waiting....
- Thread starter Flowerkid
- Start date
Flowerkid, please read this link.
I know very little about salt water, but based on your question, I would guess that you haven't done much, if any, research into keeping a salt water aquarium. Before the salties jump all over you for asking this question, please read all the stickies in the salt water forum. They should help you get started. Then if you have questions, post them.
To answer your question though (the link I have above should answer it in more detail), water parameters will not go down on their own. In salt water aquariums, live rock is the main biological filter. You need to put live rock in your tank to start the cycle, which will help to reduce the amount of ammonia and such in your tank.
I know very little about salt water, but based on your question, I would guess that you haven't done much, if any, research into keeping a salt water aquarium. Before the salties jump all over you for asking this question, please read all the stickies in the salt water forum. They should help you get started. Then if you have questions, post them.
To answer your question though (the link I have above should answer it in more detail), water parameters will not go down on their own. In salt water aquariums, live rock is the main biological filter. You need to put live rock in your tank to start the cycle, which will help to reduce the amount of ammonia and such in your tank.
as Mainer said you add the lr to start the cycle and then the params will go down. However before you add anything to the tank I suggest you read through the stickies and the saltwater forums to gather the neccessary information.
Patience is not an object you cant possess in the world of saltwater if you want a successful tank. If you do your research now you will be rewarded down the road.
Patience is not an object you cant possess in the world of saltwater if you want a successful tank. If you do your research now you will be rewarded down the road.
If all you did was put water into the tank and there is nothing else in there, I'm not sure why you are reading levels of ammonia or nitrite. It's possible there is a little nitrate in your water though.
You can always do water changes to lower the levels of your parameters if you really wanted too. However, that isn't necessary.
You might as well put the live rock in, and then worry about lowering the parameters in a few weeks when water changes become necessary. Totally up to you though.
You can always do water changes to lower the levels of your parameters if you really wanted too. However, that isn't necessary.
You might as well put the live rock in, and then worry about lowering the parameters in a few weeks when water changes become necessary. Totally up to you though.
Lets think for a second. As a note your alk should not ever go anywhere near zero. It needs to stay in the range 8 - 10, though often in newly mixed up saltwater it can be higher. Don't worry, it will drop with time (weeks, months) worry about it being low, not high.
I am not worried about nitrate unless it is very high, 50 or more. I am not especially worried about nitrite either as it's not actually toxic in salt water till it hits crazy levels (200 +, before that it's bound by a chlorine ion), but I don't like it that there's ammonia in the water. How much is it testing as , trace, or lots. Ammonia test kits are not especially accurate (and not nearly as accurate enough to say today .5 ,yesterday it was 1), so use it as a yes/no or no/little/lots test kit. I would bear in mind that when you mix fresh saltwater up it will often test positive for ammonia (a good reason not to use freshly mixed water).
If I was you, and had a tank, with saltwater standing there, with mixed up water and a mysterious ammonia reading I would take out 10 ml of that water and get a shop to retest it. I would also, assuming there are few bacteria in the tank, buy myself a piece of live rock in the one or two pounds range , and stick it in, using at as a source of many bacteria. If there really is ammonia , they will start to process it, if there isn't, no big deal. Then in a few days,, 3 or 4, get a couple of hermit crabs and see what happens.
I am not worried about nitrate unless it is very high, 50 or more. I am not especially worried about nitrite either as it's not actually toxic in salt water till it hits crazy levels (200 +, before that it's bound by a chlorine ion), but I don't like it that there's ammonia in the water. How much is it testing as , trace, or lots. Ammonia test kits are not especially accurate (and not nearly as accurate enough to say today .5 ,yesterday it was 1), so use it as a yes/no or no/little/lots test kit. I would bear in mind that when you mix fresh saltwater up it will often test positive for ammonia (a good reason not to use freshly mixed water).
If I was you, and had a tank, with saltwater standing there, with mixed up water and a mysterious ammonia reading I would take out 10 ml of that water and get a shop to retest it. I would also, assuming there are few bacteria in the tank, buy myself a piece of live rock in the one or two pounds range , and stick it in, using at as a source of many bacteria. If there really is ammonia , they will start to process it, if there isn't, no big deal. Then in a few days,, 3 or 4, get a couple of hermit crabs and see what happens.