After cycling, add more rocks?

Timanator · 12-21-2006, 10:31 PM

I added a few pieces supposedly cured rocks to my fuge, and now my Nitrate shot up to 40 after 2 days!! And the purple algae is back.

What can I do?

***Rob*** · 12-21-2006, 10:58 PM

sounds like it wasnt really cured..
was it out of an established tank? or from your LFS?

lcstorc · 12-21-2006, 11:28 PM

Water Change. Water Change. Water Change.
Sounds like it was not fully cured.

Timanator · 12-22-2006, 12:37 AM

Water change done. It was from a local guy that said it came out of his tank, and he even brought it to me submerged in the water from his tank...

gwen_o_lyn · 12-23-2006, 01:32 AM

Hold off for awhile before you stock your tank. I'm assuming this is a new setup ??

Timanator · 12-23-2006, 11:03 AM

Yep, this tank is about a month old. Everything was pretty much at zero when I added a few more rocks thats supposed to be ready out of another tank thats a year old. All rocks were brought home submerged in water from that tank, and dropped in to the refugium. And thats where the rocks are staying at now.

The Nitrates seems to be subsiding, it's now below 20.

***Rob*** · 12-28-2006, 08:38 PM

yeah, not much more you can do at this point except wait...
as long as your tank is not stocked your fine, just let the tank cycle do its magic, it will get that rock cleaned up in a few weeks..

i would not recommend stocking your tank till you have at least a couple weeks of stable levels in there..

Victoria · 12-28-2006, 08:51 PM

Aged rocks from the other tank could of had sponges on the underside of them. When they are removed and exposed to air the begin to die. I would look at the underside of the rock and brush off any dying sponges. Sometime you can place rocks on the wrong side too. Things that were shaded are now exposed to too much light and begin to die. This could be the source of the rise. As stated above water changes are the best course of action.

Timanator · 12-28-2006, 09:02 PM

Whatever is on those rocks are still alive it would seem.

The Nitrate is back down to below 20 ppm, and the tank is doing great with some of the new Zoas my friend hooked me up with. I'll post some pics of the red worm things that lives in tubes on those rocks later.