For your aquarium to safely be able to house inverts, fish and coral it must be cycled.
Cycling is the process of establishing the bacteria that quickly breaks down fish waste and food into a less harmful matter
FISH WASTE AND FOOD TURN TO AMMONIA
Fish food and waste breaks down into ammonia which is very toxic to live animals
BACTERIA TAKES AMMONIA TO NITRITE
Specialized bacteria break down the ammonia turning it into nitrite which is less toxic than ammonia
BACTERIA TAKES NITRITE TO NITRATE – REMOVED BY WATER CHANGES
Another strain of bacteria breaks down nitrite to nitrate which is nontoxic except at high levels. Nitrate is then removed through water changes
BACTERIA MUST GROW IN A NEW AQUARIUM TO HIGH ENOUGH LEVEL
During the cycle the bacteria that breaks down ammonia and nitrite must grow to a high enough population where ammonia is broken down all the way to nitrate quickly
LIVE SAND/LIFE ROCK BENEFITS
Adding CaribSea live sand and life rock introduces beneficial bacteria into the system right away.
LIQUID BACTERIA
We are also adding a liquid bacteria supplement to speed up the cycle process.
NEED A WASTE SOURCE
For any cycle to start you must have a waste product to break down into ammonia.
FISHLESS CYCLE AND WHY
We utilize a fishless cycle so that no live animals are harmed or stressed. In a fishless cycle you use fish food as the waste product instead of live fish. Feed your aquarium every day or two a small amount of food
TESTING WATER
During your cycle you will need to test your water every few days to monitor ammonia, nitrite and nitrate levels
DESIRED RESULTS
Before adding any livestock to your aquarium ammonia and nitrite levels must be at 0 and nitrate should be under 20
HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE?
The length of the aquarium cycle process will depend on how much beneficial bacteria you already have established in the aquarium.
CONTINUE TO ADD BACTERIA/NO LIGHTS
During the cycle continue to add bacteria to the system. It is not necessary or recommended to have your light on more than an hour or two a day while cycling.
