Cycling Q's. Going Fishless.

[mfdrookie516]

i have heard of nitrates being 160ppm... i dont think so, now i do know that ammonia can, but i seriously dont think nitrates would unless they got up to some unheard-of number...but then again, once the nitrate starts rising that high, the cycle will be over anyways lol

 

[Aquarium1]

Ok, jw.

 

[supradupafast]

Alright. Well, I stopped the PWC at about 20%.
I put about 1 capfull (about 5ml) of Ammonia daily. Just seems like alot of Ammonia for 60gal Tank.

 

[mfdrookie516]

what is the ammonia reading an hour or two after putting the ammonia in?

 

[supradupafast]

1ppm.

It's been the same for a few days..

 

[mfdrookie516]

are you using liquid or strips to test?

 

[supradupafast]

API FW Master Liquid Test kit

 

[mfdrookie516]

ok, good deal I would recommend getting the ammonia up a little more, somewhere around 3ppm... Watch it close, and if it drops down to 0 within 12 hours, id say youre cycled... If not, just keep up the ammonia, and dont do any pwc's... Once your cycled, do a 50% pwc, then slowly start adding your fish. Thats how i do it anyways

 

[Aquarium1]

and you'll want your nitrite to go to 0 too within those 12 hours.

 

[supradupafast]

Alright. Thanks for the help. I appreciate it.
I will add Ammonia to bring it to approx 3PPM. I will keep you updated.

 

[mfdrookie516]

oops, good catch... forgot that part

 

[mfdrookie516]

Alright. Thanks for the help. I appreciate it.
I will add Ammonia to bring it to approx 3PPM. I will keep you updated.

also make sure you add it slowly... just because one cap full makes 1ppm, doesnt necessarily mean to add 3... add 2, wait 30 mins to an hour, test, then add more if you need to... if you add too much, then you'll have to do a pwc and that will just delay your cycle more

 

[supradupafast]

Yep.. I never add more than 1 Cap full at a time. Usually test after 1 hr. This is what I will do today throughout the day as I am doing drywall in the basement. Breaks will be to do water Tests.. lol
What a Life.. What a Hobby..

 

[mfdrookie516]

have fun with the drywall... keep us updated on the cycling progress

 

[supradupafast]

UPDATE:

after adding Ammonia every couple hours, I am still getting the same readings:
Ammonia 1
Nitrites 5
Nitrates 20-40
PH 7.2 Stable

I did get a reading of 2PPM Ammonia, but the Ammonia drops to about 0.5 in the morning. I just can't get above 1PPM it seems. (Without adding a full bottle of Ammonia ... hehe)

 

[supradupafast]

The Ammonia seems to go way down overnight.. Like from almost 2 to 0.5 overnight. My Nitrites are still very high at 5. Nitrates fluctuate, but hang around 10-20.
From reading the Fishless Cycle link, I should be letting my Ammonia reach 0, and just feed the bacterias daily, not enough to cause a reading?
Maybe it's just me thinking that, but I don't think I should be keeping the Ammonia 3+ during a Nitrite Spike?

 

[supradupafast]

Hmm.. 8 Days after I created this thread, My Ammonia goes down to 0 within 12 hours but my Nitrites stay at 5 & my Nitrates fluctuate between 10 and 40. I add a couple tbsp of pure Ammonia daily to keep feeding the lil' buggers, but the Nitrites are not coming down... How long should the Nitrite spike last?