Newb questions

During tank cycle do you run the main pump or just the powerheads?

Week one / day 6 my Ammonia is 1 ppm ....

Nitrite still 0 , N3 0, Ph 8.4

Using supplement Stability to try and speed things up. Not sure if it's really helping or not, but why not.

Looks like I'm about on day 3 of this chart , but actually day 6
A Typical Break-In Cycle

 

Run the return pump, if you dont, your sump will not cycle along with the DT. You shouldnt add ANYTHING to a cycling tank, nor try to speed up things. Let Mother Nature take its course. IMO Luna

 

+2 on that one. You are only asking for trouble trying to speed up mother nature.

 

Agreed with not adding anything. Run the pump, let it sit for 8-12 weeks, and thats it The "cycle in a bottle" additives will only come back to haunt you.

 

Ok, I trust you guys so no more of that. Not sure how some people claim 2 week cycles... mine is just getting started after a week. I guess temp. and other things may factor in.. Oh yeah the rock was completely dead rock.. so I guess if you had live rock it could take a lot less time.

 

What about all the dead food I can't find? Some say don't put the sand in so you can clean the bare bottom easier, but then if you do that it will restart the cycle when you do put it in. I already have sand in there. My Damsel eats, but doesn't get everything... And it's not easy to find pieces in all the rocks, substrate.
Any pointers?

 

Dont feed as much. I personaly dont like BB's, the sand helps in the biological filtration. Luna

 

Yeah, just feed a very little amount. Just a few flakes. I try to feed enough so that the food never hits the ground. You don't need to feed everyday either. You can get away with feeding your tank twice a week. With my tank switch, they did not get fed for eight days. No problem.

Don't worry about the food that is already lying around. It will rot and your tank will just cycle it. No problem there either.

 

John is right, except in certain fish. Fish like tangs and angelfish, or any other algae grazer should definitely have a near-constant supply of algae to graze on all day. Allowing adequate algae grazing for these species will aid in the prevention of HLLE, which is thought to be related directly to poor nutrition and water quality.

 

+1 I learned that the hard way