Surfzone's 40g

[surfzone]

so i have had this tank in the works for a few weeks not and it is currently cycling. my intent is is set it up as a mixed reef, but with mostly sps. Last week I filled it and got the rock work situated to my liking. now for the ugly. my room mates have two kittens, who jumped into the tank, before the addition of water, and used it as a litter box. so as a result I have extreamly high ammonia levels right off the rip in a "sterile" tank. is this going to make my cycle time last longer than it should, or should i add a bottled bacteria to help with this excess ammonia source?

equipment:
40g breeder
20g sump
sca 303 skimmer
mag 5 return pump
2 tunze nano stream 6015
36 inch nova extreme pro t5 fixture that I have had for years now.

equipment to be added:
ATO
gfo/ carbon reactor

I haven't given my fish list much thought. I know that i want a clown pair with a RBTA, but I'm not too sure on what else i want to put in the tank fish wise. Any tips and suggestions will be noted and considered. i know some people prefer MH with sps corals, or LEDs, but i'm using what i have for right now. the tank will be have zoanthids and LPS until the water is stable enough for sps corals.

 

[surfzone]

now for the things that people like.

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My original post seemed a little rushed, so I also want to give everyone a little background on my saltwater keeping experience. I started keeping saltwater tanks back when i was a Jr. in High School so about 10 years ago. I originally got out of the hobby because I made the decision to join the Air Force. So for the past three years I have been without a tank of any kind. last year upon my return from Korea I got stationed in South Georgia, near the Florida line. Jacksonville , and Tallahassee are both about an hour drive from me. I quickly set up a small 15 gallon planted tank, and now that I am finally in a house that is a little bit more permanent, I get to return to my original love of saltwater fish and coral. I plan to upgrade to LEDs in the future, but i need to figure out what fixture will best suit my needs. I had no idea how much things in this hobby would change in three years. When I got out of it a good LED fixture would cost you a few grand, and now you can pick them up as cheap as $40 for a cheap freshwater plant fixture.

 

[nanoreefing4fun]

Cheers for sharing & welcome back to the game ! Pretty rock & scape !

I would not worry about the high ammonia and don't think it will prolong your cycle, I would consider it a good thing...

Best of luck & thanks for serving !

 

[surfzone]

Its been a little better than a month now and the tank is still showing off the charts in ammonia, nitrites and nitrates have both spiked. I don't know what is causing the high levels to prolong like this. Normally by now I should be in the tail end of the cycle with low to no ammonia lower nitrites and high nitrates. I'm using a run of the mill api test kit, or this could be caused by the cat using the sand as a litter box just before water was added. Any input would be greatly appreciated

 

[Oxylebius]

Doesn't matter the ammonia source. Did you do any rinsing of the sand before adding salt water to the tank. Guess it really is true that that cat urine is horribly concentrated. I'd take a sample of your water to a lfs and have them test it, perhaps your test kit is messed up. Comparing results that the lfs shows will let you know if your test kit is still good. You can always pick up one piece of live rock from the lfs also, to help seed the tank with more bacteria, might help to push the cycle a little more.

 

[surfzone]

Do u think something like Dr.Tim's or brightwell's micro bactor will help with this? I did rince the sand prior to outing in the water, but that seems to not helped at all

 

[surfzone]

Update time. On the 18th of November I did a large water change to bring down the ammonia, and in a day or two after my ammonia level went down to 0. On the 20th of November a gfo/gac reactor was added, and plumed into the return line. Also an ATO system was added on the 20th.
Test results from 20 November
Ammonia. 0ppm
Nitrites. 2.0ppm
Nitrate. 80ppm
Calcium. 415ppm
Alkalinity. 9.5dKH
Magnesium. 1160ppm
Salinity. 1.025

Test results from today
Ammonia. 0ppm
Nitrites. 2.0ppm
Nitrates. 80ppm
Calcium. 440ppm
Alkalinity. 9.5ppm
Magnesium. 1200ppm

Nitrites have been testing at 2ppm since the 10th of November and the same for nitrates.

 

[surfzone]

my tank is finally cycled! as of monday when i did a water test. tuesday i added two ocell clowns and a small montipora cap frag. pics to come soon.