hi do not rush your tanks cycling time.i have a 12 gal nano that i started 3 months ago. i did not cycle my tank with dead fish or shrimp.i had life in my tank within the first 2 weeks,begining with isopods,some hard shell snails,stomatella snails,white flatworms,bristleworms and possible other small creatures.i first added some mushroom polyps,then a zoanthid and a xenia.i lost the xenia(only after i put an additive in to help my soft coral growth) be careful about using additves not to much at one time small amounts only.i have added a pipe organ coral,a small blastomussa wellsi,frogspawn coral,yellow polyps,a colony of green star polyps,a small ricordia,2 banded trochus snails,a drawf flame angel fish and an emerald crab.all seem to be doing well and yes i do have some algae.my salinity is 1.024 temp 77-79%.i change 2 gal of water per week using ro water and salt mix.my only filtration besides live rock and live sand is a small sponge filter in my sump.i have added polyfilter brand filter material to my sump also to help remove more waste products.check out some pics of my setup on this site.i also have pineapple sponges and some others i cannot identify.the pineapple sponges emerged from the rock i first placed in my tank and i almost lost them the same time i lost my xenia,the sponges are back and doing well.be careful with additives and supplements one safe bet is dt,s phytoplankton premium reef blend to feed your inhabitants.good luck
