carey
Aquarium Advice Addict
Good luck! Fingers crossed you get this straightened out without losing any of your livestock.
Well, she doesn't have enough bb but that rock slowly leached enough organics to allow cyano to grow. If that's the case, this is a tank cycle and ammonia is expected. Purigen is good for nitrates and silica. The Chemipure absorbs some toxins and phosphates. You need a ammonia reducer. Suggestions?
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The bb is responsible for consuming ammonia. When cycling we know that we have generated enough bb when ammonia starts to decline until it is completely gone. When you have less bb then you are barely completing the cycle so ammonia still exists. We are both talking of the same thing but with different explanation. The same applies to nitrite. Another kind of bb consumes it and the increase of nitrate tells you that they are doing their job.
Covering the cured substrate with new dry sand made it totally ineffective temporarily until the new sand is cured. You also have disturbed the old sand and that's what's causing your ammonia and nitrite.