The reef tank hobby can be incredibly rewarding, and incredibly frustrating. Learn how to be successful with your own reef saltwater tanks. Come along and see all the phases of this hobby including cycling, testing, maintenance, building and diy, feeding, automating, and so much more.
Great videos I love em. I’m starting a drag tank myself. My only constructive criticism would have to be sometimes you say the same thing 3-4 times and hang on the minor topics for a little long. But over all I’m following. 👊
I think if you would have read the instructions correctly in the first place the cycle would not have taken so long from watching this video you did it wrong at the start if you are using live rock or live sand you need to check the ammonia level before adding any ammonia if to much is added it will stall the cycle that seachem sticker you are using is only to alert you of ammonia it doesn't tell you how much so next time read the instructions before reviewing dr.tims
The rock was base rock, not live rock. There are 2 tiny pieces of rubble from an active tank. Also it was bare bottom. Additionally, ammonia alert does give ammonia readings, not just presence of ammonia. Finally, when the process started, the ammonia alert detected 0 levels of ammonia.
The review and steps for this video were based on the instructions here: www.drtimsaquatics.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/FishlessCycling_prescription_recipe_Nov23.pdf
I put my skimmer on 48 hours after the start of the process as my PH was starting to decline rapidly (works better with higher PH and was worried lack of oxygen would impact the cycle), now on day 6 and the ammonia is off the charts, planning to delay the adding of additional ammonia till i see a noticeable fall in it and a rise in nitrites. At this pace ill need to do a complete water change and restart if they dont kick in soon...
Agreed. I wouldn’t add more ammonia if it’s off the charts. Also, be careful with test kits. API reads very high while the Ammonia Alert was much more stable
@@ARealReefHobbyist hey I used Dr.tims ammonia 4 drops per gallon and I got CaribSea liferock the purple one and special grade sand, seems like the bare bottom makes a big difference
Tried dr Tim's took over a month to cycle. Then tried atm colony that cycled in less than a week. Currently building a bigger aquarium and going to use fritz turbo start as for some reason in the uk nobody seems to have any atm.
Since you used Dr. Tim’s plus ammonia and dry rock is this because do you want the tank to be somewhat sterile after you’ve dipped fags? As I think the small would be extremely easy to skip start using mature live rock.
Agreed. I’m a huge fan of established rock, specifically ocean rock. But for the sake of experimenting, I wanted to try the fishless dry rock cycle. Plus it’s budget friendly for these videos.
So the best way to do this is generally to acclimate them to about half strength salinity, wait a week or so, and then finish all the way. There have been a few studies on mortality rate and drip acclimation has a fairly high attrition rate, versus almost 100% survival going half then full over a longer period.
Couple of noticeable mistakes I saw was there was no real oxygenation going off in the tank aside from surface/water movement, and also when the pH dropped you should have added a little bicarbonate of soda to raise the pH back up and in turn, raising the alkalinity (KH). Was the water change dechlorinated?
Actually there is plenty of oxygenation, the only time the tank dropped was during that cycling phase. Since then it’s been very steady at 8.1-8.2. The drop is common when the ammonia sources are added as they break down. Also this was a demonstration of the Dr Tim’s Fishless cycle. Per the instructions using this method, “If the pH drops below 7 perform a 25-30% water change taking the water from near the top of the water column. Do not disturb the substrate or remove the filter pad. Do not manipulate pH during the cycling period - the higher the pH the better (up to 8.5).” And yes I only use reverse osmosis deionized (RODI) water. Never use straight tap water with conditioner
@ARealReefHobbyist well there's your issue then. A pH drop is caused by Nitrosomonas bacteria and Nitrobacter using up the carbonates in the water as they convert Ammonia to Nitrite, and Nitrite to Nitrate. Then on top if you use RO, the water is very much void of carbonates anyway as it strips everything from the water. The water change Dr Tim referred to was simply to add minerals back to the water, a method of increasing KH back to where it should be as it is used up by the Nitrifying bacteria. Where was the oxygenation during this testing stage and establishing the media? As I didn't see any
Yes I leave the sponge in for more surface area to grow. I then only rinse in with tank water that I drain during a water change. I do not use carbon during cycling.
Thank you 😊 In earlier days, most tanks were started with good live rock or ocean rock. Today it’s quite different, most are started with dead rock. What I’m showing in this series will be the best of both worlds. And you’ll see how the base rock is incorporated into the system will be quite different than just seeding base rock with live rock.
I've made a tank with a similar idea of using natural ways of cleaning, maintaining, etc., but recently there has been a dinoflagellate outbreak. After watching this video I've realized my mistake, that is not introducing different copepods and reducing my amphipods. At the moment I only have one type of copepod, and many amphipods. Hopefully I can get a fish that eats amphipods so then I could introduce new copepod species with a lesser chance of predation.
Good idea. I’ve used tape to hold it on larger tanks where I’m nervous the dropping piece could damage the front glass. I like the idea of just using the rag.
If it’s NOT tempered, you should be able to no problem. If it is tempered, it will shatter. There are some videos online about how to tell if the glass is tempered. I would test it before drilling, regardless of what people tell you.
You're right, some may find it inhumane. However, they are brackish and can live in different environments. I think that two of the fish surviving using 2 different methods may just mean that the one fish was weak unfortunately. No matter what environment it was placed it, it may not have survived. We'll keep an eye on them and post updates in the near future. So far they are still doing great.
glad it worked out for you. I was able to get mine done in about a week. granted my tank was up and running for about a week before i started the dr tims. So i already had a bit of ammonia from ghost feeding the tank but it definitely helped speed it along.
Thank you! Yes sounds like that would help for sure to get a jump on things. Did you have more typical rock amounts (1-1.5 lbs per gallon) and a substrate?
Watching dr tims video, i don't think we should be adding more ammonia until we see the levels drop. Looking forward to episode 3 as I am attempting this as well😂
I think we need to continue the ammonia to provide the ammonia breaking down bacteria food to survive and thrive. Without ghost feeding or fish, those bacteria will not have a food source.
I'll have to look it up again. I remember reading somewhere that adding to much ammonia after the initial phase can stall or even restart the cycle. This didn't apply to just Dr. Tim's but all fishless cycling. It also appears that some of these ammonia drops recommendations on the bottles can result in double what you actually need.
@@tigcarn I ended up completing the cycle but it took over a month for me. I would recommend 2 drops per gallon of ammonia as 4 is too much. And I think it's possible high nitrite can stall the cycle. What I ended up doing was continually add ammonia (every other day once I saw it drop it zero in 24 hours) as @arealreefhobbyist stated and perform water changes if the nitrite levels got too purple
Just starting this and i am only on day 6 and the ammonia is off the charts, i cant in good conscience feed more into the tank as per the instructions so going to wait 24/48 hours to give the bacteria a chance.
@@glowwurm9365 the ammonia phase is relatively quick. I would give it a bit longer until you notice the ammonia drop. Once you do your nitrites may go off the charts and I would probably do water changes then and continue dosing until both your ammonia and nitrite is cycled within 24 hours
For when you don’t have loads of room for live rock I’d recommend maxspect bio ball, great surface area & are strong for their size so only use 2-4 cause in the long run they work too efficiently. Good luck
I just picked up a 10 gallon tank to create a frag tank for all my corals that are overflowing my main 20gal WaterBox. I’m looking forward to follow along with you.
I really want the frag tank to be self sustaining. Where i don't have to worry about water parameters or feeding it. Is that possible? Essentially when i take a vacation i don't want my fish sitter to have to worry about what to do with the frag tank. @@ARealReefHobbyist
I think that’s very possible. Frag tanks have little livestock like fish that need constant feeding. If you have solid parameters before you leave, things should be ok for a week or so.
