Let the games... BEGIN!!

Ringo®;970739 wrote: Sounds like a protein layer on the surface of the water. Do you have anything that skims the surface like an overflow?
Click to expand...

No, Ringo, I don't. I have plans for one in the near future, but for now, no. Just some surface agitation.
 
There's the answer to that then. Try laying a sheet or two of paper towels on top of it in the mean time.
 
ok. I've always worried about using paper towels in the water. I thought maybe they had things in them like bleaches and glues that would be bad.
 
I just set up a 10 gallon tank. I was tempted to put a controller on it, but I decided to go with very simple equipment only to sort of streamline this process with you.

Let's start over, shall we? To be fair, I'm using only bleached rock, and no established biofilter. Ive also added livestock within the first 24 hours, which is a huge no-no, but unless everything you have/had is now dead, it should even the playing field a bit.
 
JDavid;970797 wrote: I just set up a 10 gallon tank. I was tempted to put a controller on it, but I decided to go with very simple equipment only to sort of streamline this process with you.

Let's start over, shall we? To be fair, I'm using only bleached rock, and no established biofilter. Ive also added livestock within the first 24 hours, which is a huge no-no, but unless everything you have/had is now dead, it should even the playing field a bit.
Click to expand...

oh... sweet! A competition.. eh? You're on, sucka!! :lol2:
 
I skipped my cycle on my old 10gallon. I just used the biological media from my display and used sand from it to (rinsed) and threw some liverock in it. Then again I don't even have it setup anymore.
 
I think it would be cool to have a 10g tank full of pulsing Xenia. Every square inch of the tank.. I think I just found a project to do lol.
 
JC_k;970802 wrote: I skipped my cycle on my old 10gallon. I just used the biological media from my display and used sand from it to (rinsed) and threw some liverock in it. Then again I don't even have it setup anymore.
Click to expand...



Speaking of biological media... I know someone who could use some.. if anyone's got any to share... (ME!!!!!) :shout:


Pulsing Xenia is amazing. Big fan. :up:
 
One damsel living.

Ok, so Jeremy (BulkRate) just left. My SG was about 1.027, so a little high, but not astronomical. I'm going to work to bring it down over the next few days.

I had a good bit of free ammonia (around 2 or 3 ppm) and total ammonia was about 6 or higher, so, a lot.
 
Update:

Did not have a chance to test SG or Ammonia before leaving work this morning.. however, I'm about to head out to PetCo at lunch and pick up some zeolite to put in a bag and drape in front of my powerhead and add to my HOB filter to suck out some of the Ammonia and will be doing a 50% water change tomorrow and then probably another 50% water change on Saturday or Sunday. I'm also going to look at picking up a hermit crab to take home with me this evening on Jeremy's guidance (I have a lot of detritus and dying algae and things that they need to take care of)

I've taken a hammer and chisel and broken up the giant base rock that was perched in the middle of the tank into much smaller, more manageable pieces. Once I do my 50% water change, I'm going to take some epoxy and put together a much nicer, more stable reef setup with shelving and crevices for corals. Would love some input on where I can find guidance on how to set up good rockwork in a nano.

I've also ordered a 165W Dimmable Full Spectrum LED Light Box (blue channel and white channel- both independently dimmable). with cooling fans so I can take care of the lighting problem as well.

Will test my water when I get home and then again before bed after adding the zeolite to the tank.

Also- still looking for anyone to sell or donate some live rock so I can seed the rockwork in my tank.

Damsel is still alive and kicking.

Happy Wednesday, Reefers.
 
How big of a piece of live rock are you looking for? Also I'm assuming you go the white led? I would still be a little cautious about the price but if it actually is 165watt light then you really got a deal. Was it used or brand new? And also how do you plan to put the light on the tank? Or did you get a different light... Lol
 
JC_k;971036 wrote: How big of a piece of live rock are you looking for? Also I'm assuming you go the white led? I would still be a little cautious about the price but if it actually is 165watt light then you really got a deal. Was it used or brand new? And also how do you plan to put the light on the tank? Or did you get a different light... Lol
Click to expand...

Hey, JC- this exactly what I got for $60. it's full spectrum. guy is kind of annoying but does an awesome review on the exact model I got.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DxbrJ1kVxkk">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DxbrJ1kVxkk</a>

I'm only looking for a big enough piece to seed the rock that's already in the tank, so, for a 10 gallon, not big at all.

I'll take a pic and post it when I get home if folks are interested in giving me input on rock placement.
 
Ok. And I'll have to see if I have any smaller pieces of LR.
 
That would be awesome. I can, of course, just give it back to you in a few weeks if you want too.
 
I've got a few nice pieces of live rock I'm happy to donate to you.
I'm near Dallas Hwy (Hwy 120) and Mars Hill Rd.
If interested LMK and ill PM you my address.
 
I may take you up on that, camellia. Thank you!

Also, UPDATE: We're cycling!!!!

So, turns out, here's what was most likely happening:

The original live rock was crawling with things that didn't agree with my water parameters and there was a LOT of die off. I nuked it, but there were still probably things left on, and in, the live rock that continued to decay.. further adding to the ammonia problem. Uneaten food and two damsels probably didn't help the ammonia situation either. Further, I had two corals that started to fall apart and decay as well... also, I had an old filter pad in my HOB that was disgusting and wouldn't rinse clean.. so I removed it. Lastly, I quit mega-overdosing prime and stability. I gave it a day or two without adding anything and then started using a pipette (thanks Jeremy!) to dose only 1ml of prime, once a day.

I picked up a nitrite test on my way home and came home to a seachem ammonia test that showed very little free ammonia and less bound ammonia. My new nitrite test showed a healthy shade of purple on the nitrite test as well. Haven't even bothered testing Nitrate. Don't need to. Just happy to be where I'm at.

I added a bag of zeolite to my HOB and I'm going to let it sit there for a week or so before removing it.

Thanks to everyone so much for all of the help, advice, criticisms, support, everything. So happy I found this club!!!
 
Zeolite is not recommended for saltwater tanks. I know there are products like Zeovit and such, but plain Zeolite like what you would use in a freshwater tank is NOT recommended.

Jenn
 
..Jenn- I bought a brand that said it was safe for SaltWater tanks and a lot of folks online recommend it, at least in the short term. It's just a short term solution to help knock down some of the free ammonia for a week or so while my BB colonies build up. Then I'll take it out.

Care to expand on why it's not recommended?
 
I'd have to do some research, I've forgotten why off the top of my head - I want to say it has something to do with sodium content but I'll have to find some literature to support that. Time is short right now but I'll revisit that a bit later.

Jenn
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

FinParadiseAquaticsLLC
Let talk anemones....
Replies
13
Views
278
FinParadiseAquaticsLLC
FinParadiseAquaticsLLC
PJs_Bucket_List
Ready to Dive in from Chatsworth
Replies
5
Views
128
PJs_Bucket_List
PJs_Bucket_List
S
Instant/quick cycle?
Replies
10
Views
214
LilChefEnzo2004
LilChefEnzo2004
A
Hello from Dawsonville!
Replies
14
Views
615
FinParadiseAquaticsLLC
FinParadiseAquaticsLLC
C
Alkalinity Help
Replies
15
Views
293
jkz429
J
Back
Top