Nitrite Spike Post-Cycle?!

[kennykimny]

I recently finished my nitrogen cycle in my 29 gallon FOWLR tank. The following readings were stable by the end of the cycle:

Temp: 79.5 degrees
pH: 8.1
Nitrite: 0
Ammonia: 0
Nitrate: 15 ppm

I have about 8 pounds of live rock, 4 pounds of dead rock, 2 clowns, 3 green chromis, and 1 blue damsel in the tank. The tank was stable.

Then, I added my clean up crew a few days ago: 2 peppermint shrimp, 1 emerald crab, 5 hermit crabs, and a dozen snails. I did a 25% water change yesterday. I did a reading today, with the following results:

Temp: 80.2 degrees (intentionally raised)
pH: 8.1
Nitrite: 0.75
Ammonia: 0
Nitrate: 15 ppm

What gives? I don't understand how Nitrite spiked, when ammonia was still at zero. Any help is much appreciated!

Also:

I have a question about doing water changes. I would like to age my water one full day before introducing it to the tank, but how do I get the temperature (which would most like be at a cool 66-68 degrees since I keep it cool in my room) back up to 80 degrees? I do not have an extra heater...

Thanks again!

[JWarren]

You have a new tank and the large water change more than likely effected you equalibrium a bit. Your nitrite is not real bad and should come back in line over the next few days. Just keep your eye on it and give it some time. Nitrite is the second phase of the cycle that never stops. Just so long as the ammonia dose not become detectable you are still good. Time will allow your good bacteria, that consumes the ammonia, to catch up. I would not change out so much water on a new tank, 10% at a time; 25% at a time is too much for a small tank that is new. IMO

RE: Also

Gonna be hard to heat up the water with out a heater. You could try taking some of the water and heating it up on the stove the adding it back into the rest till you get it there or better would be to use a plastic bowl and use a microwave. Just a thought.

If did decide to go this route you would want to get a new pot and dedicate it to your water changes and never let soap come into contact with it.

Welcome to RS, by the way. Keep posting! Theres always people here with great ideas to help you out!

[Witfull]

the tank is playing catch up to the added bioload. the ammo was quickly converted but the nitrite takes a tad longer for the bacteria to multiply. test again in the morning.

also,,,why did you raise the temp? higher temps decrease 02 levels.

[DaveK]

Originally Posted by kennykimny

...
I have about 8 pounds of live rock, 4 pounds of dead rock, 2 clowns, 3 green chromis, and 1 blue damsel in the tank. The tank was stable.

Then, I added my clean up crew a few days ago: 2 peppermint shrimp, 1 emerald crab, 5 hermit crabs, and a dozen snails. ...

You have a couple of basic problems here.

First, the amount of live rock plus dead rock is way too low. It's only 12 pounds. You should be in the range of 30 to 45 pounds of rock. You need about 20 - 30 pounds more.

Second, even before you added the clean up crew your tank was way over crowded. That 29 gal tank holds only about 20 gal or so of water, once you get the live rock up to where it should be. You have 6 fish, and typically you want about 5 gal of water per inch of fish.

So you have the tank beyond it's limit, just from the fish. Adding the cleanup crew puts even more stress on the system.

Your choices come down to getting a larger tank, or removing some of the livestock.

[Varga]

i have the same fish as you and you would not believe the things i have put them through! they are true survivors. I'd say just give it time and everything will survive.

[goldenmean]

I am afraid that I agree with Dave K.
You dont have enough LR plus you have too many fish for such a new tank.
Buy another heater for you new salt water. You should also have a power head in the new water container to keep it mixed and aerated.

Good Luck and Welcome to RS!!

[BigAl07]

Hello and Welcome to the Reef kennykimny You've come to a GREAT place to hang out and learn

Unfortunately you've already created some "issues" for yourself.

#1 Slow down buddy Reefing is about taking it easy and letting the tank mature and develop. You can't (well you can but you'll regret it) rush the REEF! The more you rush the HARDER you crash. Crash = lost $$ and heart ache and usually the death of MANY if not ALL of your critters. Everyone (including you and your wallet) will benefit from some patience and self control. I'm speaking from experience here... Been there done that and HAVE the T-shirt to prove it.

#2 You do have a LOT of Bio-Load there for that size tank. Honestly you're setting yourself up for disaster in a big way. Later on, once your tank is mature and you have an intimate understanding of the Nitrogen Cycle and how everything inter-acts with it you can slowly increase your bio-load but for now you need a LOT less fish.

#3 With all due respect, Varga that is VERY bad advice. We're morally responsible to give these animals as good or BETTER homes than they would have IN the ocean. If we can't do that then we need to LEAVE them in the ocean. It's a HUGE responsibility and by saying,

you would not believe the things i have put them through! they are true survivors. I'd say just give it time and everything will survive.

hit a sore spot with me. Sorry but that's not "Cool" by any means!!! We don't want mere "Surviving" we want THRIVING and HEALTHY tanks. Sorry if this offends you but I call it like I see it.

#4 You actually did GOOD by adding your CUC (No offense to you Dave) because they actually do as much (or MORE) good for your bio-filtration system as they do bad. They are eating waste and other things that would otherwise be just sitting on the bottom decaying. Yes they do "give off" waste as well but they do "Use" some portion of what they take in. When I factor Bio-Load I don't take into account any of the clean-up crew BUT you can go over board to where they starve and then they pollute the tank.

#5 You need to go get a cheap heater for your newly mixed water. They are so cheap you should be able to get one locally for less than $10. Until then I have had to bring "New water" up to temp in a jug in the sink. I fill the jug with mixed water and then place it into a sink of HOT water. Occasionally stir/aggitate the water to make sure it's the right temp through and through. This is NOT a preferred way but it can be done like this. Get another heater. Heck if you lived closer I'd loan you one (or two). You need an extra one anyway in case your main on dies.

Well now that I've talked (typed) your head off, insulted Varga and Dave I hope that this helps you some. I'm not trying to be mean but trying to help you get on the right track. The more you know early on the better off you and EVERY thing involved will be.

Good luck and above all HAPPY Reefing

[JT101]

Hi Al,

I want to say first off that I agree with ALMOST everything you wrote.

Except the part where you said that "We're morally responsible to give these animals as good or BETTER homes than they would have IN the ocean".

You KNOW that this is impossible to do in ANY size reef tank, unless your tank is the size of a real coral reef.

I need to stress that NONE of us should EVER try to delude ourselves into thinking that we are making "good homes" for our reef inhabitants. NOTHING could be farther from the truth. The ONLY "good" home for a reef critter is back in the ocean - in the reef.

Do you really think that a fish that is "supposed" to be in a tank no smaller than, say, 30 gallons is "happier" in a 100 gallon tanK? I highly doubt that. It's not like the fish would say "Oh, this 30 gallon tank is WAY too small for me" and then when you put it in a 100 gallon tank it's going to think "Ahh, this is MUCH better, I'm happy now". Now way. Unless that tank is a million gallons it's not going to be happy.

So, again, I have always liked your advice and I strongly respect you, but I don't appreciate seeing someone deluding themselves into thinking that ANYTHING we do for our reef inhabitants even comes CLOSE to approximating the conditions of the open sea.

We can only do the best we can within our budgets.

[BigAl07]

Point well taken JT but I don't wholly agree. In my reef tank they are fed VERY steadily and want for nothing. They are fairly predator free and able to live in a high degree of peace by design. Now I agree they don't have FREE range of millions of gallons but they do have GREAT conditions. I'm the first to admit I have "delusional tendencies" but not in that area but I do think that on many levels my critters are fairing BETTER than they would be in the wild.

I appreciate your kind words and value your opinion and ideas.

I'll respectfully agree to disagree with you

[JT101]

Originally Posted by BigAl07

Point well taken JT but I don't wholly agree. In my reef tank they are fed VERY steadily and want for nothing. They are fairly predator free and able to live in a high degree of peace by design. Now I agree they don't have FREE range of millions of gallons but they do have GREAT conditions. I'm the first to admit I have "delusional tendencies" but not in that area but I do think that on many levels my critters are fairing BETTER than they would be in the wild.

I appreciate your kind words and value your opinion and ideas.

I'll respectfully agree to disagree with you

I admit that your critters are being fed very well and are being kept from becoming something else's meal. But you cannot argue that they are "better off' in your tank based solely on these criteria alone.

Are all of your water parameters ALWAYS absolutely perfect 24/7? If they are then I salute you my friend! However, if they aren't then right away there you have a situation where your fish and inverts are being exposed to unnaturally high levels of toxins that they would never experience in the wild.

Don't diminish the importance of the ability to roam. Think about it. A fish in a 30 gallon tank has about 20" or so of lateral swim room. In a much larger 90 gallon tank that increases a few times, but it's still a FAR cry from a real reef.

Sorry Al, I still disagree but I also admit that I'm not going to stop reefing just out of guilt (LOL)!

[JWarren]

OK, now I feel guilty! Thanks guys!

Where is the debate thread?