trying to cycle new tank

hi there i'm cycling a new 150 g saltwater tank my question is could i use the dozen feeder gold fish i bought at my lfs to cycle? also i tore down an old tank and mistakenly left my liverock in fresh water with the powerhead is the liverock any goood and can i use it in the new tank help

 

as far as cycling with goldfish, I have never heard of anyone doing that. I think they would just die right away as they are fresh water fish.

I think you would be all right using the rock, all though it is probably not live any more, at least with the proper bacteria for a saltwater system. I would use this as base rock, then buy a few pounds of live rock to seed it. maybe throw a table shrimp in to jump start the cycle.

 

Your "Feeder Fish" Would belly up withing 10-15mins. I would recommend just using your current live rock. However it might not be alive anymore. Just pick up a couple new pieces of live rock to get things going again. ;D

 

Noooo Goldfish... they would die pretty much immediately. Otherwise I agree with other posts. Just add a bit of live rock. I used a shrimp too, that speeds up the cycle.

 

Keep it simple, don't use the gold fish, bad idea. They will die, and 12 fish is way too many to cycle a tank, you only need one, and should only use one. I would all the rock you have, or want to use in the tank with salt water and proper temp. and let it go on it's own. Don't worry about "seeding" the rock, no need and it really doesn't do much, especially in that sized tank. It will take a few weeks so be patient, test the water every so often to see how you are progressing. Adding a 1 small piece of raw shrimp can be good, but remove it at the end of the cycle, you don't want rotted meat in your tank. Good luck.

 

Get a couple of clowns that will help too.

 

I am cycling my reef tank now and i have 1 damsel per 5 gallons and 100 pounds of live rock. Damsel's are cheap and can handle the high amonia spike during the cycling process. So far so good.