Hi all,

I just started my first 46 gallon tank. I got some 45lbs of Fiji and
Tonga rock from a LFS that seems honest and reasonable priced. The
rock has been cured in their tanks for about 3-4 weeks.

The rocks was transported and put in the new tank within 1 hour. With
sand substrate, 3 air heads and a skimmer going. All parameters seems
to be normal, except I do not see the ANN cycle get started after 2
weeks.

With the RedSea test kit, I consistently measured pH (8.2, Ak at
normal/high. I have Nitrite and Nitrate at 0 since the begining, which
is waht I expected. But the ammonia started at .5 and moving down to
about .1, and there is no nitrite spike so far. The skimmer seems to
be doing a good job of pulling out about 1/4-1/2 cup of junk each day,
and I still have the lights off and no algea in the system. No water
changes yet.

So, am I just truly got a well cured rock and just expect NIH3 to go to
0 and have a stable system? Or is it more likely that my ammonia is
too low to ge the cycle started? Should I turn off the skimmer or
throw a shrimp in the tank?

Thanks for any suggestion.