cycle help please???

[goodgy]

today was my 17th day of my fishless cycle and my results where

ammonia=0 ( after dosing 24 hours ago to 2ppm )
Nitrites = off the charts , very dark as soon as its added goes dark purple
ph=7.8
Nitrates =5.0

why is my nitrates only 5.0 ?????/

the highest ive seen it was 10 which was only for one day 1

should I redoes ammonia tonight ? or wait a few days to see if my nitrates start to go up ????

Any help would be great as this is my first cycle !!?

 

[threnjen]

dose only 1/2 of your original ammonia dose every 3-4 days.

Also, try to be patient. Your cycle is absolutely 100% on track. Day 17 with high nitrites and just-starting nitrAtes is 100% excellent and absolutely as expected. It's a 4-6 week process. Your nitrAtes won't start raising quickly until toward the end.

 

[goodgy]

no worries thanks ,
I doesed 2ppm 24hours ago so ill wait another day or 2 and just leave it at 0 , was scared to do this as I thought I starved the bacteria that's there cause theres no ammonia

 

[threnjen]

No, in lab studies, the ammonia bacteria can live for months without food and when they get new food they dive right in. They will most definitely be fine for a few days and you should slow down your dosing.

 

[goodgy]

awesome will slow it down now
thanks heaps

 

[Sk3lly]

No, in lab studies, the ammonia bacteria can live for months without food and when they get new food they dive right in. They will most definitely be fine for a few days and you should slow down your dosing.

I never knew that. Thanks Jen. Learn something new everyday

 

[threnjen]

I never knew that. Thanks Jen. Learn something new everyday

Sure!
Worth noting, I've only read and seen studies on the ammonia-eating bacteria. No one seems to have studied the nitrite-eating bacteria and their ability to bounce back after starvation. Luckily that is never really a relevant issue for this forum, but I do wish that info was out there so we could know if people could have a fully cycled tank "sit" without food for X amount of time.