Cycling Marco Rock

[Omar]

Sup folks....I picked up about 70 lbs of marco rock from the swap and was looking to start the cycle. How big of a spike do i need? What should i use..shrimp or squid? How much? ...whats the best way to sell this to my GF considering her sense of smell is second to none? lol...

Moreover, I also bought 40lbs of sand from marco prior to the swap...I cycled with a skimmer (euro reef)...I let the sand cycle on its own with no addition of any shrimp or squid...it was creamy.frothy for about 2 weeks with high Nitrates...now its clear with low...should I be more concerned with cycling the rock hard or does the sand need a high spike? Thanks in advance for any input.
-OB

set up is 50 gallon cad lights cube with 30g Custom king Sump...

 

[chinatown]

I would dump the rocks in the tank with the sand and throw 1 shrimp in there to get the cycle going. however long it'll take is anyones guess since its different for each tank. it won't smell much. not that i remembered anyway.

 

[ereefer]

IMO if you are going to run any kind of strong current for SPS, get rid of the sand now, it's nothing but a headache. I had nothing but a constant sand storm till I removed all of it and went with a more course sand. I have a 75gal with only a MP40 and return pump running.

 

[James]

I could be mistaken but I think marco rock sand is a bit coarse, my only time experiencing sandstorms was with very fine sand. Regardless, I prefer to have a mix of all types of sand and I don't have a problem with heavy water flow and sandstorms.

 

[JARRETT SHARK]

keep the sand, sand storms only with real thin sand, dont add any shrimp b/c it could take longer and po4 goes to the roof.just buy a small peice of live rock from someones tank and add to your marco rock and wait 4-6 weeks

 

[Alex]

when cycling marco rock be aware that it may leach some phosphates and debris. it is best to soak it several times before placing it in an established system or in its final place of display.

when I cycled marco rock it took about 6 weeks in between RO rinses and final placement.

 

[ereefer]

The sand I was talking about is Marco Sand. The sand they sent me was as fine as baby powder. Actually if anyone wants it I have about 10-15lbs, you can have it, just pay for shipping. It should fit into a USPS med flat rate box.

 

[InfernoST]

I used a shrimp to cycle my 120 and it took 4 1/2 weeks.