How high?

[Junebug]

My FW tank has been set up for 5 days now and I have done 3 50% PWCs so far. Because I have 6 fish in my 29 gal tank I have been doing the PWC when the ammonia gets close to .25 PPM. My question is, should I let the ammonia grow higher to attract the bacteria? I want the cycle to complete, but I do not want to harm my fish. How high should I let the ammonia grow?

Thanks!!!

 

[mfdrookie516]

I wouldn't let it get above .25. Even that is toxic. That's the down side to cycling with fish. It takes a lot longer to cycle, and is really bad for the fish too.

 

[Junebug]

Will .25 PPM of ammonia attract the proper bacteria?

 

[ejaramillo01]

No more than 0.25 ppm

Your priority should be the health of your fish, and not to complete the cycle, be patience, because will take you a while to cycle, but keep low ammonia levels is first.

Yes it will growth the bacteria but It will take time

 

[Junebug]

The health of my fish is my priority...I made the rookie mistake of getting the fish before I knew what I was doing. I am trying to find the best ammonia level to allow my fish to remain healthy while causing the cycle to complete at the same time...I am committed and willing to do as many PWCs as needed.

 

[OhNeil1969]

Will .25 PPM of ammonia attract the proper bacteria?

It will attract the necessary bacteria but it will take longer and will require more water changes on your part. Once it hits 0.25 ppm of ammonia perform your water change and start watching for nitrItes. When they appear you want to make sure they don't climb higher than 0.25 ppm either. After that you will keep performing water changes until you start to see nitrAtes. At that point you can considered your tank cycled. The only other thing I would recommend is that you test the water you're using for water changes. Some water has ammonia, nitrItes and nitrAtes from the tap (nitrItes seems to be rare though). Knowing the nitrAte level of your source water will help you determine if your tank is cycled. In other words, if your tap water has 5 ppm nitrAtes out of the tap you'll know to look for a reading higher than that for a cycled tank.

 

[ejaramillo01]

I understand Junebug, You did mentioned since your first post, I was just trying to tell you to be patience.

Good luck and don't get desperate, your tank will cycle sooner or later.

 

[Junebug]

Thanks for all the help! You guys are great!!