Can Cycling get Stalled?

[rbflapjack]

I have a 29 gal tank that I am cycling. I had five fish for the first four weeks. NH3 and NO2 rose and then settled but not to zero. After four weeks and two 30% PWC's: NH3 at 1.0 and NO2 at 0.5. I decided to add more fish (maybe a mistake). I added four Cory's. A week later, same results. I did three more 30% PWC's in the next week and got NH3 at 0.5 and NO2 at .25. NO3 have been steady around 10. During the next week they have stayed steady at the same level. I added two airstones to get better oxygenation but no change. I am using a Whisper 30 and have added Biozyme periodically. It has been almost seven weeks and this seems to be taking forever. Should I just wait longer? I want to get a school of tetras but am a little afraid since the levels and not at zero yet. Any advice would be great. Thanks.

 

[papa_bear_21]

try bio spira...its live good bacteria, also, what are you using to test?

as I learned myself, cycling with fish is not fun, and really hurtful for the fish. I did it myself, bio spira saved my tank...

 

[rich311k]

Welcome to AA!!! Have you tested you tap? What kind of tests are you using?

 

[Zagz]

Welcome to AA!!! Yes your cycle can stall, we've had numerous posts about other members getting "stuck". Rich is right test your tap water to see what the values of your tap water is. Do not add anymore fish please.

 

[rbflapjack]

I tested the tap water and got zeroes across the board. I am using the API tests with the drops and the test tubes because the test strips didn't seem very reliable. The guy at the local "exotic" pet store (not Petco) said I just need to keep doing PWC's (about 30% every other day) until the levels get to zero. To me, that would certainly work to preserve the fish by dilution but not help in establishing the biological filter. One book I read seemed to suggest that maybe the filter is not adequate enough. He mentioned that most kits only include the smallest filter you can get away with. Mine is a Whisper 30 which is supposed to be 150 gph therefore only five times tank size. The book suggested 10 times tank size (for me, 290 gph). However, I am getting tired of constantly spending money on new "stuff" without a better idea of what will work. What do you all think about the filter size thing? Thanks.

One other thing:
One of the first fish I put in is a minnow that my kids wanted to save from their last fishing trip at the lake. It has been doing fine in the tank but is the only odd fish I have in there. Am I crazy or is it possible that the minnow is somehow interfering with the biological filter? Sounds nuts but I am grasping at straws here.

 

[Marconis]

I do not have links right now, but me and Neilan on here got stalled for a while. Mine was 9 days or something like that, and my entire cycle took 27 days until I just got sick of it and added in Bio-Spira. Hate to scare ya. If you're interested search through the FW Getting Started forum and have a look at the threads.

 

[7Enigma]

rbflapjack,

I'd recommend getting rid of the minnow. It's most likely cold-water and the tropical 78-82F you should have your tank at is not good. He's not affecting your levels, but he's also not helping them.

You need to tell us a little bit about your tank care, ie feeding habits (what, how much), how you do a PWC (what chemicals you use, temp of the water, etc.). Cycle's can stall, but normally these are fishless-cycles.

When doing PWC's larger is normally better (the toxins are lowered larger/easier then small frequent changes), vacuum up any fish waste/uneaten food, but stay away from the substrate as much as possible (suck up the poo and food but keep away from the bottom).

And your gut feeling was right, no more fish for now!

 

[rbflapjack]

Well, it seems like things are just now starting to progress (yeah!). After seven weeks now, the NH3 has gone to zero and the NO2 is starting to spike (about 2.0). I did a 30% PWC when I saw that and I will check it again today and keep doing PWC until I get the NO2 down. I use a gravel vac and empty two five-gallon buckets out of my 20 gal tank. Then I add 1 ml of Prime to the first bucket of water. The new water goes in around 76-80 degrees and I keep the tank at 78. It seems weird that the Prime additive only takes 1 ml per 10 gallons when all the others say 5 ml but I will stick with 1 ml for now. I feed them Tetramin twice a day (not much, it takes less than a minute for them to gobble it up). I think the airstones might have helped. Hopefully the next strain of bacteria will not take so long to form and start breaking down the NO2. Thanks.

 

[7Enigma]

Well, it seems like things are just now starting to progress (yeah!). After seven weeks now, the NH3 has gone to zero and the NO2 is starting to spike (about 2.0). I did a 30% PWC when I saw that and I will check it again today and keep doing PWC until I get the NO2 down. I use a gravel vac and empty two five-gallon buckets out of my 20 gal tank. Then I add 1 ml of Prime to the first bucket of water. The new water goes in around 76-80 degrees and I keep the tank at 78. It seems weird that the Prime additive only takes 1 ml per 10 gallons when all the others say 5 ml but I will stick with 1 ml for now. I feed them Tetramin twice a day (not much, it takes less than a minute for them to gobble it up). I think the airstones might have helped. Hopefully the next strain of bacteria will not take so long to form and start breaking down the NO2. Thanks.

I would for the time being use double the amount of Prime (2ml per 10 gallons). So add 1ml per bucket full. It will help to detoxify the ammonia and nitrIte, and will not hurt the fish. By only dosing the first bucket you run the risk of killing some of the bacteria with the second bucket. People that use python's or other ways of adding back large amounts of water dose for the WHOLE TANK VOLUME. That means even if you only do a 10 gallon water change, but your tank is 20 gallons, you should be dosing for 20 gallons. Since you just do bucket changes like me just add in dechlor to each bucket of water, swish it around to have it mix well, and then dump it in. This way you know there is no chance of chlorine.

Generally the nitrIte spike lasts longer then the ammonia spike in most people's tanks. You want to keep the nitrIte level below 1.0ppm (ideally below 0.5ppm). So if you are reading 2.0ppm you NEED to do AT MINIMUM a 50% PWC to get it to ~1. Ideally you should do a 75% PWC or so since 1 is the maximum you ever want to be.