:confused: can someone explain cycling a tank, what is it, why do people say you have to do it or so long before putting a cuttle or octopus in. SO CONFUSED:confused:

http://fins.actwin.com/mirror/begin-cycling.html

You have to remember that in keeping a saltwater tank, you are attempting to re-create a situation that does not occur in nature...a closed system.
Cycling, the period of time (3-6 months) that it takes for the enclosed container to stabilize the water quality, is the most necessary, and often most overlooked, part of the hobby.
Patience is required to maintain a healthy tank.

does a cycled tank keep cycling even when the cephs are in it. also if ammonia is the ceph waste , than does that mean i don't have to clean the tank every time the cephs go to the bathroom.

No, the tank does not continuosly cycle. Any sort of an ammonia spike means that the filtration is not up to par, and typically results in a dead animal within hours, if not minutes.

thanks, i think i get it, so you only cycle the tank once and that means it begins to act like the real ocean for your animal and then you put the filters and skimmers on, right??

No, unfortunately. And this is where I differ with so many people on the keeping of animals in captivity.

There is absolutely no way to keep the same water parameters as are found in the ocean, in an enclosed tank. No matter what you do, how much you filter, and how many water changes you do per month ( I do two 10% on the tanks per 30 days)...it is still a cesspool compared with the sea.

Make sure you have the financial sources to obtain new saltwater, a series of very good filters and a skimmer running nonstop, and clean them religiously...then, you can at least keep the tank as fresh as a tidepool, though you don't refill it every night !

Also, a tank that is already cycled, if thrown out of whack, can recycle or mini cycle.