Almost DIYed Marine tank journal

Originally Posted by Arolee999

I removed the market prawn yesterday which been inside the tank for 24 hours.
Today checking out the water parameters:
PH: 8.0
KH: 5 dkh
Ammonia: 0.6 ~ 0.9ppm
Nitrite: 0.25ppm
Nitrate: 20 ppm
sg: 1.019 (refractometer)

Is the parameter looks alright under 6 days cycling?

Water looks quite clear now.
Been added Bacteria, Calcium, PH buffer and KH buffer on day 3.

Best to have Nitrate at zero level and kH between 8 to 10, Ca between 400 to 450.

Originally Posted by Arolee999

Ha... bought mine too at SeaLife @ S$16.

Still considering...necessary for a fowlr?

Chiller is not necessary for a fowlr environment ....

Nitrate at 20ppm is still acceptable for FOWLR.

Off course if you can it is as low as possible. I have got advice and seen that a Deep Sand Bed can give you that(i feel is the cheapest way). Never tried as i do not have space in my slump for that.

Wait till ammonia = 0 and nitrite = 0 b4 adding fish.

[Arolee999]

Originally Posted by Sunburst

Chiller is not necessary for a fowlr environment ....

My tank with return pump, skimmer and wave maker running temperature already near 30c without light ON.
I am worry that temp will easily hit 31c or 32c if light turn on.
What is the temp tolerate for a fowlr?

Originally Posted by weesy74

Nitrate at 20ppm is still acceptable for FOWLR.

Off course if you can it is as low as possible. I have got advice and seen that a Deep Sand Bed can give you that(i feel is the cheapest way). Never tried as i do not have space in my slump for that.

Wait till ammonia = 0 and nitrite = 0 b4 adding fish.

Yes, just 1st week of cycling, I'll wait till Ammonia and Nitrite = 0 before adding livestock.

Due to the market prawn previously i put in tank only 24hrs, is the ammonia at 0.6 ~ 0.9ppm high enough for the spike in ANN cycle? Or should i put in the market prawn longer period for the ammonia go high somemore?

My tank sands is about 1.5" thick, so no consider as DSB.
Will look for some other way to reduce the Nitrate after cycling complete.

[bUrPz]

bravo bro!! very impressed by what you have done!!

[vt_snowman87]

super impressive DIY, even skimmer also can diy! thanks for sharing, do post more pics and keep us updated!

[Arolee999]

Originally Posted by bUrPz

bravo bro!! very impressed by what you have done!!

Originally Posted by vt_snowman87

super impressive DIY, even skimmer also can diy! thanks for sharing, do post more pics and keep us updated!

Thanks....Will update picture when added in livestocks.

[Arolee999]

Day 15 of cycling.
Update the water parameters today:
PH: 8.0+
KH: 7 dkh (checked on last week after dosed KH buffer around 9 dkh)
Ammonia: Almost 0 ppm
Nitrite: Almost 0 ppm
Nitrate: 20 ppm
sg: 1.019 (refractometer)

Is this reading normal for day 15 of cycling? Though ammonia and nitrite will stay longer? Or the ammonia spike is not high enough as i only put in the market prawn for 24 hrs during initially?

[KaLiB]

Its possible to have 0ppm for ammonia and nitrite in 15days as you used live sand collected from another reefer. The presence of nitrates and ammonia & nitrite reducing to 0 suggests there is bacteria in the system to breakdown ammonia & nitrite.

The sand may have contained a fair amount of bacteria which helped speed up the cycling. I would suggest observing for a few more days(maybe a week?) before making plans to stock the tank. Don't forget to stock slowly as stocking too fast will result in ammonia & nitrite spikes.

For FOWLR, you can get by with anything as high as 31deg so long as your keeping tropical species.

By the way, nice build. Looking forward to see it stocked.

[Arolee999]

Originally Posted by KaLiB

Its possible to have 0ppm for ammonia and nitrite in 15days as you used live sand collected from another reefer. The presence of nitrates and ammonia & nitrite reducing to 0 suggests there is bacteria in the system to breakdown ammonia & nitrite.

The sand may have contained a fair amount of bacteria which helped speed up the cycling. I would suggest observing for a few more days(maybe a week?) before making plans to stock the tank. Don't forget to stock slowly as stocking too fast will result in ammonia & nitrite spikes.

For FOWLR, you can get by with anything as high as 31deg so long as your keeping tropical species.

By the way, nice build. Looking forward to see it stocked.

Thanks for your reply and answer. I'll continue to cycle for another 2 weeks to check all the parameters before adding livestocks.

May i know how to stable the KH value? As after dosing the KH buffer, KH value will be lowered after a week by 2 dkh.

[KaLiB]

You would have to consistently dose chemicals to maintain kH. Processes in the marine aquarium would cause kH to decline so its normal for it to drop.

Besides measuring kH, do keep an eye on calcium levels too. Ideally, kH is to be maintained at 8-12 while Calcium at 350-450ppm. As kH & Calcium levels go hand in hand, if either parameter is too far off(Eg. kH at 6 while Calcium at 450ppm or kH at 12 while Calcium is at 300ppm), you may face precipitation & pH issues.