taras1]

How long has your tank been up?

[nemo all the way]

a week ago...last friday

[WorkinMan]

If it's only been a week, then your tank has not even began cycling. It takes anywhere from a month, to a month and a half or more for the cycle to complete. You're gonna have to do some heavy research on the nitrogen cycle as this is one of the most important parts of keeping any kind of aquarium.

[WorkinMan]

Here's a good place to start: What is the Nitrogen Cycling Process?

[Taras1]

I'll second that from WorkingMan. What is your setup like - filter ? skimmer ? volume ?

I also use the "nose" test as well as checking my water parameters. Your tank should smell like a "sunny day at the beach" Watch out for any smell like garbage or rotten eggs. You should see ammonia start in a few days.

[nemo all the way]

i dont have a filter or a skimmer yet...i was told a filter wasnt needed and a skimmer would be added later on...so what should i do? do i have to do anything when the amonia starts?

[WorkinMan]

Mostly filters aren't needed. Most of the ones out there, unless cleaned regulary (at least bi-weekly), have been found over the years to produce more nitrAtes than the live rock can convert so the levels get too high for a healthy reef tank. All that is really needed is some kind of mechanical filtration to filter out the pieces of organic material that will be suspended in the water column.

Cycling is one big waiting game. Do daily tests. When the amonia starts, wait for the nitrIte spike (nitrIte level will be off the chart), after the nitrIte spike, the amonia will start dropping. Then you wait for the nitrAte spike (nitrAte level will be off the chart, or very high). After the nitrAte spike the nitrIte will start dropping. The nitrAte spike should happen sometime between 2-3 weeks after the nitrIte spike. Should happen. It could be more, it could be less. Once the amonia and nitrIte levels are at 0, the nitrogen cycle is complete and large partial water changes will need to be preformed to bring the nitrAte level down to an acceptable level, preferably below 10 ppm but the closer to 0 the better. It takes a long time, but one thing that I have seen passed around here many times is that only bad things happen fast in a reef tank. Patience is a major player in this hobby. If you don't have that, you might as well quit now and save a lot of money.

During the cycle, don't do any water changes. This will only prolong the time it will take for the tank to cycle. You can however top off your tank with FRESH water as it evaporates from the tank. You are using RO or RO/DI water right?

What size is your tank? Are you using a sump? Sumps have many advantages, but I've gone on long enough already so I'll let someone else tell you what those are.

[WorkinMan]

Here's a few more web pages to give you a good start on your research.

Top 10 common mistakes. Read this daily untill you can reapeat word for word in your sleep! It will save you a lot of future headaches. Pay special attention to mistakes 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9, and 10, but the closest attention should be given to mistakes 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9, and 10:
Most Common Mistakes Made by Saltwater Aquarists

This one gives a good breakdown on set-up, and helps you to recognize the areas you need to research more. It was here that my 8 or 9 months (maybe more) of research really began before I even thought of begenning my set-up. Every step brought more questions, and the research for the answers brought more, and that research......:
10 Easy Aquarium Set Up Steps

What a sump is and a few different designs:
What is a Sump and Do You Need One for a Saltwater Aquarium?

A good description of how a counter-current skimmer (one of the many different kinds of skimmer) works, and how a skimmer removes the disolved organics from the water column. Skimmer Design 101


More on skimmers:
Protein Skimming - What Is It and How Does It Work in a Saltwater or Reef Aquarium?

[WILLIAM1]

Now that i have added my rock my ammonia levels went up! my tank is in its third week of cycling. My skimmer is working O.T. My ammonia levels lshould level out as time goes on right. I dont have anything in my tank but live sand and the reef rock from marcorocks about 125lbs in my 90 gallon tank. anyone know the answer?

will

[nemo all the way]

i have had my tank set up for 10 days now and i have been checking the ammonia and nitrite everyday...yesterday everything was normal....today when i did the tests the ammonia was at 0 and the nitrite was at .50 .....is there a reason why the ammonia is still at 0 and the nitrite started to go up???

[WorkinMan]

Originally Posted by WILLIAM1

Now that i have added my rock my ammonia levels went up! my tank is in its third week of cycling. My skimmer is working O.T. My ammonia levels lshould level out as time goes on right. I dont have anything in my tank but live sand and the reef rock from marcorocks about 125lbs in my 90 gallon tank. anyone know the answer?

will

Your amonia level won't really level out. It will continue to rise untill the nitrifying bactera begin growing, then it will begin to slowly drop.

[WILLIAM1]

When the nitrifying bacteria starts the ammonia level should drop and the nitrite level should start to rise correct. The nitrite level should then start to go down 40 or below is good right. your nitrate levels should then start to rise and then follow the same pattern!

[nemo all the way]

i think my tank is having a little trouble starting the cycle...i am now on my 3rd week and everything is 0 the only thing i have saw was a coupple of days ago the nitrite went up a little and then the next day it wsa fine....anyone know whats going on with my tank? is it being stubborn? how do i even know if it cycled or not??

[Taras1]

Can you give us a "day-by-day" calendar of your readings -- SG, pH, NH3, NO2, NO3?

Just to review -- you put in your live rock and sand about 3 weeks ago, nothing else.
What type of filter, refugium, skimmer do you have? Did you add any water conditioners? Did you use tap water?

[nemo all the way]

well teh first week i didnt do any readings because no one told me that this was important....i started my fish tank on the 23 with just water, sand and salt...2 days later i added the live rock...i started to record the reading on the 27th... everything was at 0 except the ph- 8.4 it contiued to remain the same until the 31st when i saw a little rise in the nitrate - 10 then on the 1st the nitrite was .50 and the ammonia was at 0 the next say the nitrite started to go back down and is now at 0 again....i used tap water...i dont have a filter or a sump or skimmer because i was told not to get these until i have added fish...nothing else was done to the tank except i put 3 shrimp in there to eat the anemones that live on the live rock....

[Taras1]

The your tank should have cycled as follows:

NH3 (ammonia) - Weeks 1-3
NO2 (nitrite) - Weeks 2-4
NO3 (nitrate) - Weeks 3-6

I really can't explain what's going on. I would advise getting some type of sump/filter, skimmer and heater. Did you use a dechlorinator? Part of the cycling is getting your filter biologically active. There are many good, inexpensive wet/dry filters and pumps on the market. IMO the combination filters that allow you to use mechanical, chemical and biological methods give you excellent control over your water quality.

[WorkinMan]

If your tank hasn't cycled yet, there's a good chance you'll loose the shrimp when it starts. Tap water isn't really all that great for a reef tank. Too many phosphates and other nutrients that will do bad things to your water quality, plus heavy metals that will do bad things to your fish.