DWhatley;175196 said:
I would guess that you brought along enough bacteria to handle the ammonia. I love live rock. Having kept (or, more accurately, attempeted) saltwater tanks a couple of times in the 70's I have seen first hand the difference in this technique and the sterile startup environment methods.
I put in the Nitro Bac that Red Sea Provides in their Starter Kit. Plus I put some Tigger pods in there, and Phyto feast daily. The Live rock had the xenia, and the hair algae, and the hair algae has so many amphipods in it its unreal.
I was thinking the Live rock was a big help. I tore down the other 29g and kept the rock going in the basement. Then even pulled the main pieces out of the Other 29.
Do you think there is enough rock in there for her? I still have a lot more. I chose pieces that were HEAVY, yet had hiding holes in them, and made caverns under them to give them a little privacy.
I moved the rock away from the back of the tank though, because I have a Hydor Flo in there to help circulate what is behind the rock. I had a problem with that in the 29g's. The rock was right up against the back, and leftover pieces of shrimp would be behind there rotting, and upping the tank parameters. So I did a 50% for 2 weeks in a row, while moving the rocks forward and centered so I could clean all the way around them.
And then my problem was solved.
This tank is so easy to clean! Reusable sponges, and material.
I re did the post to include a photo of the bottle I used, notice the advantages on the front? Wondering if my Cycled LR, cycling the substrate ahead of time, and this made the ammonia spike not happen? Or happen and be so unnoticeable?