live rock and live sand is very important in the saltwater aquarium.
beneficial bacteria lives on the rock and in the sand.
this is why it is called live.
beneficial bacteria is needed to break down the pollutants in your water.
when you start a new aquarium there are no bacteria present.
you need to allow this bacteria to grow, which is called cycling your aquarium.
it is important to not have any fish in your aquarium while cycling your tank.
you can start the cycle by feeding your
tank with no fish in it.
the food will break down slowly and rot, starting the cycle.
feeding small amounts for a week will start this out.
you can buy bacteria in a bottle from your local fish store.
this will help but sometimes bacteria in the bottle is already dead.
I will add the contents, per the directions, when starting a new tank.
Some people have bought a piece of shrimp at the butcher, placing it in their tank and
allowing it to rot.
Bad people use live fish.
They will purchase cheap fish, put them in the tank, and feed them.
The urine and waste from these fish will start the cycle
of the tank.
Sadly, the ammonia levels in a new tank spike very high, creating very high toxic levels
that will kill the fish.
This is cruel.
You should test your aquarium with an ammonia test kit.
Ammonia will spike very high at the end of the cycle and then plummet to almost zero.
It is at this time when it is safe to add fish.
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