Keeping Anemones?

[caribewolf]

Thanks. Will initiate water changes. Will keep you up to date.

 

[mmkeeper]

Did you notice any increase in skimmate in your skimmer after using AZ No3?

 

[caribewolf]

When I started my 55 gallon reef tank, I just let it run the cycle for about 4-5 weeks. It started out with no nitrates, nitrites or ammonia but as the ammonia built up, so did the nitrites and then the nitrates. For good ammonia build up, its essential to build up your bacterial population. In my experience, this is done with getting a few(three - five) in my case blue green chromis. They are cheap and easy to maintain. As you feed them, and they defecate, left over food and excrement contribute to the ammonia levels and of course this feeds the bacterial load (which is what you want). After my tank had cycled, that means, nitrates and nitrites went sky high and then slowly went back down to zero (about 6 weeks later), this was when I began to add in coral and additional fish. Now, I did run into a problem. After the tank had cycled for about 6 weeks and had stabilized, I found out that I had added more coral and fish too quickly. This led into an overload on the tank and the nitrates skyrocketted again. I just had to do water changes until the nitrates came down and the tank had restabilized. So do things SLOWLY and have PATIENCE. This is the tank, about two months later.

 

[caribewolf]

Oops, I added the wrong reply in the wrong forum. But it all works out. The tank is stable now. I still add, AZNO3. I have NO3 about between 0 and 5 ppm right now. I do regular water changes.

 

[caribewolf]

When I started my 55 gallon reef tank, I just let it run the cycle for about 4-5 weeks. It started out with no nitrates, nitrites or ammonia but as the ammonia built up, so did the nitrites and then the nitrates. For good ammonia build up, its essential to build up your bacterial population. In my experience, this is done with getting a few(three - five) in my case blue green chromis. They are cheap and easy to maintain. As you feed them, and they defecate, left over food and excrement contribute to the ammonia levels and of course this feeds the bacterial load (which is what you want). After my tank had cycled, that means, nitrates and nitrites went sky high and then slowly went back down to zero (about 6 weeks later), this was when I began to add in coral and additional fish. Now, I did run into a problem. After the tank had cycled for about 6 weeks and had stabilized, I found out that I had added more coral and fish too quickly. This led into an overload on the tank and the nitrates skyrocketted again. I just had to do water changes until the nitrates came down and the tank had restabilized. So do things SLOWLY and have PATIENCE. This is the tank, about two months later.

 

[csababubbles]

Alright, I just got home and tested the tank. Ammonia is at zero, and nitrites are at zero. I was under the impression that with fully cured live rock, I would experience either a VERY tiny cycle or no cycle at all. If the ammonia and nitrites are both at zero, and the nitrates are as of yet unknown, would it not be assumed that my biological filtration has cycled? In my experience with freshwater, ammonia/nitrites don't just "go away" and then magically reappear. I'm not going to rush out and buy an anemone or anything just because my test results seem good, I'm just trying to understand where these things are going. I'm not trying to be argumentative, but what I seem to be understanding from you is in direct opposition to my freshwater experience, as well as my test results.

Check out Lee's stickie on this topic. His stickies are pretty much the greatest thing to help us keep better care of our livestock. This one is perfectly up your alley on this thread: http://www.reeffrontiers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=28484

 

[Shane and John]

i got a 29 gallon biocube and set it up and i got anenomies the first night...they all seem to be doing very good, i have my rocks set up like a big tunnel so the fish can swim through it.i have like 4 anenomies in there...i have a gold stripe maroon clown and i put him a good week after i put in my anenomies so the anenomies could settle down and they wouldnt get too stressed of me doing so much they would die.so i agree with the lfs