Fishless cycling question

[nonniecita]

Okay, I added 1/4 t baking soda last night and this morning ph was 6.8-7.0

I went ahead and did a 80-90% water change because the nitrites are sky high and ammonia is not coming down like it should be...after the water change, nitrite was still off the charts, so I did a 95% water change...there was about 1 inch of water left in the tank. I just checked the nitrite level and it is still deep purple, not as dark as before and when I added the testing solution, it stayed blue in the container for a bit, then changed to purple...usually it immediately turns purple.

Help! Do I need to do another water change or what?


Thanks so much!!!

 

[nonniecita]

Any thoughts?

 

[1998golfer]

Honestly I'd just do more waterchanges until they are sub 3ppm

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[nonniecita]

Honestly I'd just do more waterchanges until they are sub 3ppm

Sent from my SPH-L710 using Aquarium Advice mobile app

Thank you...that's what I was thinking but I wanted to make sure!

 

[1998golfer]

Yeah.you must've had tons of nitrite in your tank dude!

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[Fishperson]

I don't really think that baking soda is necessary unless your pH isn't normally around there. But if you decide to use it, then make sure to partially redose it after water changes.

Oh, and watch your nitrite levels, don't let them get off the chart, as they can and will stall your cycle.

 

[nonniecita]

Okay. I just did another water change. This time almost 100%.

Here are the readings:

ph- 7.6
Ammonia- 0.50
Nitrite- 0.50
Nitrate- 2or 3ppm, maybe? It was a light orange/yellow color.

I'm going to add some ammonia now.

 

[1998golfer]

Don't know if you've said this already, but what is your tap water parameters?

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[nonniecita]

Tap pH is 7.6. (I'll check when I get a chance on the others.)

I just checked the readings this morning and am getting frustrated!

pH-7.4

Ammonia- 2.0

Nitrite - over 5ppm again

Nitrate- 5ppm

I'm going to post a pic of the readings in a bit...

 

[nonniecita]

Here is the pic...Am I correct on the Nitrite reading?

photo(54) | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

 

[nonniecita]

I just checked the levels and the nitrites are obviously still high.

pH- 7.4
Ammonia-0ppm (did drop from 4ppm in 24 hours)
Nitrite-5+ppm
Nitrate-5ppm

Do I need to do another total water change? Ugh. This is getting frustrating! I really wanted to have it cycled by Christmas for my kids.

 

[gd007]

I just checked the levels and the nitrites are obviously still high.

pH- 7.4
Ammonia-0ppm (did drop from 4ppm in 24 hours)
Nitrite-5+ppm
Nitrate-5ppm

Do I need to do another total water change? Ugh. This is getting frustrating! I really wanted to have it cycled by Christmas for my kids.

Give it 24 hours, and watch that pH. I was amazed that my nitrite was 'gone' the next morning. It's really fast!

 

[nonniecita]

Ok...I'm about to give up!

New readings are:

pH-6 (I've been busy the past couple of days and hadn't checked pH, so I'm not sure which day it dropped).
Ammonia-2ppm (added 3ml ammonia last night)
Nitrite-5
Nitrate-5

Any thoughts on what I should do?

 

[gd007]

Any thoughts on what I should do?

Water change.
Your pH dropped from 7.4 to 6. That's HUGE (and not good).

You must have a very low KH which simply means your 'buffers' are rather weak to begin with making the 'fight' against pH changes difficult. A high or strong kH keeps pH 'in place' easier and less susceptible to changes.

The good news is that you are getting near the end because this is the time to be vigilant of the pH change you witnessed/are experiencing.