New tank !!!!!!!!!!!!! Help

[Nick Gunn]

I am in the UK and very keen on starting a "fish only" marine
tank but I am wondering is there a way of testing the tank whilst cycling it
without fish to tell the level
of bacteria so I can tell when it`s safe for fish to be introduced !!

Please help !!

Many thanks

[Glenn R. Holmes]

Hello Nick.
I replied on the other news group.
If you are not familiar with how to properly acclimatize fish, let me know via
email and I will send you a reply with the "how to". This method will allow you
to acclimatize Black Mollies from FW to SW.

Glenn

[Andy Barnes]

Hi Nick

I recently set up a FO marine tank and things are going nicely. I waited
six weeks with system running before introducing livestock. You will worry
a lot in the first few weeks! I fed my tank with flake food. This meant
that the food would rot, creating ammonia to help the nitrogen cycle along.
Also added some of the seawater starting stuff - not sure just how effective
this is really though! Best thing I found was patience. Even though I
waited six weeks, eight to ten is probably ideal. What you need to do is
buy a good test kit, which at the minimum tests for PH, Ammonia, Nitrite &
Natrates. I favour the tablet test kits with test tubes. Make sure you
have a good gravity meter. Start with a relatively low salinity (1.021 or
thereabouts). Make sure you have good filtration and a skimmer seems to
work really well. If you want any more info on my setup just to compare
notes, then just email me (aba...@clockworkdog.co.uk).

Andy Barnes
(Essex)

"Nick Gunn" <Nick....@btinternet.com> wrote in message
news:8upl23$1cj$1...@uranium.btinternet.com...

[xxdesdemona]

In article <8upl23$1cj$1...@uranium.btinternet.com>, Nick Gunn
<Nick....@btinternet.com> wrote:

> I am in the UK and very keen on starting a "fish only" marine
> tank but I am wondering is there a way of testing the tank whilst cycling it
> without fish to tell the level
> of bacteria so I can tell when it`s safe for fish to be introduced !!
>
>

I'm new to this also. But I found a very good book that offers a
little different perspective. See Mike Palleta's ³The New Marine
Aquarium². He tells why you should use and cycle with live rock. Even
for a fo tank. (This is only fo, but it is the first book I should
have read. )

He gives very specific instructions on all newbie subjects. Also some
ways to save money. And mistakes newbies oftern make.

>
> Please help !!
>
> Many thanks

--desdemona
To respond by email, please remove xx and adastra. spam filter

[Glenn R. Holmes]

Purchase a Marine test kit which covers:
Ammonia - This is the primary test and is essential.
Nitite - This tests for the second stage of the nitrifying cycle and is
essential
Nitrate - This tests for the tertiary stage of the cycle. It is optional.
Nitrate is non-toxic to fish at reasonable levels
PH - his tests the PH of your water and for Marine it is essential.
Marine tanks should run from 8.1-8.3 thePH

You will need these tests anyway even when your system is fully functional and
has been so for years.
Glenn

Nick Gunn wrote:

> I am in the UK and very keen on starting a "fish only" marine
> tank but I am wondering is there a way of testing the tank whilst cycling it
> without fish to tell the level
> of bacteria so I can tell when it`s safe for fish to be introduced !!
>

[Richard]

How is the tank going to cycle without any fish in it? Where is the
ammonia going to come from? Should start off the cycle with one or
two damsels.....

richard

On Sun, 26 Nov 2000 00:54:42 -0000, "June Sanderson"
<sander...@sanderson2000.worldonline.co.uk> wrote:

>Hi Nick
>
>I would use the time the tank is cycling to read up as much as you can about
>what fish you are going to buy.
>
>The ammonia rises up first then the nitrite, once the tank has cycled the
>nitrite should be zero, because the bacteria have turned the nitrite in to
>harmless nitrate. There are a lot of test strips on the market. Once your
>tank is cycled and you introduce fish, you will have to monitor the tank
>regularly so the tests will not be wasted. You can buy a test strip test
>that does five tests in one they are easy to use and only take a minute.
>One the test for nitrite is zero I would add a damsel fish (the tank may
>take up to 8 weeks to cycle).
>
>I enclose some links for you to read up on in the meantime.
>
>June
>
>www.thekrib.com for FAQ's
>> http://www.reefcentral.com/
>> www.reefs.org/
>> www.wetwebmedia.com specifically Bob Fenner's Q&A sections
>> www.marinefishonline.com
>> http://www.marineaquarium.org/
>> www.wetwebmedia.com

>
>
>"Nick Gunn" <Nick....@btinternet.com> wrote in message
>news:8upl23$1cj$1...@uranium.btinternet.com...

[June Sanderson]