cycling question

okay so i'm almost 3 weeks into my cycle on my new tank. it is a standard 120g with a 40 breeder for the sump. i started it with about 120lbs of live sand along with 2 mardi gras cups full of sand from my 2yr old 55g. it has about 60lbs of dry rock with about 10lbs of live rock that was down in the sump of my 2yr 55g system. the 55 still has about 55 - 60lbs of rock with coral attached that will make the transfer.

i used a few little pieces of shrimp to start the cycle which i only left in the tank for the first 3 days, and then took it out b/c it was starting to stink. i am running carbon and gfo in there since the shrimp to get rid of the smell. the reef octopus extreme has been running since i put water in the tank, but after 3 weeks is only now starting to produce foam. i started doing tests after the first week and saw a little ammonia at the end of the first week (maybe like .25ppm) hardly noticeable. i have never deteched any nitrite at all ever during this process. this past weekend i decided to test for nitrate. i don't know if everyone is familiar with the sailfert nitrate test, but when you hold the test vial at an angle you can see a little pink in there. i mean just a little slight pink so very little nitrate but there is some in there non the less. so i went to the pet store and bought about 20 hermits and 4 damsels which i put down in the sump to maybe help with the process.

my question is do you think the cycle was so small i missed it? i am going to roll with these hermits and damsels for another week and see where we are. i know i want to see a cycle so i can make the transfer, but at the same time i don't want to get everything transferred over and then have a cycle start. so what are your thoughts, advice, etc...

 

im no expert, but i dont think you should be running your skimmer, second, im pretty sure it takes longer than three weeks.

 

Well if he used some of the live rock and sand from a previous tank you might have had a mini cycle. But like B said I wouldn't have run the skimmer until it was complete.

 

i will turn off the skimmer asap. just to let you know though the foam is only like 2inches tall no color to it and far from reaching the collection cup so i don't think it is pulling anything out yet but i guess i could be wrong. i was just trying to get broke in as i did with my 55g. now i will say this about the 55g. when i started that tank i was still a newb so i bought live rock from liveaquaria and i had a significant amount of die off initially that started the cycle.

i am far from an expert and i know every cycle is different so just trying to get a little insight.

 

I would go with 3 mardi gras cups rather than 2. ;D Next thing you know thats going to become a standard measuring device!

 

i know i just figured everyone would know what a mardi gras cup looks like. on full mardi gras cup equals 2cups. so i used quite a bit of sand from my 55 with plenty of worms and such in it.

 

so, you've already started a cycle and you need to play that out... probably.

but honestly, you could have just done a straight transfer.

new sand, new water, but move all your rock and livestock over. It's similar to doing a 100% water change. Yes, there is a big increase in volume but there is not a parallel increase in bio load here. If anything, it's dilution...

since all the rock and everything is already cycled from the 55 and then just make up rock and sand is "dry" and sterile...

Having said that, when I upgrade, I'm going to cycle the new tank and not do a straight transfer.

I also wouldn't run a skimmer during cycle (I wouldn't even run GFO). Since you are using cycled rock (no worries of die off when you're moving from one tank to another a few feet apart) I wouldn't imagine your cycle would take too long. I would've skipped the shrimp all together honestly.

After cycle, transfer your fishy livestock at a similar rate as you might add them if new (one every week or two or whatever based on the fish in question). Once all that settles, I'd move all my coral over.

 

first thanks for the advice.

i will only be adding three fish from the 55g. a 3-4" yellow eye kole tang, 4" sixline wrasse, and 3" target mandarin. now i have 4 damsels in the sump of my new tank right now that i plan to remove when i add the above mentioned fish. do you think i should add more damsels to mimic the bioload i will have with the transfer or do you think 4 damsels is enough? i really want to transfer everything at once b/c catching fish without taking rocks out of the old 55g ,which by the way have coral attached to them, will be impossible. as soon as i lift the lid on the canopy my fish go hide so impossible. thanks for the advice.

 

okay i have decided after a month of waiting and not seeing any ammonia or nitrite in the last two weeks i am ready to make the transfer. i made the decision last night when i found one of the damsels dead in the sump with the hermit crab i had down there eating him. i could tell he had been killed b/c he was missing all of his fins, scales, and just generally looked like he had been beat to death. i have had the skimmer off for 3days so i know the skimmer wasn't doing anything to help water quality. i know the fish had to have been dead for atleast a day b/c he really smelled bad. when i found him my first reaction before i put two and two together was to check water parameters, and here is what i found:
ammonia 0
nitrite 0
nitrate .5 - 1ppm (not sure hard to tell) very light pink on the sailfert
ca 425 sailfert
dhk 9.5 sailfert
mag 1350 sailfert
po4 .03 hanna
sg 1.025

so obviously even with a dead fish in there for a day i saw no affect on the water. now i do realize that it was a really small 2 spot damsel in a approx 150g system, but still no affect so looks good for the bio filter. after looking at these tests with all things considered i am fairly certain my tank is ready for the transfer, but would still like to get to your opinion.

am i seeing what i want to see b/c i want to see everything in the new tank?

is my impatience getting the better of me?

i would like to get some expert opinions and advice here for the transfer. i would also like to know if anyone thinks i may not be ready, b/c i will be moving a good bit of sps. (pink, blue, and green millis. a very large colony of red planet that has encrusted a large mag rock almost completely. a 6" colony of porcipilla. 3" frag of some kind of green acro. 2" frag of green slimmer. 2" frag of ora hawkins. 3" frag of ora plum crazy. a colony of blue ridge coral that has encrusted another mag rock. 3 different kinds of palys, lps include: frogspawn, hammer, trumpets, acans, chalices, duncans, torch, brain) i know i'm probably forgetting something but you get the idea.

does anybody see any problems with the livestock i will be transferring any tips?

what is your opinion on the whole transfer with most of the water from the old tank thing?

please include anything else you can think of that might be relevant?
as always i appreciate your time and help

brent

 

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