jason7504 Posted February 5, 2009 Author Share Posted February 5, 2009 Houston..i think we have a Stomatella..its on the glass and its a small one.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jason7504 Posted February 7, 2009 Author Share Posted February 7, 2009 my ammonia was 0 today!! yeahh ..im going to keep testing to make sure the ammonia is really 0 along with the nitrite Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pledosophy Posted February 8, 2009 Share Posted February 8, 2009 0 is great. Bump it back to one and test in 8 hours. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrgreenthumb Posted February 8, 2009 Share Posted February 8, 2009 0 is great. Bump it back to one and test in 8 hours. +1 on that right there!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jason7504 Posted February 8, 2009 Author Share Posted February 8, 2009 Agreed on testing the water you buy. I was buying from a local shop a few years back and kept having algae problems. Turns out the new water had a nitrate or 40 and low alk and Ca. I switched shops and get my water from Waves now, it's much better. To know if your tank is cycled you have to be able to test for ammonia, you might need a new kit. I use cheapy's for it, just the API's. If there is any color change it is not done. After you get it to drop to 0 and nitrite to drop to 0 it is important to purposefully raise the level of ammonia in the tank. IMO the easiest way to do this is to drop in a day or two's worth of fish food wait 12 hours, and then test again. If the tank can clear the ammonia and nitrite in that time, the tank is cycled. If not, your going to have to continue to introduce an ammonia source until the bacteria levels reach higher numbers so they can clear the ammonia. Some people really prefer to use a chemical ammonia (pure and unscented) to raise the ammonia level so they know exactly how much is going in. It is a cleaner way of doing things as well since there is no decay. It is a very common misconception that when your ammonia is zero your tank is cycled and ready to be stocked. It is not the case. Lack of ammonia just means there is no ammonia, it does not mean the tank can support life. A 10g tank with no rock or sand and newly mixed water should also have a 0 ammonia reading, does not mean it is cycled. HHT where do you get pure and unscented ammonia? any specific brands? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jason7504 Posted February 8, 2009 Author Share Posted February 8, 2009 you mean bump it up from adding something? shouldnt i test more to make sure its really 0 before i add any CUC or ammonia? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrgreenthumb Posted February 9, 2009 Share Posted February 9, 2009 bump it up by adding like a frozen shrimp or something that is going to rot and decay. If then when you test, if you have zero ammonia, you will know you have enough bacteria to handle some living inhabitants. Make sense? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jason7504 Posted February 9, 2009 Author Share Posted February 9, 2009 could i add pure and unscented ammonia like pledosophy said? it would be cleaner Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MadReefer Posted February 9, 2009 Share Posted February 9, 2009 Just add some fish food pellets. Feed it like you would feed it if the tank was over stocked. Do this for a few days and test often. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jason7504 Posted February 9, 2009 Author Share Posted February 9, 2009 ok.i will let you know what my results are Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy Posted February 9, 2009 Share Posted February 9, 2009 The problem with ammonia is correct dosing. How would you know how much to add to properly test your tank's ability to process nitrogenous wastes? I think a whole shrimp would maybe be too much to expect a smaller tank to handle. Perhaps try half a cube of mysis? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jason7504 Posted February 10, 2009 Author Share Posted February 10, 2009 Just add some fish food pellets. Feed it like you would feed it if the tank was over stocked. Do this for a few days and test often. how much do you think i should add though? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MadReefer Posted February 10, 2009 Share Posted February 10, 2009 Just a pinch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jason7504 Posted February 10, 2009 Author Share Posted February 10, 2009 do i take it out after a lil bit? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrgreenthumb Posted February 10, 2009 Share Posted February 10, 2009 nope just leave it there, as the others have stated i would test often as well Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jason7504 Posted February 10, 2009 Author Share Posted February 10, 2009 it will just rot and be messy with nothing to eat it up though? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrgreenthumb Posted February 10, 2009 Share Posted February 10, 2009 thats the point. You want it to rot, and decay and turn into ammonia, that way you can see if you have enough bacteria to convert it into nitrite, then nitrate before the ammonia level has a chance to get to toxic levels. Hope that makes sense. Better to test it without some fish food rather than some beautiful fish and corals. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jason7504 Posted February 10, 2009 Author Share Posted February 10, 2009 thats the point. You want it to rot' date=' and decay and turn into ammonia, that way you can see if you have enough bacteria to convert it into nitrite, then nitrate before the ammonia level has a chance to get to toxic levels. Hope that makes sense. Better to test it without some fish food rather than some beautiful fish and corals.[/quote'] ok i will try it. yeah that makes sense Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jason7504 Posted February 10, 2009 Author Share Posted February 10, 2009 does it matter what type of food? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MadReefer Posted February 10, 2009 Share Posted February 10, 2009 It does not matter what type of food. Any food that you would feed marine fish. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markdadof2 Posted February 10, 2009 Share Posted February 10, 2009 For the food I would suggest a good frozen - recent discussion and tests have shown that some of the flakes and pellets contain high levels of phosphates. I tested some pellet food and some frozen and there was a night and day difference. I feed a combo of Rod's food, silversides and PE Mysis. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jason7504 Posted February 10, 2009 Author Share Posted February 10, 2009 well i just put half a cube of mysis shrimp in there and its all blowing around..should i shut my pumps off? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrgreenthumb Posted February 11, 2009 Share Posted February 11, 2009 have you tested you water yet?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jason7504 Posted February 11, 2009 Author Share Posted February 11, 2009 yeah i did. the mysis shrimp had been in for 3 hrs before i tested and i got 0 ammonia, 0 nitrites and 10 nitrates so my nitrates went up by around 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrgreenthumb Posted February 11, 2009 Share Posted February 11, 2009 check it again tommorrow morning, and if still zero, I would add a whole cube of mysis and repeat the testing. then if all is still good, you are good to go! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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