azitaglio

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So I am currently in the process of upgrading from my Innovative Marine Lagoon tank(25g) to a Waterbed 100.3. I am not using any of my current rock or water or sand for the new tank but I want to be able to transfer all my corals over within a few days of the tank being up and running, I have a reputable source that is giving me a decent amount of live rock, I am also going to be getting some dry rock from either reefcleaners or BRS to complete the scape, my concern is am I going to be able to run into problems transferring everything with a cycle? I plan on using Microbacter7 and Dr Tims and possibly Fritz turbo start. I am transferring over mostly LPS and Softies with only a few sps, a couple RBTA, 2 clowns, 6 line wrasse, and a fire shrimp. Id like to transfer everything as fast as possible because I don't have room for my other tank to keep running unfortunately for more than a few days, a small 10 gallon holding tank was always a thought but id rather transfer as soon as a I can. thanks in advance



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marrone

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You're going from a 25gal tank to a 100gal tanks, which is a big jump. You're most likely going to have a cycle, or at least a spike. Now depending on how much LR you're going to add, and if the LR has already been cycled, will depend on how big of a cycle of spike you're going to have, which will have an impact on when you should add you livestock. You don't want to add any livestock until you have no ammonia and nitrite in the tank, which at that point it will be cycled.



Unless the LR from your current tank has a lot of bad things on it, like aptasia or cyano, you're better off using some of it in the new tank too. All of the additional bacteria will help, but you still need to make sure that you have no ammonia and nitrite before you start to add livestock. As for the dry rock, you really need to cycle that in a bucket outside of the tank.
 

azitaglio

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I?m not using any of the rock from the 25g or any water. The live rock I?m getting has been in a 340g tank system for over a year and is pest free I?m going to transfer it in saltwater to my tank and put it in my freshly made 100g of saltwater I plan on using about 40-50 pounds of that rock then about 40 pounds of dry rock. If I put that in the tank with some bottled bacteria for about 5 days I think I should be alright


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marrone

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The dry rock needs to be cycled, and it's best to do that outside the tank is a bucket, especially if you plan on adding things right away, or in a short time after. Also the dry rock has phosphates that you don't want to put in your tank, so it's best to cycle that outside the tank.



As for the 40-50lbs of LR coming from someone tank, depending what is on it you may have some die off, which will cause a cycle or a spike, also 40-50lbs is probably on the light side for that size tank, I would think 70-80 cycled LR would be better to start with. Once again you need to check your levels after adding the cycled LR, and only once your ammonia and nitrites are zero should you then add you livestock.
 
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azitaglio

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The rock from reefcleaners states they are phosphate free and have been treated for it I?ve read multiple threads on reefcentral with good reviews on the rock I?m going to have about 80-95 lbs of rock in my tank in all. I?m hoping to get lucky and find someone on a thread locally for some rock. I?m going to have to see how many pounds of live rock I can get from the supplier I?m getting from. The reefcleaners rock I plan on rinsing with rodi water and putting it in the tank with the live rock with bacteria and see what happens for a week without adding any livestock.


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Spartanwarrior

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be careful with the "live sand" dying off as well. though its bagged in water and claimed to be alive, do they really think we are that dumb that this magical bag allows enough oxygen exchange to keep alive the critters inside? and also, can we trust that bag has been in ideal situations with regards to temp. a few days of cold or extreme heat and that bag is essentially dead.
that being said, i had a lot of luck curing my rock dry live rock outside the tank with pumps and heater. I also got my rock from a reputable source free from pests, but it still had a few months of "dying off" to do. unless this "rock" is previously cured or man-made, there will always be some dieoff.
I also used multiple sources of live bacteria to seed the tank to get a contingent of bacterial strains. i had my tank cycled in less than a week and running for 7 months now without 1 major algae or bacterial bloom. do a fishless cycle with dr tims ammonia. it was easy to keep ammonia levels steady to see the first signs of nitrites and nitrates.
it can be done quickly, just try to limit cutting corners where you can.
 

azitaglio

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I?m going bare bottom so the sand won?t be an issue for me. I don?t see how there can be any die off from his rock if it?s coming from his tank that?s been going for a long time especially since it?s being transferred in salt water. I expect there to me a mini spike or something but don?t think it will be that terrible I?ll be able to keep my old tank going for Atleast a week or two while the new one gets set up shouldn?t be a problem I?m just trying to get some feedback


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marrone

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The rock can have everything from sponge, worms, to algae on it, all of which can die off once taking out of the water or placed into a new setup. Depending on how much is on the rock you could get a small spike to a mini-cycle.

The dry rock needs to cure, which if you're planning on doing about a 60/40 or 50/50 your tank bacteria is not probably going to be handle the load from the dry rock to not have some type of mini-cycle or spike, even with adding all of the bacteria, and it does take time to work. It would be better to cure it outside the tank, in buckets, or slowly add it to the tank, 5 or 10lbs, and let it cure and then add more. As for the dry rock not having phosphate, well I can't speak for Reefcleaners but I know the dry rock that I got from BRS did, not to mention the junk and garbage that came off of it while it was curing in the bucket.
 
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Spartanwarrior

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the longer you can keep your tank up to run alongside the new, the better. there really is no sure bet to how long a cycle will take. it seems like you have a good grasp on what to do. I think both marrone and I are recommending patience and expect the worst pray for the best with your dry and live rock.
 

azitaglio

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If I ran the dry rock in a brute container with saltwater a heater and a pump for a few weeks do I need to do water changes in the brute containers during the process? I?d imagine I?d have to. Would it be a bad idea to put both the live rock from my friends tank and dry rock together in the brute?


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marrone

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No, you don't do a water change until the end, when the cycle is complete. At which point you can then rinse off the rock and move it into your new tank.

I would put the live rock from your friend tank into your new tank, as it should be good enough to support your livestock from your old tank. You may get a small cycle from it, or just a little spike, but it shouldn't really be much, at which point you can move the livestock into it. Let the dry rock cycle in the bucket, and once it's done you can move it into the new tank.
 

azitaglio

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Okay I think I?m going to fill my tank with fresh saltwater and add the live rock from my friends tank let it sit for two days, test, add livestock then add the cured dry rock after a month or so. I plan on ordering it today just checking my options. So I?ll run them in the brute container before my tank even gets here it?s not expected until mid January so I?d only have to run the dry rock for only about 2 more weeks while my tank is running. If you have any recommendations for dry rock online let me know. Or check out reefcleaners rock and tell me what u think. Thanks!


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azitaglio

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I actually pulled the trigger on Marco rocks today i talked to a bunch of ppl so I will be using them as my dry rock to add to the existing live rock I?m getting with the new tank. I?m just going to cure the Marco rock for a lil bit in some containers with saltwater


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