quick question

[surferido]

how long should i wait to add fish and invertebrates to a new aquarium? i have had my running since the 1st and have had live rock for about 3 days and now i have a aiptasia that came out of the rock and he seems like he is chillin

 

[dustin_P74]

has your tank already cycled

 

[Smitty]

if your tank has cycled, and your readings are good, add your cuc, including a pepperment shrimp to control the aiptasia, before it get out of control...

 

[surferido]

not sure how do i know when it cycled

 

[Smitty]

do u have any lf or ls in your tank and for how long? how long has it been set up? if yes, just check your ammonia and nitrite, which should now be at 0, and then check for your nitrate...if its low, then you can start adding livestock

 

[surferido]

i have live sand and rock...sand since the 1st and rock about 2 days now...whats lf

 

[Smitty]

sorry, i meant to say lr...lol

was the lr cured?...you may still have to wait it out for bout a week, and monitor your levels...you could also place a little fish food in the tank to start a cycle, or to test to see if the bacteria will handle the ammonia spike from the decaying food.

 

[surferido]

how do you know if it is cured...alot of the rocks have purple and pinkish alge on it

 

[reeferpj]

def wiat a few weeks.you can put a few dams in to speed it up but don't get to attached to them

 

[Smitty]

your lfs should have told u if it was cured or not, but if it has coralline algae on it, its a good sign that it was cured...also if you see small critters on the rocks, then its good...if u bought it dry, then its not cured yet..but just be a little patient and check your levels in a week or so.

 

[yote]

The easiest way to see if rock is cured,is to sniff it.
Ifs the rocks NOT cured,you'll be able to smell the death on it.If it kinda smells like lettuce,then its cured and ready to go.

 

[Smitty]

lol, yeah, damsels are fish from hell...u could use them to cycle the tank, but afterwards, get rid of them...

 

[yote]

I wouldnt recommend even using a damsel.
Even though they are hellyuns,its not right to torture them in a cycling tank.

 

[Smitty]

yote's right, use a raw shrimp or fish food

 

[surferido]

no i bought it wet from their big tank with fish and crabs hanging out in the live rock

 

[reeferpj]

true but mine lived and still have them 3yr later got them befor i become a reefer

 

[dustin_P74]

gotta agree with yote on the damsels, even though they are assholes, they dont need to be put through that, there are better ways of doing it. just drop so food in the tank and wait a day or two and then test for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate, if ammonia and nitrite read zero and your nitrates are under 25 then you can add a fish

 

[surferido]

about how much food i have frozen brine shrimp in the cubes

 

[yote]

Just thaw a cube and add a small pinch to the tank.

 

[Smitty]

a cube might be too much, try a sprinkle of flakes, or just a small raw shrimp...if u have none, then just a small portion of the frozen cube...