ammonia for cycling?

[eco23]

If you mean "Surfactants are compounds that lower the surface tension of a liquid" then what is there to hurt I used ammonia with that in it...

I believe there are different types of surfactants. The rule of thumb should be to never use an ammonia source with any ingredients other than ammo and water. I can't begin to tell you how many people here on this site have had a cycle not begin, and we discovered the cause was surfactants in their ammo. I'm sure some types wouldn't impede a cycle too badly, but I'd always suggest avoiding any ammonia that contains any additives.

Welcome to AA btw!

 

[bibeau689]

Thanks, well im still cycling my tank with it cause I had some of that ammonia already, there is an ace hardware like 30 seconds away from me you think I need to do a full water change or?

 

[eco23]

Thanks, well im still cycling my tank with it cause I had some of that ammonia already, there is an ace hardware like 30 seconds away from me you think I need to do a full water change or?

How long have you been cycling? Are you seeing any ammonia drop or any level of nitrItes showing up yet?

 

[bibeau689]

I just started today :/ and from what i understood any ammonia that you can shake the bottle and it does not bubble or foam its ok?

 

[eco23]

I just started today :/ and from what i understood any ammonia that you can shake the bottle and it does not bubble or foam its ok?

Man, if only you'd found this site and guide a day earlier, lol. Unfortunately it's a bit more complicated than just the shake and see if it foams test. That's normally if the ammo doesn't list ingredients and just says pure or clear...it's a test kind of backup just to make sure it's not full of soap.

Since you already dosed it up, you may as well see what happens. You just need to stay on top of it, and if the ammo hasn't budged and nitrItes haven't showed up in a couple weeks...you'll know you added some bad stuff. Unfortunately, that involves not only draining the tank but thoroughly rinsing everything in it. Bad news.

If you have an Ace near you, I'd switch to the good stuff, but you're still not gonna know if you need it until you see ammo levels dropping or not. I'd go ahead and pick it up though since it's cheap, and even if the stuff you've got now is working, it's still better to switch to what's tried and true.

 

[bibeau689]

well I cleaned out all the water and rinsed the ornaments I had and put fresh water and conditioner in the water and then i added some of the ammonia from ace hardware i just gotta run and get one of those test kits, this weekend, all i have are those crappy ammonia test strips right now

 

[eco23]

well I cleaned out all the water and rinsed the ornaments I had and put fresh water and conditioner in the water and then i added some of the ammonia from ace hardware i just gotta run and get one of those test kits, this weekend, all i have are those crappy ammonia test strips right now

Wow..way to go the extra mile, lol. Ideally you'd want to rinse the tank itself and all the substrate...but I think you're fine. even if the ammo wasn't ideal, I don't think it was in there long enough to mess anything up.

That's awesome you're so committed to this. We'll all help however we can along the way. Feel free to post any comments or questions on the guide thread in my signature, or PM me if you come across anything not covered in the guide. Good luck!

 

[patola_l]

Hey if you are still looking for ammonia i would try the groceries store cleaning isle.... i got mine at a Safeway for 3 bucks...definitely worth a try next time you pass a grocery store