Tiny Tank is Cycling - help!

FishyReef

Broke Reefer!
So if you've followed my posts you'll know that earlier this week I received a brittlestar from Live Aquaria that arrived in bad shape and I put it in my 10g to try to recover rather than transferring it the my 90g at my office. The next morning it had lost more of its legs, and I finally found the rest of its carcass, and came home tonight to find my tank is now cycling. I don't know how big of a cycle and what stage of the cycle its in, but two days ago my ammonia was 0, nitrites 0, nitrates 2-5; tonight ammonia is 0.25-0.50, nitrites were still 0, nitrates were 20. I fortunately have water made up but am wondering how much to change? Is 50% too much, and how soon after this water change can I do another one?
 
Shit, the water I have made up has been sitting in my car ready to go to my office, and its about 95 degrees. Just put a few pitchers full in the freezer and hoping that will cool them fast. Damn brittlestar.
 
Okay, I've started with a 25% water change. It's taking a long time to cool the fresh sw, so I'm going to let the tank sit for a bit, test again, and then probably do another 25% water change. Please someone let me know if 50% is too much, or if I should wait until morning to do another change!
 
I think what you are doing is fine. 25% at a time is better than 50% at once. Are your livestock showing any signs of distress?
 
Tested my water again, about 90m after the first water change, and my nitrates clearly went down, but unsure about my ammonia. I've got 2 ammonia tests - a new API kit that I picked up for my QT, and the seachem that I normally use. There still appears to be trace ammonia per the seachem test, but the API says closer to 0.50 ammonia. On the earlier test there appeared to be more ammonia on the seachem test than there does now on that test, but API looks about the same and maybe even a tad higher. Ideas? Should I do another water change now, or wait until morning?
 
Update: There was trace ammonia yesterday and nitrates around 10 so I did another 25% water change. My firefish is hiding out in an area of the tank it never goes to so I'm a bit concerned about it, we'll see what happens. Everything else seems fine, though haven't seen my pompom crab but its really tiny so is probably on a rock in a place I can't see. Fingers crossed anyway!
 
Yeah it does. Now to top it off, I just checked my salinity and it was 1.029 - yikes!! Must have bumped up in the two quick water changes I did. :frustrat: Damn me for not measuring before I added - I know better and was just working fast. Now I'm going to slowly bring it down and pray no one kicks off during that time. Brain corals are pretty shrunk today :(
 
How much sw can I exchange for fresh water at a time in a 10g to bring down the salinity by .001 per day? Is an 8oz glass full too much? too little?
 
So for those who want to know, an 8oz glass does apparently bring the salinity down by about 0.001. Silly me did 2 8oz glasses yesterday thinking one wouldn't be enough. Good think I got my head out of ass and thought the test the salinity before I did a third. My poor tiny tank occupants are super stressed between the cycle, salinity, and heat fluxuations. Couldn't find the firefish this morning, brains are no longer extending any feeding tentacles, zoas are all closed, and my birdsnest is bleaching. This totally sucks, and most of it is my own stupid fault :(
 
Sorry to hear about this!

How bad are the parameters now? If they're still spiking would it be more beneficial (although additionally stressful) to take them to work with you while you get things sorted?

I wouldn't think it will be much longer either way....the bacteria should be breeding like crazy and getting the levels down soon.
 
Dropping the salinity by that little shouldn't have had a bad effect. I think it might be the culmination of everything put together that is stressing the animals. :(
 
Yeah, I agree Biff. In the grand scheme of things the parameters aren't terrible, its just been all of the fluxuations over the last few days. Ammonia reaching 0.50, nitrates going from 2-5 to 20 in a day, temp going up and down by 3 degrees repeatedly over the last few days (last night I had to turn the fan off because the motor was overheating and since it had cooled down I thought the temp would hold steady at 80 last night, but this morning it was back up at 83 - yesterday it took me forever to bring it down to 80 from 82), and then the salinity going from 1.025 up to 1.029 and then back to 1.026/7 in the course of a day or two. If it were just one thing I think they'd be less stressed, but with all of these changes I'm going to be surprised if I don't lose stuff. I've thought about moving the stuff that's really stressed to my tank at work and might move the brains temporarily, but just don't know... I guess my hesitation is that I don't want them to be more stressed from a move, and there's a pending 13h power outtage next weekend at work that could very well wreck havoc on that tank, esp for corals that are already stressed. The fish I've thought about moving into the QT tank that I have the skunk clowns in right now, but that might stress everyone even more. I'm just hoping the firefish is still alive and hiding in a burrow somewhere. I added black sand last week and its now taken to diving into the sand under a rock so hopefully its still alive in there. If I can get the temp and salinity stabilized I'm hoping things will start to look better. I have a bottle of Dr. Tims arriving today for the QT tank so might dump some in the nano tank for good measure as well, esp. if the firefish dies - last think I need is another cycle!
 
Another update: Left the fan running yesterday during the day after I found the tank at 82 yesterday morning, came home and it was down to 77, heater never kicked on. This poor little tank can't get a break! Zoas are still closed (I'm quite worried about them given my very poor luck with zoas), no feeding tentacles on the brains but they were a little puffier this morning, a little more bleaching on the birdsnest, but everything else seems to be holding on. Still no sign of the pompom crab or a couple of the sexy shrimp (though they are often hard to find, kind of like the where's waldo inhabitants of my tank!). My order from DFS arrived, but unfortunately I apparently mistakenly ordered the freshwater version of Dr. Tims :grumble: How I did that I have no clue, but that's what arrived. Gonna place another order today and have it shipped quickly. BUT, there is good news too: Via (purple firefish) readily came out to eat last night, had quite the appetite, and looked healthy - yay!. Maybe the pompom crab is hiding in her old crevice so she's found a new one? I dunno.... Fingers crossed today doesn't bring any new surprises!
 
Update: Salinity is back to 1.026, temp remained stable at 80 yesterday, one of the brains is looking puffier, the firefish was out swimming last night (though couldn't find her this morning - probably still asleep), 3 of the 4 sexy shrimp are out and about, candycane had tentacles out this morning, and 1 of the 4 zoa frags was open last night (though my favorite one remains closed). Fingers crossed that today is even better! Oddest part about it all is that my fromia star has been as happy as can be throughout the whole fiasco - go figure!
 
Another relatively good update: Firefish happily came out to eat again tonight (yay!), red/green brain is extending feeding tentacles again, and I located all 4 sexy shrimp and the pompom crab! Nitrates are now around 5, salinity is back to normal. Zoos still weren't open tonight but don't look like they are shrinking or anything. My euphyllias are still retracted but will hopefully rebound. Definitely experienced tissue loss on my donut, symphillia, and new acan/micromussa. The two corals I was hoping to nurse back to health didn't make it (fox coral and bubble coral that was cut off the main colony in my 90g), but honestly I didn't think they'd make it anyway. The tank was up at 82 again tonight, so I'm hoping once I get the temp issues stabilized I'll see a rebound on my zoos, and I'll just have to work on nursing the LPS back to life. At any rate, corals definitely took a hit in this whole thing, but I haven't lost anything completely yet (other than the two rehabs), so I'm very pleased with that - and especially pleased that I've located all of my critters - yay! :D
 
RIP little pompom crab. First confirmed casualty of last week's calamity.

Zoas are open again and I think they are going to make it. Symphyllia and micromussa are hanging on but very toothy. Not sure they are going to pull through. Birdsnest is about 1/2 bleached from the base up, hoping it will stop bleaching at this point but I just don't know. Frogspawn and hammers are pretty retracted too and not looking better. I guess everything is still absorbing the damage that was done. I wonder how much I'll lose in the long run?
 
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