Nitrates 100mg/l!!

[MarkW19]

One thing that's concerning me - I've been cycling my tank for 3 weeks, and Nitrites have peaked at 10 (a week ago), and are yet to reduce.

Ammonia is at 0, which is great. Nitrites are up at 10ppm, but NitrAtes are at 100mg/l???

Surely the Nitrites would have to be converted to Nitrates before I'd get Nitrates that high, if at all?? But with the Nitrites being up at 10ppm and not going down at all, isn't this impossilble?

[reefrunner69]

Hmmm, what have you been adding to the aquarium? Check everything's directions and see if it can cause a false positive nitrite reading.

[MarkW19]

I've been using Biomature as an ammonia/bacteria source, but you stop adding that when Nitrites get to 10, which I have done. Not put any in since.

Even if the nitrites test is wrong, there's no way I should have 100mg/l nitrates is there?!?

[acronym:aedc3c8ccd="For your info"]FYI[/acronym:aedc3c8ccd]: 38gallon, with Eheim 2327/84 thermo filter, and approx 1.5" live aragonite sand. No [acronym:aedc3c8ccd="Live rock"]LR[/acronym:aedc3c8ccd].

[MarkW19]

One thing to mention - the instructions on the Biomature are VERY misleading, and on the first two days of adding it (I added a few drops every day until Nitrites got to 10ppm, which you're meant to do) I put a lot more drops in than I was meant to. But I was told this wouldn't cause any problems as long as I stopped adding when Nitrites got to 10.

Because of my high Nitrites AND high Nitrates, should I do a big waterchange (50%), or will this stop the cycling?

[sumphead]

Unless I am mistaken in this sleep deprivation induced coma I am in, or misreading, nitrATES are the first byproduct of bacterial ammonia processing. Then income the nitrITES. If you are showing 100+ nitrates and 10ppm nitrites then it would seem to me you have overdosed. I am so tired I am blurry, but at any rate if you have any life in the tank at all you want to save then do a series of large waterchanges after confirming your tests. This will indeed slow the cycling process but save life. If there is no life in the tank the best and easiest way to cycle is by using the raw shrimp method, not mention a whole lot cheaper than buying products to so the same thing.

R-

[Brad]

Go back into your coma, sump...you've got it backwards.

Ammonia converts to Nitrite (both pretty nasty)...
Nitrite converts to Nitrate (less nasty)

So you get Ammonia spike, then Nitrite spike, then Nitrate spike...and the Nitrate is difficult to get rid of. Often, routine water changes are done primarily to keep nitrate in check.

[MarkW19]

So, how can I have very high nitrites and also extremely high nitrates?

There's no life in the tank, as I'm currently cycling.

Would you recommend doing a 50% waterchange to get the nitrites and nitrates down? How much will this slow the cycling down by, approximately?

[MarkW19]

So should I do a waterchange guys?

[MarkW19]

No-one know then?

[XXFirefighter]

If it's they high I would !