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Nitrogen Cycle


rollrok18

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I feel like a moron for even making this mistake because I should know better....

I set up a new tank, 3 weeks, used good rock 68lbs, and a very thin layer of aragonite, maybe 15lbs ,in a 47 gallon tank. Tank seemed to be cycling or a lack there of, threw in a 2 clown fish to get some ammonia kickin up about 1 week ago. Yesterday I noticed the tank was a little cloudy and had some brown algae beginning to show up on the substrate, very small amount and I thought ya! cycling going. SIDE NOTE: I have been using this liquid bacteria cycling stuff I got talked into at fishy business by the way...not sure if it has done anything but maybe it has, not pissed about it. So I checked my levels using API tests: Ammonia 1.5ppm, Nitrate 20, pH 8.4, Phosphate 1.5, and just bypassed Nitrites at that point and panicked because my ammonia level was so hi and I didn't want the fish to die, there just children man! I used them in some kind of a sick experiment! ...ahh christ I am going to hell ; Then I proceeded to add chemipure elite ,1 unit, forgetting in total chaos that this is just part of the gig when cycling the tank. Nevertheless, I recheck the levels 3 hours later and ammonia and phosphate down to almost undetectable, nitrates 5-10; I am realizing right now that I may have fubard my nitrogen cycle by doing this, just not sure...need some thoughts, and opinions from the nice folks of ARC: I can take being criticize constructively so let me have it...More than likely I feel I should yank the chemipure and just let the tank sit for 3 more weeks and deal with it, but any other thoughts are welcome. Thanks in advance!

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I wouldnt worry about it. The tank is going to cycle regardless of what you do at this point. As long as you have a viable nutrient load, ammonia will still be produced. However, I will warn you that I have noticed cloudy water since beginning my new tank with bacterial dosing. I too am running chemipure elite, which also has gfo inside of it. I believe what you are seeing is a side effect of the chemical compounds reacting to one another. Just let it go. I'm at week 4 and still in the peak of my cycle. I killed two fish due to getting trigger happy (no pun intended). Keep up with your regimen, you're doing it right. Have you noted any algae blooms? or diatom blooms?

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I think you're ok. I'm assuming that "good rock" means that it was cured or from an existing tank. You most likely just had a soft cycle which is basically just an ammonia spike from exceeding the biological capacity that existed in there. Luckily once you have established bacteria, it reproduces much more quickly to meet the demand. I would keep an eye on it, but my guess it that you wont have any more ammonia or nitrite.

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Checked values again post 24 hrs. 15 nitrate 0 phos or ammonia. I do have some brown crap growing in my substrate bed and noticed some green hair algae on my glass for the first time. Bummer...lights are on for 5 Hours. 1 250 mogul halide. Just going to ride the wave for a while and let the bacteria do what they do, unless anyone has any other suggestions? Thanks for the help!

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This addage has been around for a while: "nothing good happens fast in a reef aquarium" Remember there is a difference between "cycling" a tank which can be done almost instantaniously which properly cured rock to a 6 - 8 weeks but "maturing" a reef ecosystem still takes 8 - 12 months. If you can get a copy of Nilsen and Fossa's "The Modern Coral Reef Aquarium" Vol I on page 167 they have an excellent chart of the algae cycles during the first 3 - 10 months when setting up a reef system. You will see different types/species of algae appear then disappear during this time.

With regards to the ammonia did you test immediately after doing a water change? If you used tap water some dechlorinators will give a false reading for ammonia. If you are using RO it does not remove ammonia so you should see some ammonia immediately after as water change. To get an idea of what happens and some benchmarks next time you do a water change test your new saltwater before adding it to your aquarium. Also test your aquarium before and after a water change.

A couple of studies I've seen have shown API is as good as other brands but with any test kit the reagents may go bad so it's a good idea to do some comparative testing with other kits and make sure you don't keep them to long.

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