Am I doing Fishless Cycle on 50 Gallon correct?

[mkat]

On December 31 my aquarium was set up with filters running and water heated to 87F. I calculated the dose of ammonia for the strength of ammonia and added 4 PPM. Double checked it one hour later with API Master Kit and it was perfect. I added Tetra AquaSafe Plus. I added 16 drops of PH Down as advised by "Tips and Tricks For Your Fastest Fishless Cycle!" Added a small amount of fish food and seeded the aquarium by taking the sponge out of my AquaClear 20 filter on my 10 gallon tank and squeezing it and swishing it around in the 50 gallon and then putting it in one of the AquaClear 70 filters I have on my 50 gallon.

On January 4 the ammonia was somewhere between 1 PPM and 2 PPM, the Nitrites were 0 PPM and the NitrAtes were 0 PPM

48 hours after that(Today), the ammonia remains the same(somewhere between 1 PPM and 2 PPM, the Nitrites remain at 0 PPM but the NitrAtes are somewhere between 0 PPM and 5.0 PPM...leaning closer to the 5.0 PPM. The PH is about 7.9 which double checking my 10 gallon and my tap water it is the same, 7.9.

The only other thing I have done other that test the water is add approximately and additional 3-4 gallons of conditioned water from a bucket that was lost due to evaporation.

So my question is... Am I doing this right? Should the ammonia have dropped slightly in the last 48 hours?

Thanks.

 

[Mebbid]

It sounds like everything is going great. You shouldn't have seen any drop in ammonia this early in the cycle. It can take a few weeks for things to get moving.
In the future skip the aquasafe and ph down. They are useless. Not sure why the guide told you to try to decrease your ph, but a low ph will slow down or stall a cycle. Yours is just fine.

Take a look at this guide, this is the best one I've seen by far.
http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forum...guide-and-faq-to-fishless-cycling-148283.html

 

[mkat]

Mebbid,

Thank You. I have seen the ammonia drop though, I double checked it. I'm not sue the few gallons I added to top it up from evaporation could make that big of difference though?

The AquaSafe Plus is what I used to dechlorinate the water. The PH Down was recommended by the "Tips and Tricks For Your Fastest Fishless Cycle!" article saying, "These pH products contain large amounts of phosphates which your bacteria need to grow. This small amount will not affect the pH of the tank and will supply all the phosphate needed." which is why I added that.

I will reread the guide you posted. Thanks.

 

[mkat]

I have not topped up the water since my last post 3 days ago, the ammonia is the same (between 1 and 2 PPM), nitrites are still 0ppm but nirAtes have gone to 5ppm...Does this sound right to anyone? Should I add more ammonia yet or wait until it is a SOLID 1 ppm?

Thanks.

 

[Mebbid]

I have not topped up the water since my last post 3 days ago, the ammonia is the same (between 1 and 2 PPM), nitrites are still 0ppm but nirAtes have gone to 5ppm...Does this sound right to anyone? Should I add more ammonia yet or wait until it is a SOLID 1 ppm?

Thanks.

It shouldn't really make much difference either way. People normally dose their ammonia up to 4ppm and as long as there is ammonia in the tank the bacteria will be growing.

 

[ppo8820]

Its not cycled yet. The ammonia would drop to 0 in 12-24 hours each time you dose it if it was. Then comes Nitrites which can take 2-3 weeks and are frustrating to say the least. I wouldnt mess with the PH either and a low PH can stall a cycle. Messing with PH in general is not a good thing to get into as its more work and stress.