Newbie needs advice

[gregmayberry]

I have a 75 gallon tank that is cycled and housing a small clean up crew of blue leg hermits, nassarius snails, turbo snails, Thisbe & tigger copepods, amphipods, and a tiger conch. I also have 4 GSP frags.
I am wanting to get an octopus (hopefully Bimac) in a couple of months. Should I supplement the bacteria population with Ammonium Chloride until then, to keep the bacteria level high enough to be ready for the jump in ammonia from a ceph?
Thank you for your time and assistance!!!

 

[Tomh]

Hi Greg, if your cleanup crew is surviving then your tank has cycled and is ready. They are good indicators almost better than fish. Thanks

 

[gregmayberry]

Thank you, Tomh!
I didn’t know if the tank was cycled for the specific bio load currently in the tank. The addition of a ceph would present a significant increase in waste. I wasn’t sure if the tank could handle that much waste, without spiking dangerously high.

 

[Tomh]

They sell bottled bacteria also. That works. I believe Ocean Nutrition. How long is tank running? If tank wasn’t cycled ammonia would kill invertebrates like you have.

 

[gregmayberry]

It’s been running for 12 weeks. Started with sterile (not live) aragonite sand and dry rock. Cycling was done using ammonium chloride and bottled live bacteria. For the past 6 weeks, perimeters have been:
SG 1.024, pH 8.3, dKH 8 - 9, ammonia 0.01 - 0, nitrite 0, nitrate <0.5, calcium ~ 360. I do 15-20% water changes q 2 weeks.
I “feed” the tank’s inhabitants 25 - 30 ml of phytoplankton every 2-3 days. If cephalopods had the same requirements as my amphipods, I’d have NO questions!!!

 

[Tomh]

12 weeks with the protocol you’ve been following is enough to cycle the tank. Once you have bacteria it’s living and you’ve been feeding it. If it wasn’t you would have ammonia. That’s the main test when cycling an aquarium. Thanks

 

[wise_s]

It’s been running for 12 weeks. Started with sterile (not live) aragonite sand and dry rock. Cycling was done using ammonium chloride and bottled live bacteria. For the past 6 weeks, perimeters have been:
SG 1.024, pH 8.3, dKH 8 - 9, ammonia 0.01 - 0, nitrite 0, nitrate <0.5, calcium ~ 360. I do 15-20% water changes q 2 weeks.
I “feed” the tank’s inhabitants 25 - 30 ml of phytoplankton every 2-3 days. If cephalopods had the same requirements as my amphipods, I’d have NO questions!!!

You didn't describe your mechanical filtration but assuming you've set it up similar to a heavy load reef tank, it should be able to handle the increase in bioload. As a complement to the filters, the water of your 75 gallon aquarium (and any additional sump volume) should dilute the waste of a small octopus sufficiently for the bacteria to catch up. If you're still concerned, dose the bottled bacteria shortly (days or a week ) before you introduce your octopus. I would also quit dosing ammonium chloride a couple weeks beforehand.