Is my fish tank ready?

Hello
I bought a used 70g fish tank with a canister filter, heater and powerhead that was used for freshwater on March 11. Protein skimmer on March 13 I then bought 30lbs of live rock, cured on March 15. The bacteria in the canister filter from the freshwater tank should of started the cycle I think. Right now my tank specs are ph 8.4, gravity 1.021, nitrates 1.0, nitrites 2.0 and ammonia 0.5. Should I be ready to add fish real soon? Also, should I leave my protein skimmer on during the cycle? I used API Master test kit if that makes any difference. Thanks for the help.

 

I suggest to cycle your tank a little longer, until ammonia and nitrite are really close to zero.

 

no you are not ready for fish, and no the freshwater filters will not supply the bacteria for saltwater. you should have the tank up and running with the live rock and skimmer on. the live rock will experience a little bit of dieoff from the move and it will slowly cycle your tank. let everything run for a few weeks then check your levels. SLOWLY add fish. start with something hardy like a clown, damsel or firegoby. if it does ok in the tank for a week or so then add one more fish. success comes when you take your time and do not stress your tank by sudden changes. i have not lost one fish.

 

Good advice. It sounds like you want to rush into getting fish and adding livestock. Don't, you need patience. If you rush into things, you will only meet further hardships and frustration and will not be happy with your tank. Judging by your parameters, your tank is on its way to be cycled, but it's definitely not finished yet. Give it time and use your test kits to tell when it is finished. As stated, add 1, I repeat 1 fish, to see how things go. Adding more will restart the cycle and you will risk killing the fish you have and any other livestock in the tank. Good luck with it.

 

also since it was used for freshwater . were there any medications, mainly copper based that were used. and how well did you scrub down the tank before putting your salt water in. just another angle that i didnt see mentioned. but the above advice is very good too.

guy

 

typical cycle takes a month. just by looking at your params you are not ready for fish. NH3 is still too high. it really needs to be at 0. any detectable amounts of NH3 would be about as comfortable for fish as it would be for humans sitting in a phone booth with multiple cigarets lit.
your sg is also a little low aim for 1.024. it does not sound like much but it IS.

your filter setup sounds good tho. skimmer and canister should do a good job. yes they should both be running during cycle IMO&E.

"Go slow, let it grow" is the name of the game. every time you add a fish or any living thing to your tank you create a mini cycle. sometimes it can be ok sometimes not.
GL! and keep asking questions. also pick of some SW aquarium books. will go along way

 

Here's a good article for those new to the hobby...

Common Saltwater Aquarium Mistakes - Most Common Saltwater Aquarium Mistakes

Cheers, and good luck!

 

No meds were used. I took out all the freshwater plants, etc. Cleaned it with a scrubber. No soap or chemicals. Just some RO water. Also, do you guys recommend leaving the lights on 24/7?


That is my ammonia today look like light yellow pee.

 

It depends on type of lighting I suspect. Anyone correct me if I'm wrong - If you'll have only fish then less lighting is required than with a reef tank that has corals and such. 10 to 12 hours on is what I would say. The ammonia level seems to read 0 ppm, but there are other things you should measure such as nitrite, nitrate, pH, specific gravity, kH, etc. I've found lots of good information here at 3reef on this subject, but I'm sure there are lots of good people that are eager and willing to answer your questions.

 

do you use a tap water conditioner like Prime by Seachem? I have trouble with accurate Ammonia tests and blame it on that.