Incomplete Cycle, Attentive Husbandry - 6/10/08
Hi
<Hello>
I have a 100 gal tank that has been setup for about 18 months. First cycling never really happened.
<Not good….will result in continued problems.>
We have a pacific tang, 2 clown fish, niger trigger, 3 damsels, yellow tang and brown Scopas.
<Quite full>
Salt levels are high
<?>
and we have done a 10 gallon water change with distilled water.
<Drastic…this will have a profound effect on your pH and alkalinity, as well as the salinity of your water. Even changes from bad to good must be done slowly- I’ve seen a tank of damsels swell up and pop because the SG was lowered too quickly.>
Salt level has dropped to about 33ppm. Temp is 72F.
<Too cold>
We were told by our local store it was also ok to add new live sand to the tank.
<Product is rarely ‘live’…sits in a bag for months. Of little benefit, at great cost.>
Sand was added, approx 10lbs. We were told no need to recycle sand, it was ok to just add directly to tank. Within a week of adding, we have lost the trigger, 2 damsels, 2 clown fish, and pacific tang. All these were gone in less than 24 hrs. Is it possible since the sand was added directly to the tank that it caused the tank to cycle over again?
<No, these fish likely were lost because of lowered dissolved oxygen and abrasion to the gills from the dust in the sand. A few quick tests for NH3, NO2 and NO3 will shed light on your cycling issue.>
What can we do to save the 3 fish left?
<Attentive husbandry will be the key- keep your SG, temperature, etc under control. If these basic parameters cannot be maintained, you have little hope of successfully keeping these fish ive.>
levels as of tonight are
pH 8.6
NO3 15-20
NO2 .35
Ammonia .15
<You tank is not yet cycled properly. Read re cycling, general maintenance in the archived articles and queries on wetwebmedia.com. I don’t intend to sound harsh, but my belief is that inattentive husbandry and poor information is the root of the problem here.>
Any thoughts?
<Keep up with water changes to bring nitrogenous wastes down, read, read, read, and you’ll find success and continued enjoyment in the hobby.>
Melissa
Wilmington
<Benjamin>

Cant get rid of nitrates and nitrites
Tank Cycling 4/17/08
I have a new 54 gal tank that I cannot seem to get cycled. All parameters are OK except for nitrites and nitrates. I have been using BioZyme as directed, then when that did not work after 2 weeks, I used some TLC saltwater, as prescribed on the bottle. My ammonia has been 0 for 2 weeks now, I have somewhat reduced my feeding. I have done a 10gal water change and still have lost 4-5 fish.
<You should not have this many fish until the tank is cycled, part of the problem.>
I am by no means an expert, but I thought I had a fair understanding of biological filtration. I am using a MegaFlow 1 sump, with standard media that came with it. No protein skimmer.
<Get one, they are a valuable tool towards maintaining a good water quality.>
I mostly have a fish only tank. No reef.
Parameters are as follows:
Temp: 78 o F
Specific Gravity: 1.023
pH: 8.4
Ammonia: 0
Nitrite 5.0 mf/L
Nitrate: 80 mg/L
<Whoa, need some water changes, now. The nitrate is high for any system.>
I appreciate your help as my local pet store is not offering much advice. They are telling me to 'just wait.
<Waiting and patience is part of the equation. Water changes are also.>
I wanted to buy some Nitromax, but they told me to just sit back.
<Good advice, there is no additive that will hurry the natural cycle of things.>
That is hard to do when I am loosing some fish.
<One fish, two small Damsels (if you want Damsels) most at this point. Do not add any more until your levels are down.>
I can’t understand while my nitrite and nitrates aren't going back down since my ammonia is back at zero.
<Ammonia going down is just part of the equation. The nitrite should soon catch up. The nitrate will not resolve itself without some kind of natural nitrate reduction such as a DSB or macroalgae growth preferably in a refugium). Even then, a level of 80 will require a series of water changes to get the levels down to an acceptable level. Lay off the use of the biological additives, you have all you need. Time is the game now. Good luck, Scott V.>

Re: Tank Cycling 4/17/08
Once the tank does properly cycle, how should I add fish. Just one at a time, I assume?
<Yes, ideally after a quarantine period in a dedicated tank.>
Then, how long to I wait before I add another?
<This is where your water quality tests will really play in. If you have an ammonia or nitrate spike after adding a fish, wait a few weeks. When these levels reach zero, wait a while longer and then add another fish. If these numbers hold steady (zero) you can add sooner, say a week or so, but going slow and exercising patience is better and will payoff. Either way you will need to keep the nitrate in check.>
Thanks
<Welcome, Scott V.>

Mini cycle after aquarium upgrade   11/15/07
<Hello Dan>
First and foremost I'd like to thank you and your team for your hard work and dedication. I am amazed and inspired by the level of knowledge and expertise you share with the community.
<Thank you from the whole crew!!!>
I've recently upgraded my established, healthy FOWLR 40gallon breeder to a 90 gallon oceanic setup. My plan is to do fish and some corals. I staged the move from one tank to the next over a 2 week period, beginning with introducing about 30lbs of live sand along with 40lbs of cured LR. I filled about 75% of the tank with new RODI filtered water and mixed salt with no livestock. Water circulated (about 500-600 gph) for 4-5 days at 77 degrees. I did not do any water testing during that time. On day 5 I did water tests - ammonia was less than .20 , nitrite and nitrate were 0. Salinity was 1.023, temp 78, ph 8.2. KH was 125. Calcium was a little higher than normal (I had buffered the day before).
I began transferring the remaining LR and about 40% of my existing sand from the old tank. Fish were in a holding tank with water from the old tank.
This past Sunday I did the final transfer of live stock - 4 fish and a few inverts.
Monday am- Ammonia was .25 -- late Monday pm it was .30 - nitrites and nitrates were both 0. Tuesday Ammonia was just about the same, maybe .35-.40 other parameters were fine. (ph, salinity, temp, KH, ca, etc)
I mixed 50 gallons of salt water and began to prepare for the inevitable 50% water change if the ammonia didn't level out...However to my surprise -
Tuesday - Ammonia stayed the same, along with all other parameters. Late Tuesday PM, Ammonia began to drop back to .25
Today (Wed) Ammonia is almost 0 again. Funny thing is Nitrate and Nitrites are at 0 as well.
Question - can a "partial" cycle take place without a true spike in ammonia and rise in nitrites before leveling out?
<ANSWER- YES. Basically, you already had sufficient numbers of nitrifying bacteria present. Your transfer included new sand, new rock, and your "bio-load" changed. The bacteria needed to catch up to the new demand of your new system by colonizing new surfaces. There is a "mini cycle" that lasts between 72 hours and a week for these bacteria to colonize. After this time frame you should begin to have zero readings on your test kits. (This is normal) However, the system is still maturing and bacteria are still adjusting to your maintenance schedules and so forth.>
I have 2 test kits and tested everything except ammonia with both measures.
Am I in the safe zone? I was anticipating much more of a cycle
<You are in the "safe" zone. I recommend that you wait another 30 days before you begin to purchase new stock or add more corals as the new system stabilizes. Continue testing and make water changes as necessary.
On another note, when hobbyist switch from FOWLR to reef tanks or corals they are unaware of how important the control of phosphates are. Please purchase a good phosphate test kit and keep this level as low as possible with water changes and the use of an Iron Oxide resin. Enjoy your new tank-Rich...aka...Mr. Firemouth>

Strange spike in my water quality 2-25-08
Hello Again WWM Crew! I hope your day is going well.
<No biostatistics today! Yay!>
I have a question about a strange spike in my water quality numbers.
<Alrighty then>
I have a 125g FOWLR tank (about 50lbs of LR and 100lbs of LS). My numbers were all within range (ammonia 0, nitrites 0, nitrates 5-10, ph 8.2-8.4) for a couple weeks, then I added my livestock about two weeks ago.
<What, pray tell, does "Livestock" entail?>
The numbers since then have been the same, but Friday night when I tested, I did not expect the results I received: (Ammonia .50, Nitrates 3.0, Nitrates 20, ph 8.2). I quickly did a 20% water change, and let the tank "settle" overnight. Saturday morning, I tested again, and even with the water change, I had identical numbers: (Ammonia .50, Nitrates 3.0, Nitrates 20, pH 8.2). I did another 20% water change Saturday afternoon, and checked again Sunday morning...almost Identical numbers again: (Ammonia .25 [slight drop], Nitrites 3.0, Nitrates 20, ph 8.2). I did yet another 20% change Sunday night, and just checked again this morning, and the numbers are the same as yesterday: (Ammonia .25, Nitrates 3.0, Nitrates 20, ph 8.2). The other thing I have noticed is that there seems to be some growth in the tank. Not much at all, but there are a few resin ornaments we have in the tank and there seems to be a brownish algae growing on the tops of them.
<Not at all unusual, especially during a cycle>
My question is, is it possible my tank is re-cycling for some reason?
<Most likely> Also, what course of action should I take? Am I not changing enough water (20%) to make an impact on the numbers, or are the nitrites and nitrates holding steady because the tank is cycling (again?).
<Sounds like you simply added too much biomass too quickly, with a possible of lack of adequate biological filtration. Water changes are going to interrupt this second cycle, so I would cease the water changes, add Amquel+ or Prime daily to neutralize the ammonia/nitrites, and add a 'cycle booster' type product (I like SeaChem's' Stability) to 'jump start' your biofilter. Next time, don't add animals as quickly!>
I appreciate any thoughts and suggestions. As always, thank you for your time and your help.
<Anytime>
Mike P.
<M. Maddox>