What to expect while cycling a tank.

[Kevinguyen]

I am on my fifth day of cycling my tank. My tank is only an 8 gallon. What should I expect while cycling my tank? Ive red that I will be getting some algae on the sand and rocks. I have base rock that I am seeding with some pieces of live rock right now. I also have live sand and water from an established tank. I expect the cycle to complete in two weeks. So, what will I be seeing over the time of the cycle?

 

[coolhandgoose]

Really not much, you can expect diatoms and then maybe some green hair algae later. It's kind of the boring stage.

 

[Nanna]

I am on my fifth day of cycling my tank. My tank is only an 8 gallon. What should I expect while cycling my tank? Ive red that I will be getting some algae on the sand and rocks. I have base rock that I am seeding with some pieces of live rock right now. I also have live sand and water from an established tank. I expect the cycle to complete in two weeks. So, what will I be seeing over the time of the cycle?

You can't really put a time frame on exactly how long it will take for your tank to cycle. Watch the ammonia, nitrite and nitrate levels to know when the cycle is through. Be patient cause two weeks can seem like 2 months!

 

[Smitty]

+1...you could also expect your livestock to die if you put them in there during the cycle, so please be patient. :)

 

[RedTornado]

The cycle is the worst cause all you can do is sit back and wait and wait and wait. You might see some algae pop up. I would personally run your lights as well that way once your done cycling and you first turn them on you dont end up with a huge algae explosion like i did. Other then that its a good time to sit back and plan out what live stock and corals you want to put into the tank.