Am I cycled? - Aquarium Advice

Majik · 10-08-2007, 05:02 PM

I have been doing a fishless cycle for a little over 5 weeks. At this point it takes around 12 hours for ammonia to drop from around 4-5ppm to 0. And I have no nitrites, down from off the charts last week. This seems to be very good news, except I have only around 10ppm Nitrates. Should I wait a little longer for them to build before I get fish. Also at this point my PH is very high., 8.4 or so. I am going to buy a small piece of driftwood, is there anything else I should do? Thanks for the help.

**Zagz** · 10-08-2007, 09:51 PM

No your cycle is done. Congrats on the cycle. I would do a 50 % water change and add fish. Your ph is high but it is more important to keep it stable. What size tank is it? Driftwood will help depending on the size of the tank and driftwood.

Majik · 10-09-2007, 09:29 AM

It is only a 10 gallon. I was thinking of a smallish piece of driftwood, somewhat to bring the ph down, but also to just add a little hiding place for the panda corys I plan.

Edit, because I cant post again so soon:
Well I retested my PH today, and I must have done something wrong the other day while testing it. It was 6.6 which seems much more normal than 8.4 especially considering I have nothing in the tank except for a few decorations. I added a little piece of driftwood anyway, for decoration. I am going to let the tank sit for a couple of days, just adding ammonia as needed before I do a PWC and add fish.

My LFS said even if I did a fishless cycle I should add fish slowly. What do you think? Add 4-5 zebra danios first? Then the panda corys in a week or so? Does that sound ok?

**Zagz** · 10-09-2007, 11:30 PM

What stocking are you planning on ending up with? A 10 gal will not house many fish. Depending on what you decide you would like to have as a final stocking list, I would offer advice on which way to stock. You do still have to stock slowly as to not get an ammonia increase in the tank.

Majik · 10-11-2007, 01:22 AM

Alright well I seem to have a small issue. I think I have had a small cycle start again. I made a mistake and was adding around the same amount of ammonia once the nitrites started to show up. I read the directions again and see that half the amount is called for. Yesterday morning I added a little more than that accidentally. Now the ammonia is very slow to go down. Since it was so high I did a PWC today to drop it. That put me at around 2ppm, now it is going down past 1ppm 6 hours later. That looks good, the bad news is that now nitrites are back. Did I cause a small nitrite spike by adding too much ammonia? I suppose in a couple of days this should be taken care of if I was truly cycled the first time. I am beginning to have doubts however.

For my stocking list I really like Panda Corys. I also like the zebra danios since they are hardy, and seem to like to swim alot. I dont know how many of each, I was think 4 or 5 danios and 3 corys. Is that too many fish?

10-08-2007, 05:02 PM	#1
Majik Aquarium Advice Apprentice Join Date: Sep 2007 Posts: 13	Am I cycled? I have been doing a fishless cycle for a little over 5 weeks. At this point it takes around 12 hours for ammonia to drop from around 4-5ppm to 0. And I have no nitrites, down from off the charts last week. This seems to be very good news, except I have only around 10ppm Nitrates. Should I wait a little longer for them to build before I get fish. Also at this point my PH is very high., 8.4 or so. I am going to buy a small piece of driftwood, is there anything else I should do? Thanks for the help.

10-08-2007, 09:51 PM	#2
Zagz Aquarium Advice Addict Community Admin Join Date: May 2005 Location: Saskatchewan, Canada Posts: 11,332 Images: 92	No your cycle is done. Congrats on the cycle. I would do a 50 % water change and add fish. Your ph is high but it is more important to keep it stable. What size tank is it? Driftwood will help depending on the size of the tank and driftwood. __________________ ----------- My Profile Page My tank & fish photos. Have you voted for AA today? Like the advice or comments someone gave you? Show your appreciation with the reputation button!

10-09-2007, 11:30 PM	#4
Zagz Aquarium Advice Addict Community Admin Join Date: May 2005 Location: Saskatchewan, Canada Posts: 11,332 Images: 92	What stocking are you planning on ending up with? A 10 gal will not house many fish. Depending on what you decide you would like to have as a final stocking list, I would offer advice on which way to stock. You do still have to stock slowly as to not get an ammonia increase in the tank. __________________ ----------- My Profile Page My tank & fish photos. Have you voted for AA today? Like the advice or comments someone gave you? Show your appreciation with the reputation button!

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10-09-2007, 09:29 AM	#3
Majik Aquarium Advice Apprentice Join Date: Sep 2007 Posts: 13	It is only a 10 gallon. I was thinking of a smallish piece of driftwood, somewhat to bring the ph down, but also to just add a little hiding place for the panda corys I plan. Edit, because I cant post again so soon: Well I retested my PH today, and I must have done something wrong the other day while testing it. It was 6.6 which seems much more normal than 8.4 especially considering I have nothing in the tank except for a few decorations. I added a little piece of driftwood anyway, for decoration. I am going to let the tank sit for a couple of days, just adding ammonia as needed before I do a PWC and add fish. My LFS said even if I did a fishless cycle I should add fish slowly. What do you think? Add 4-5 zebra danios first? Then the panda corys in a week or so? Does that sound ok?

10-11-2007, 01:22 AM	#5
Majik Aquarium Advice Apprentice Join Date: Sep 2007 Posts: 13	Alright well I seem to have a small issue. I think I have had a small cycle start again. I made a mistake and was adding around the same amount of ammonia once the nitrites started to show up. I read the directions again and see that half the amount is called for. Yesterday morning I added a little more than that accidentally. Now the ammonia is very slow to go down. Since it was so high I did a PWC today to drop it. That put me at around 2ppm, now it is going down past 1ppm 6 hours later. That looks good, the bad news is that now nitrites are back. Did I cause a small nitrite spike by adding too much ammonia? I suppose in a couple of days this should be taken care of if I was truly cycled the first time. I am beginning to have doubts however. For my stocking list I really like Panda Corys. I also like the zebra danios since they are hardy, and seem to like to swim alot. I dont know how many of each, I was think 4 or 5 danios and 3 corys. Is that too many fish?