not good!

kurens

Member
Yeah, unfortunately Eric's right, some might not survive the ammonia spike. You might have been better off leaving the tank alone until cycling finished. Hopefully they survive.
i got my live rock 3 weeks now in tank,came with pencil urchin,few crabs and hermits,turbo snail also around 10 other snails and so far not even one died....you think these nassarius snails will spikes ammonia so everything will die?checked par today and i got everything zeros...will keep you posted.
 

jcarlilesiu

Active member
The thing that is very odd to me is that you are getting zeros on all of your tests.

How old are your test kits and what kind are you using? Be sure to read the instructions carefully as sloppy testing can lead to varying results.

During the nitrogen cycle, typically hydrogen sulfide is created by denitrifying bacteria converting nitrates. These cases are commonly released out of the tank by sand sifting organisms before they become toxic to your aquarium inhabitants.

That being said, because you have such a new cycle, its hard to believe that hydrogen sulfide is already being generated. Its common to have it generated in anaerobic areas, such as your sand, especially when you don't have any organisms to move the sand around and release the gas.

What is troubling is the fact that you don't have any nitrates yet which are necessary to generate hydrogen sulfide.

Once you start your cycle, you will see the ammonia rise, and from ammonia nitrites are created by bacteria consuming ammonia. This in turn allows additional bacteria to convert to nitrate which ultimately results in hydrogen sulfide.

If you are testing zero on everything, you shouldn't be having any hydrogen sulfide, especially not to the extent you are explaining.

These kinds of oddities happen while cycling your tank through this process, and it should also be noted that most of the components of the nitrogen cycle are very toxic to fish and other animals. Nitrate and hydrogen sulfide being the least toxic in low concentrations.

I think you should take some water to a LFS and have them test it just to verify your results. If infact you are done cycling, and as such your tank is ultimately converting all of your availabe nitrates into hydrogen sulfide, the snails you added will do the trick to rid the tank of the problem. Until you have this under control, don't add anymore animals.
 

kurens

Member
thanks guys.
i used api tests which i bought 3-4 weeks ago,made 1/11 and i am doing this step by step with timer in my hand:)lol
i went to LFS today with my water to test it like Jake said,guy told me water is good,he got all zeros also.
will wait than and check it later.
 

jcarlilesiu

Active member
thanks guys.
i used api tests which i bought 3-4 weeks ago,made 1/11 and i am doing this step by step with timer in my hand:)lol
i went to LFS today with my water to test it like Jake said,guy told me water is good,he got all zeros also.
will wait than and check it later.
When did you fill the tank and start the cycle? What did you use to cycle with.

Sent on tapatalk for Android
 

Piscinarii

New member
hey guys i got question:
i need sand with larger grain,there is too much flow for fine size and i got huge sandstorms everytime(even with 50% valve closed)
i looked at this one:
http://www.marinedepot.com/CaribSea_Dry_Aragonite_Special_Grade_Reef_Sand_Dry_Sand_for_Saltwater_Reef_Aquariums-CaribSea-CS0020-FISSDS-vi.html
will it changed my water par a lot?
anyone using it?
thanks
That's good rock and it won't impact your water parameters. The question is are you replacing all your sand then? I have VERY FINE sand bed and after a few weeks it doesn't blow around as much. The tank will never be perfectly clear but my starfish, mandarin, conches, etc love the nice soft bottom!
 

kurens

Member
are you using closed loop for circulation?my back returns hitting front glass and sand is everywhere,right now i got no sand on some place on front part of tank,i used 45 elbows and lockline and still sandstorms....i would like at least use larger grain on front part and leave the fine under rocks.its gonna work?or everything will mix and looks ugly:)
 

Tangency

New member
hey guys i got question:
i need sand with larger grain,there is too much flow for fine size and i got huge sandstorms everytime(even with 50% valve closed)

I also have a sugar fine sand bed and had the same thing happen with my setup when I started. I wouldn't worry about it. After the bacteria population builds it acts as 'glue' on the sand bed and it does not blow around much after that. That took about a month +/- for the sand storms to die down.
 

kurens

Member
I also have a sugar fine sand bed and had the same thing happen with my setup when I started. I wouldn't worry about it. After the bacteria population builds it acts as 'glue' on the sand bed and it does not blow around much after that. That took about a month +/- for the sand storms to die down.
hey guys.i can see you got mp40 so maybe thats why it works for you Jeff,with flow from back towards front glass i cant keep sand here,everytime i will put it back and 20min later i dont have any sand on front.

I thought about the same Nino but i think my jumbo nassarius will put old sand on top.
I bought 40lbs from aquatica so i take a little and replace it with new especially on front.
thanks
 
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