Ugh, this is getting stupid

I have a 55 gallon tank, AC 110, 2 maxi jet 1200 power heads, and an unknown skimmer.

There is about 60-70lbs of live rock, and about 60lbs of substrate. All of that was about 3 or 4 years old when I got the tank, and I set it up same day and made sure that all the bio was left in the salt water it had been in while I was transporting it. I cant imagine there was a lot of die off during transport and setup.

There are two clowns, scarlet cleaner shrimp, and two peppermint shrimp.

My ammonia is .5 ppm, pH is 8.8, and nitrates/nitrites are near zero. I am using API salt test kit.

Why am I going through another cycle with well established media? I didnt just dump the inhabitants in all at once, so im not sure wth is going on.

sprayin70;4298707; said:

How old is they setup now? Most liverock will experience some die off when the rock is removed from the old tank and transported to the new. That die off is sponges and various inverts which results in an ammonia spike. Sometimes these can last for months. I would suggest doing weekly water changes and adding live bacteria from a LFS. It may take a few months but be patient and things will even out for you. Most importantly don't add any new fish, corals, etc until the cycle is over.

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The setup is about 4 weeks old now, and I have been doing weekly water changes just to try and counter the ammonia. I dont plan on adding anything for a bit anyways. I hope this crap levels out soon.