Ribbies Nano Reef Adventure!: My oh my do I neglect this blog....

So not like anyone even looks at this thing but hey. I've been quite productive over the past 2 months. The tank was officially "born" 6 days ago now on May 26th 2009. I ended up purchasing live rock locally at a place called The Fish Gallery. I've been visiting a couple of the shops in town and I've found a couple of good spots to purchase a clean up crew.

The live rock was $12/lb and I got roughly 18lbs. I had been calling around every couple of weeks asking about live rock and I think they were getting a bit pissed off. But, the Winnipeger in me HAD to seek a deal. No tax. Reluctantly the owner said fine provided I was paying cash (duh). Ended up saving me $30 which was good for me.

Anyways, here's a couple of pictures from the last couple days:

http://i42.tinypic.com/v8ppw5.jpg

So right now I'm testing semi daily for a couple of chemicals. My tank is undergoing what is called a "Cycle" which is short for Nitrogen Cycle. Here's a quick diagram of how it works:

http://i41.tinypic.com/2zyle1j.jpg

http://i42.tinypic.com/210ad5z.gif

I'm currently in the start of the cycle, testing for Ammonia and Nitrite. I just tested 8.0 ppm (HIGH) for Ammonia and 0.0 ppm for Nitrite. I will begin testing for Nitrate shortly after the Ammonia zeros out.

The next step, as I mentioned earlier, is buying a clean up crew. I am currently researching different species of snails and crabs. Possibly a shrimp but we'll see.

So sorry for the lack of updates but now the ball is rolling so enjoy!