Need help with cycling my new salt water tank

Hi everybody so I do have a few questions about cycling. I am not sure if I should turn the filter or the skimmer on while its cycling. Should I put the sand in there as well? and I have a t5 light and a normal bulb together, should they be on as well?

PS. I did all the important tests on my tank and everything should be good, except the ammonia of course, I added big Als bio starter to the tank as well.

 

Set the tank up and run everything as it is going to be running. You can ether get some "quick start" bacteria or just buy a couple starter fish, cheap damsels or something. Just make sure once you cycle the tank, you take them out unless you know you want to keep them. They can be a pain to get out once your tank is established and can cause a lot of stress on other fish.

 

Yes you should add the sand at the beginning of the cycle. The sand becomes established with beneficial bacteria as well, it's part of the biological filter.

Filter and power heads should be running to assist in oxygenation. Skimmer you can leave off for a few weeks. It may take a few days to a week to break in initially and start producing skim.

Lights on or off, either way. Some say decreased initially algae bloom, I agree, but I like to look at even an empty tank.

 

Thanks a lot guys this really helps.
Oh yea I totally forgot about the two wave makers that are running to produce oxygen. and the heater.
So what I will do is add the sand tonight, because the tank has been sitting there with the water and power heads for 3 days now. and I will plug in my trickle filter that I made.
I will keep the lights off because it wastes energy.

 

Sounds like a plan... I would recommend buying bacteria vs. using fish to cycle. It costs the same and you don't have to worry about getting rid of the fish afterward. Just get bacteria, add per the instructions and you should also put a few raw shrimp from the supermarket in the tank to provide decaying material as food.

Plus, it is kind of messed up to use fish- the ammonia spike burns their gills. Just because they can survive the process doesn't mean they won't suffer through it.

 

Please don't use fish to cycle your tank its cruel!

 

Thats why I already bought the bio start

 

Fantastic!

 

Great start!!