Hello and I need a little help

[BryanS]

Hello my name is Bryan and I'm sure yall will be able to figure out I'm new at this hobby. I have really been interested in it for a while and now my money situtation is finally allowing me to get started. I would like to go ahead and say thankyou for any advice you can give me.

1. I have started cycling my tank and I through a couple of shrimp in the tank to speed up the process. My qeustion is how long should leave them in the tank. My PH is already through the roof, but there are no signs of nitrite yet, so should I go ahead and take out the shrimp?

2. I'm getting a protein skimmer just not exactly sure which one yet. I am going to have the get a HOB skimmer. I like the Octopus BH 100ss, BH 1000, and BH 100f. Which of these would be the best choice?

Thankyou

 

[dustin_P74]

test for ammonia, its the first stage of the nitrate cycle, and you shouldnt need to take the shrimp out

 

[stagofdoom]

+1 dustin

I would go with the BH1000 but thats just me

 

[BryanS]

Im sorry I meant to say ammonia not PH

 

[stagofdoom]

It looks like your off to a good start though. I would def. recommend getting a skimmer though, not much of a necessity right now but when you get fish you will definitely need one.

Do you have a powerhead or anything in the tank right now or is it just sitting there.

Just keep testing the water and take your time.
The best thing in this hobby is patience.

 

[BryanS]

No I dont have a powerhead yet. I'm in the process of getting one. I think I'm going to the the Korila 2.

The water is not just sitting there, I have a Bio wheel moving it but it is not very effective. I will be chaning it soon it just came with the tank. I just don't know what to get yet.

 

[stagofdoom]

Ahh ok good. Atelast you dont have water just sitting there because that would be bad. Just checking.
A koralia 1 or possibly a 2 would be good, a 2 might be a little too much flow.

 

[messiah023]

Hi Bryan,

I have a 30g setup as follows :

(2) Koralia #1s
(1) Octopus 100F HOB skimmer (works well for the 30g but I like the new 800s)
(1) 130w PC light with blue LED night lights

I have about 35lbs sand & 50-60lbs live rock.

That is all you will need to get started (test kits, etc are a given).

 

[messiah023]

Oh yeah,

Welcome to the reef!

Remember, marine aquaria is not a race.
Take it very slowly. It could take several weeks to months for your cycle to complete. I looked at an empty tank for 2 months before the nitrite went to zero!

Good Luck!

 

[BryanS]

Yea I know what you mean mine has only been cycling for a week and it is already driving me crazy, but I'm going to make sure I do it right.

 

[yote]

Everybody else has yoou covered pretty good.
Once you see ammonia showing up on the test,then pull the rotten shrimp.It just needs to be there long enough to get ammonia in the water.

 

[Bifferwine]

Hi and welcome! You are off to a good start. Since ammonia is showing up, your tank has already started cycling. Next, nitrite will rise, and ammonia will drop. Then as nitrite drops, nitrate will rise. When both ammonia and nitrite are at zero, do some substantial water changes to bring your nitrates down. Only when ammonia and nitrites are at zero and nitrates are close to zero can you add your first animal.

 

[BryanS]

Hey I have one quick easy qeustion. My tank is in the middle of cycling and it has lost some water due to evaporation. Would it be ok to add some new water or should i just wait until it finishes cycling?

Thank you,
Bryan

 

[dustin_P74]

just add some more ro water

 

[Piggy]

Welcome to the site. I would go with the #2 powerheads over the #1's. I also would get at least two of them.

 

[yote]

+1 Dustin
You need to keep it topped off.

 

[BryanS]

ok Thank yall I'll do it today

 

[stagofdoom]

Remember only add salt water when you take out salt water. To top it off you have to add RO water.

 

[Bifferwine]

Yep, you should get into the habit of topping off any evaporated water with new fresh water once a day. If you go too long and the water level drops too much, the change in salinity could be bad enough to hurt your animals. When water evaporates, the salt is left behind, so the salinity in the tank will go up. This is especially dangerous in a small tank like yours. Bringing it back up to the correct level once a day will help keep the levels stable.

 

[BryanS]

Well I topped off my tank yesterday. This morning I tested my water I think I'm coming to the end of the cycling process my ammonia is at 0 and my nitrites are starting to come down a little and my nitrates are moving up. So maybe by the end of next week I will be able to add a fish or two.