Will my tank cycle? Upgrading tanks

[mopar9012]

I know this has been beat to death but I’ve searched and couldn’t find anything that fits what I’m doing.


I’m upgrading from a 40 to a 75. I’m not keeping my old sand and I’m using dry aragonite(I think it will be easier to keep clean).

My 40 has a lot of SPS. I have montis growing into the glass and one is almost grown out of the water so I just need room(so I’m upgrading). Since I just need room, I’m not adding more live rock. I think my 40 has plenty for my taste of things.

My question, if I’m not adding new rock, will my tank cycle? If there is a chance of a cycle, I have too much to risk, so I’ll cycle and then add all my corals.

 

[ichthyoid]

You can use this and it will cycle in 5 days or less. Fritz was the original bacteria supplementation product, has an outstanding record & sells industrial products also.

They have a locator tool, or you can search online and have it delivered fresh.

FritzZyme® TurboStart® 900 Saltwater

Fritz Aquatics' FritzZyme® TurboStart® 900 Saltwater contains a highly concentrated level of our nitrifying bacteria to reduce fish loss due to toxicity.

fritzaquatics.com

 

[AquariumSchmo]

I don't have enough experience with upgrades, especially with SPS, to answer you with confidence, but I think you would be fine. I would transfer as much of the water as possible and try to fill the rest with as close as possible in terms of the parameters of the salt mix. Do you have any media in the sump of your 40gal that could be transferred as well? If not, it might be worth it to add some bio balls, blocks, or bricks, let those fully establish for a number of days or weeks, and then do the tank transfer. And yeah, adding some bacteria in a bottle would be a good idea.

 

[Steve Burton]

Just my belief that any live rock or filter media that is exposed to air in the transfer will experience a certain amount of die-off, so it would be a judgement call depending on how much media you have and how long it is out of water. There is certainly the possibility of at least a mini-cycle, so with SPS I would think it's better better to be safe than sorry, especially if there is no compelling reason to rush it.

 

[mopar9012]

Thanks everyone. If I just add the aragonite with some bacteria. Will that cycle?

I didn’t really want to buy more rock just for a cycle. Most of my corals are encrusted onto my rocks in the 40, so using that rock is not possible for the cycle.

 

[FutureInterest]

To be safe... I think its wise to cycle the 75 and using just sand is fine. A lot of people also run additional bacteria media in their sump and that stuff would help tremendously. No need to use any jump start cycling bacteria if you already have that stuff and can bring it over. Pretty cheap so if I was you I'd prolly just buy some and add it to the 40 so it gets seeded and then move that stuff to the 75 so it can seed the tank. When you do move your rock from the 40 to the 75 try to do so with the help of a bowl so that the rock never gets exposed to air. The only thing that ever dies in tank transfers are the sponges which are more abundant in the rock than on the surface. Once they get air trapped in them from being lifted out they can die very easily causing ammonia to be released. Keep a bottle of prime on hand in case you start reading ammonia... otherwise you should be just fine.

 

[Adam]

I would use the Fritz product or one of the others like Dr Tim's or Biospira once the rock is transferred to the new tank. Then add the fish to the new system the next a short time later. I would also hold off on running a skimmer for a day or two and not feed during that time. You can use an air stone in the sump to help with aeration or run the skimmer so it is overflowing into the sump as well.
Another thing that would really help is to put some bio media in the sump of old system for a few weeks before the transfer. You can remove it from the sump in a container to keep it covered in water and move it directly into the new sump. A cup of sand from the old system will help seed the new sand too.

Doing these things will keep the tank from going through a full Nitrogen cycle. The new tank will still be less mature than the old on and there could still be some issues with the coral. So one last thing I would do is cut some frags of everything you don't want to lose and have another member hold them for you as a backup. If all goes well you won't need them your friend has some new corals.

 

[ichthyoid]

"Thanks everyone. If I just add the aragonite with some bacteria. Will that cycle?

I didn’t really want to buy more rock just for a cycle. Most of my corals are encrusted onto my rocks in the 40, so using that rock is not possible for the cycle."

The short answer is yes, BUT you will need to add some nitrogen for the bacteria.

The nitrogen can come from fish, or you can do a 'fishless' cycle by adding some ammonium chloride, such as this, & just follow their instructions-

FWIW- the brand of bacteria will not matter greatly, as Fritz, Biospira & Dr. Tim's all work. Everyone has their favorite, usually based on past experience.

Ammonium Chloride For Fishless Cycles

Dr.Tim's Ammonium Chloride is made up of reagent grade materials and is perfect for fishless cycles in reef aquariums. Odorless Pure Ammonium Chloride No Unnecessary Additives Works Great With Dr.Tim's One & Only Ammonium Chloride can be used to simulate organic matter that would naturally...

www.bulkreefsupply.com

 

[lmm1967]

I moved from a 60 gallon to a 120 gallon about 18 months ago.

I used all the rocks I had in the 60 gallon all the water I had in the 60 gallon.

I used all brand new sand OTHER THAN about 2 cups of sand from the 60 gallon system.

My process was...
1. rinse brand new sand very thoroughly using a hose outside, then do a final rinse using some RO/DI water. Add sand to empty tank. Rinse A LOT - get sand as clean from dust as possible.
2. add around 40 gallons fresh saltwater to new tank - throw a powerhead and heater in and bring it close to temp of existing 60 gallon tank.
3. pull rocks from 60 and add to 120
4. xfer water from 60 to 120 - while that is happening, catch fish / cleanup crew and move over to 120
5. scoop a couple cups of sand from the 120 - rinse a little bit using fresh saltwater - spread out in new tank.

I've done this process 3 times and have never been able to detect any Ammonia or Nitrite.

I had no "cycle" - in other words, never did I see any ammonia or nitrite.

I did fight normal kind of stuff in the first 6 months a little. Some cyano, dinos and a bacteria bloom - but I don't believe any of those were related to actually moving the tank. I was having trouble keeping Nitrate & phosphate above 0 and I believe that was the main cause of my minor issues.