Cycling tank

[Ketchup]

Hi all fellow reef kakis

Thanks Lemon Lemon for the Cycling write up.. i find it very useful!

Just a noobie question... we are setting up a new 4ft tank and we have the following... but i am just wondering what is the recommended sequence...

Live sand - we have enough for about 4-5 inches of DSB. We have bought live black sand from both caribsea and NO as it is different in sizes. We intend to use NO at bottom, abt 2/3 (finer grade) then caribsea (abt 1/3) on top.

Live Rock - We are using about 20+ kg of live rocks as we have 3 big pieces of Fibreglass Rock. We may add some smaller pieces as we progress.

Fibreglass rock - We have 3 big pieces of this, which i understand do not help cycling process.

Water - NSW - We have placed an order for NSW from Iwarna.

Roughly our plan is as follows:

1) Pour in the NSW

2) Pour in the NO sand to form the base layer of DSB

3) Put in the Fibreglass (tied to a large sheet of egg crate)

4) Pour in remaining Caribsea sand to cover the egg crate and create some different height of sand at different area to prevent detritus build up.

5) Stack the Live rocks on top of the egg crate and sand

6) Cycle the tank with Live Prawns (2-3/gallon, according to some website guide)

7) Cycle the tank, Aquascape as we go along

8) Cycle complete

9) Do a major (50%) water change with NSW or Salt water (prob salt mix + RO water using the Crystal Pro)

10) Finalise Aquascape

11) Add in some corals

12) Add some clean up crews - snails, sand shifters

13) Add in some fishes

14) Repeat and add in corals, fishes and clean up crew slowly while monitoring the water parameters.

Oh yes... we have a sump and we will just fill it with some sand (which we will rinse) and top up with NSW and dose it with some bateria culture tablet. We will also throw in a couple of rocks (not big and not so nice ones) from our existing 2 ft tank inside. In future, we hope to cultivate some cheato or the other marine plant that tangs eats... Can't rem the name now.

Are the steps correct and are we missing somethin?

[Goondoo]

Roughly our plan is as follows:

1) Pour in the NSW

2) Pour in the NO sand to form the base layer of DSB

I am starting my tank soon as well.

Just a question, is it a common practice to pour in water before sand? (I saw it in some video by some pro-ang mo doing the same thing)

In planted tank, we usually put in water after the substrates so as to maximize water clarity.

I was planning,

1) Put in dead rocks,

2) Put in Live sand,

3) Pour in NSW.

I have no intention of hijacking this thread, just want to compare the sequence to ensure I am also doing the right thing.

[Ketchup]

I am starting my tank soon as well.

Just a question, is it a common practice to pour in water before sand? (I saw it in some video by some pro-ang mo doing the same thing)

In planted tank, we usually put in water after the substrates so as to maximize water clarity.

I was planning,

1) Put in dead rocks,

2) Put in Live sand,

3) Pour in NSW.

I have no intention of hijacking this thread, just want to compare the sequence to ensure I am also doing the right thing.

Hi Goondoo,

No problem abt Hijacking as we are all here to learn

I think why water is added before sand is not really an issue as the "cloud" will settle anyway before the cycling period is over. Also, i know that some reefers suggest to make use of this CLOUD to turn on the wavemakers etc to see the water flow

As for why Live Sand before Live rock, that one i read is because live sand may cover the porous Live rock and thus kill off the Live rock... if you using Dead Rock i guess it is not relevant except you may need to shake of the sand during aquascaping.

ketchup...

[Ketchup]

oh... another reason i can think of to add water 1st (at least partially) is that it will not slosh the sand and rocks all over the place.. practical reason, i guess

[zorden]

oh... another reason i can think of to add water 1st (at least partially) is that it will not slosh the sand and rocks all over the place.. practical reason, i guess

pour water in is good. leak test. as for the sloshing. you can mitigiate it by placing a plate or bowl. btw how much is the nsw for let say 400 litres ah. can pm me..

[qwertman321]

12) Add some clean up crews - snails, sand shifters

i think u should not add sand sifter if u are have DSB

[onizukaa]

On a side note, because live rock and sand will "add volume" to the tank, therefore, when filling it with water, leave some volume for the additional of live rock and live sand.

else,easiest way is to add the sand, rock, pump water in.. put filter wool at the water flow, wait few days and wala.. clear tank in progress of cycling.

my 2cents and all the best!

[Ketchup]

pour water in is good. leak test. as for the sloshing. you can mitigiate it by placing a plate or bowl. btw how much is the nsw for let say 400 litres ah. can pm me..

I getting from Iwarna.. u can pm or call Victor directly

[Ketchup]

i think u should not add sand sifter if u are have DSB

Hmm.... i know that we shd avoid turning the DSB drastically but based on my knowledge.. using sand shifters and snails all these will help to loosen the DSB, which is beneficial..

[Ketchup]

On a side note, because live rock and sand will "add volume" to the tank, therefore, when filling it with water, leave some volume for the additional of live rock and live sand.

else,easiest way is to add the sand, rock, pump water in.. put filter wool at the water flow, wait few days and wala.. clear tank in progress of cycling.

my 2cents and all the best!

Yups... will bear this in mind..

[qwertman321]

Hmm.... i know that we shd avoid turning the DSB drastically but based on my knowledge.. using sand shifters and snails all these will help to loosen the DSB, which is beneficial..

but using big sand shifter like some star fish may be bad as it areate the sand with too much oxygen killing the bacteria u want in the DSB.

usually worms , and pods doing the sand shifting will be enough

[iskay]

Hi all fellow reef kakis

Thanks Lemon Lemon for the Cycling write up.. i find it very useful!

Just a noobie question... we are setting up a new 4ft tank and we have the following... but i am just wondering what is the recommended sequence...

Live sand - we have enough for about 4-5 inches of DSB. We have bought live black sand from both caribsea and NO as it is different in sizes. We intend to use NO at bottom, abt 2/3 (finer grade) then caribsea (abt 1/3) on top.

Live Rock - We are using about 20+ kg of live rocks as we have 3 big pieces of Fibreglass Rock. We may add some smaller pieces as we progress.

Fibreglass rock - We have 3 big pieces of this, which i understand do not help cycling process.

Water - NSW - We have placed an order for NSW from Iwarna.

Roughly our plan is as follows:

1) Pour in the NSW

2) Pour in the NO sand to form the base layer of DSB

3) Put in the Fibreglass (tied to a large sheet of egg crate)

4) Pour in remaining Caribsea sand to cover the egg crate and create some different height of sand at different area to prevent detritus build up.

5) Stack the Live rocks on top of the egg crate and sand

6) Cycle the tank with Live Prawns (2-3/gallon, according to some website guide)

7) Cycle the tank, Aquascape as we go along

8) Cycle complete

9) Do a major (50%) water change with NSW or Salt water (prob salt mix + RO water using the Crystal Pro)

10) Finalise Aquascape

11) Add in some corals

12) Add some clean up crews - snails, sand shifters

13) Add in some fishes

14) Repeat and add in corals, fishes and clean up crew slowly while monitoring the water parameters.

Oh yes... we have a sump and we will just fill it with some sand (which we will rinse) and top up with NSW and dose it with some bateria culture tablet. We will also throw in a couple of rocks (not big and not so nice ones) from our existing 2 ft tank inside. In future, we hope to cultivate some cheato or the other marine plant that tangs eats... Can't rem the name now.

Are the steps correct and are we missing somethin?

Before putting anything into the tank, it's best to test for leaks by filling it with water. It's also a good time for cleaning the tank of any residue. Just think about the trouble you'll have if the tank springs a leak with all the rockas and sand in it.

Put in the clean up crew before any livestock (Coral/Fish)

House some bacteria culture in your sump by putting in biohome or other similar products. Look out for bulk group buys in the forum. It'll save you $. The sump sequence is recommended to be: From tank - Mechanical filtration, biological filtration, skimmer, chemical filtration - To tank.

[macrobutt]

Hi Goondoo,

No problem abt Hijacking as we are all here to learn

I think why water is added before sand is not really an issue as the "cloud" will settle anyway before the cycling period is over. Also, i know that some reefers suggest to make use of this CLOUD to turn on the wavemakers etc to see the water flow

As for why Live Sand before Live rock, that one i read is because live sand may cover the porous Live rock and thus kill off the Live rock... if you using Dead Rock i guess it is not relevant except you may need to shake of the sand during aquascaping.

ketchup...

Hi neighbour,

Thanks for the nice gesture.

I do see your point on live sand covering live rocks, and I admit I haven't really read up on what's really living on the rocks. If it is only the bacterias that take care of Ammonia and Nitrite, then I guess the lost is not really that significant and Micro organism should be able to remigrate themself (I hope...lol). I would prefer to test for leakage using tap water as I do not want to wake up with a floor full of salty water. Testing the flow sounds interesting and definitely something I haven't thought about.

End of the day, we paid for the live sand, live rock and "NSW" so as to cut short the cycling process, adding key bacterias which would usually take months to appear in a brand new tank. AFAIK, cycling is constant process and is forever changing, you can never leave a tank there for 2 months and proclaim it cycled. Every new fauna added, died, changes in water chemistry, feeding, food type... etc adds to the process everyday. Moreover, this bacterias need "food" to stay alive too. If there are not enough "food", they will simply die of and create more "waste" to the water after which the system will try to re-balance again. This is also why even in very stable tanks, dumping in large amount of faunas will normally result in high casualty, mainly due to the spike of Ammonia and Nitrite which the tank's system are not catered for (not referring to tanks with high tech toys).

I believe the key to zero casualty (for poor man like me) is adding LS at a very slow pace.

Thanks for sharing your wonderful thread again and really hope to see your tank soon. I can't help with marine stuff but maybe help shoot your tank if needed since you should stay somewhere near me.

[Ketchup]

but using big sand shifter like some star fish may be bad as it areate the sand with too much oxygen killing the bacteria u want in the DSB.

usually worms , and pods doing the sand shifting will be enough

Hmm... prob wont get the big star fishes la... most likely just some small star fishes.. 1-2 inches type max i think.. Will think of the clean up crew while cycling:P Thanks for the advice!

[zorden]

Before putting anything into the tank, it's best to test for leaks by filling it with water. It's also a good time for cleaning the tank of any residue. Just think about the trouble you'll have if the tank springs a leak with all the rockas and sand in it.

Put in the clean up crew before any livestock (Coral/Fish)

House some bacteria culture in your sump by putting in biohome or other similar products. Look out for bulk group buys in the forum. It'll save you $. The sump sequence is recommended to be: From tank - Mechanical filtration, biological filtration, skimmer, chemical filtration - To tank.

Yes. pray my tank dont leak. i have place the substrate n the LR in liao. water will only be in by sat

[Ketchup]

Before putting anything into the tank, it's best to test for leaks by filling it with water. It's also a good time for cleaning the tank of any residue. Just think about the trouble you'll have if the tank springs a leak with all the rockas and sand in it.

Put in the clean up crew before any livestock (Coral/Fish)

House some bacteria culture in your sump by putting in biohome or other similar products. Look out for bulk group buys in the forum. It'll save you $. The sump sequence is recommended to be: From tank - Mechanical filtration, biological filtration, skimmer, chemical filtration - To tank.

Okies... Well, intention is to fill part of the tank, see got leaks or not then put in more live rocks/live sand and water... I think live sand and live rock also need enough water level to cover it at least right? As for clean up crew, yeah, will buy some 1st.. The reason why i split it is that i intend to buy more when more livestock is added Also, i worry the clean up crew got nothing to do/eat! LOL

Biohome... sounds familar... i bought the bateria culture tablet from AM already... so prob will try that 1st As for the sequence.. i think the tank maker designed it that way too.. but not 100% sure as i leave it to him to design.. just told him we wanted the sump to incorporate an area for refrigum.

[Ketchup]

Hi neighbour,

Thanks for the nice gesture.

I do see your point on live sand covering live rocks, and I admit I haven't really read up on what's really living on the rocks. If it is only the bacterias that take care of Ammonia and Nitrite, then I guess the lost is not really that significant and Micro organism should be able to remigrate themself (I hope...lol). I would prefer to test for leakage using tap water as I do not want to wake up with a floor full of salty water. Testing the flow sounds interesting and definitely something I haven't thought about.

End of the day, we paid for the live sand, live rock and "NSW" so as to cut short the cycling process, adding key bacterias which would usually take months to appear in a brand new tank. AFAIK, cycling is constant process and is forever changing, you can never leave a tank there for 2 months and proclaim it cycled. Every new fauna added, died, changes in water chemistry, feeding, food type... etc adds to the process everyday. Moreover, this bacterias need "food" to stay alive too. If there are not enough "food", they will simply die of and create more "waste" to the water after which the system will try to re-balance again. This is also why even in very stable tanks, dumping in large amount of faunas will normally result in high casualty, mainly due to the spike of Ammonia and Nitrite which the tank's system are not catered for (not referring to tanks with high tech toys).

I believe the key to zero casualty (for poor man like me) is adding LS at a very slow pace.

Thanks for sharing your wonderful thread again and really hope to see your tank soon. I can't help with marine stuff but maybe help shoot your tank if needed since you should stay somewhere near me.

hi Macrobutt, thanks for the offer... regardless of need help or not, can always come and see tank la! LOL...

Ya, i also wish to cut short the cycling process if possible but thats not the main reason for us to use live sand/live rock and NSW..

I chose live sand because it suppose to have high concentration of biofilm baterias... something like 10m/pound Also, for vanity reason as i love the look of black sand and DSB! LOL

Live rock, honestly, we also using very little as we again decided to purchase 3 pieces of fibreglass rocks as it looks better, have more nooks and crevices for fishes/coral placement.

NSW - one word, LAZY! haha.. when i think of making like 700 litres of water.. i already wanna faint liaoz.. not to mentioned waiting for RO/DI unit, mix salt, carry water by pail.. in contrast, NSW from Iwarna is affordable and convenient..

I totally agree with you on ZERO casualty... but knowing Desi... she wont be able to resist the temptation.. u guys must help me JAGAR and not POISON her go GO or other LFS!

[Ketchup]

Yes. pray my tank dont leak. i have place the substrate n the LR in liao. water will only be in by sat

Touch WOOD>> Won't leak la!

[desideria]

I totally agree with you on ZERO casualty... but knowing Desi... she wont be able to resist the temptation.. u guys must help me JAGAR and not POISON her go GO or other LFS!

OOEEEEEEEEIIIIIIIIIII!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

piak piak piak piak piak!!!!

desi.

[Fuzzy]

Roughly our plan is as follows:

1) Pour in the NSW

2) Pour in the NO sand to form the base layer of DSB

3) Put in the Fibreglass (tied to a large sheet of egg crate)

4) Pour in remaining Caribsea sand to cover the egg crate and create some different height of sand at different area to prevent detritus build up.

5) Stack the Live rocks on top of the egg crate and sand

6) Cycle the tank with Live Prawns (2-3/gallon, according to some website guide)

7) Cycle the tank, Aquascape as we go along

8) Cycle complete

9) Do a major (50%) water change with NSW or Salt water (prob salt mix + RO water using the Crystal Pro)

10) Finalise Aquascape

11) Add in some corals

12) Add some clean up crews - snails, sand shifters

13) Add in some fishes

14) Repeat and add in corals, fishes and clean up crew slowly while monitoring the water parameters.

The only slight changes I would recommend are for steps 1 - 6.

1) Leak test the tank with treated tap water (Antichlorine/chloramine, then drain out all the water)

2) Place the Fibreglass + egg crate base liner

3) Pour in all the live sand

4) Pour in the NSW

5) Stack the Live rocks on top of the egg crate and sand

6) Cycle the tank with a piece of dead market Prawn

Additionally after the cycling is completed, you might want to consider adding in the cleaning crew and the fish before the corals.

But looks like you have everything planned out! Keep us updated with pictures!

[Ketchup]

The only slight changes I would recommend are for steps 1 - 6.

1) Leak test the tank with treated tap water (Antichlorine/chloramine, then drain out all the water)

2) Place the Fibreglass + egg crate base liner

3) Pour in all the live sand

4) Pour in the NSW

5) Stack the Live rocks on top of the egg crate and sand

6) Cycle the tank with a piece of dead market Prawn

Additionally after the cycling is completed, you might want to consider adding in the cleaning crew and the fish before the corals.

But looks like you have everything planned out! Keep us updated with pictures!

Hi Fuzzy

Thanks for the suggestions! Ya, i think i will have to put in the fibreglass and egg crate 1st before adding live sand/NSW.

Btw, any difference if i add in livesand or NSW 1st? Will the bateria die off if i just pour in Livesand and then cover it with NSW?

[Fuzzy]

Hi Fuzzy

Thanks for the suggestions! Ya, i think i will have to put in the fibreglass and egg crate 1st before adding live sand/NSW.

Btw, any difference if i add in livesand or NSW 1st? Will the bateria die off if i just pour in Livesand and then cover it with NSW?

No the bacteria will not be affected whether you pour the NSW or sand in first. Putting the sand in before the water is more for

more practical reasons.

If you put the water in before the sand you will likely be seeing some seriously cloudy water, and sand all over your LR (depending on how fine your sand is)

Also more sand will end up in your sump or filtration if you put the sand in after the water, a lot of fine particles will be suspended in the water column.

Put the eggcrate, fibreglass, LR etc, then the sand.

Place a large plate or dish on the sand, then gently pour the NSW in over this plate.

It will minimize the amount of cloudiness of your water, and will also reduce the amount of sand ending up in your filtration system.

[pweesng]

Hi guys,

May i ask how much does iwarna charge for NSW delivered to your home?

I'm looking for like 250 litre of it when my tank arrive... was planning to use tap water and add anti chlorine and salt... but the option of getting it delivered is sounding pretty good to me... hahahha

thanks in advance

[jackywongto]

Hi guys,

May i ask how much does iwarna charge for NSW delivered to your home?

I'm looking for like 250 litre of it when my tank arrive... was planning to use tap water and add anti chlorine and salt... but the option of getting it delivered is sounding pretty good to me... hahahha

thanks in advance

Standard pricing is like 80 SGD per 400 litres delivered to your place.

Better if you give Victor a call on his mobile.

[Underwater]

Hi guys,

May i ask how much does iwarna charge for NSW delivered to your home?

I'm looking for like 250 litre of it when my tank arrive... was planning to use tap water and add anti chlorine and salt... but the option of getting it delivered is sounding pretty good to me... hahahha

thanks in advance

Yup, its about $80. Just give Victor a call and he'll give you a quote based on tank size and prob location. They will pump NSW straight into your tank...much easier than mixing salt with tapwater (which also comes with all the unwanted heavy metals, nitrates, phos, etc.).