semperfi
Aquarium Advice Apprentice
Good morning all. I tried to post a thread from my mobile app last night but had all kinds of problems. I am currently cycling a 29g moderately planted, Fluval 306 canister filter, eco-complete substrate, Fluval Aqualife & Plant LED lighting. Those are the basics. I started my cycle on January 23 and planted moderately on January 24 (Five bunches of dwarf hairgrass, One crypto walkeri, Two anubias golden, Two medium java ferns, One red flame sword) and added two pieces of Malaysian driftwood. I have been dosing to 4 ppm ammonia, and I am currently getting rid of approximately 3 ppm every 12 hours. Nitrites spiked off the chart on January 27, and are still off the chart while nitrates showed up on the 28th or 29th (I don't have my journal with me), and have been constant at 5-10 ppm. My concern at this point is that my pH, which was initially hovering from 6.8 to 7.2 began dropping over the weekend. My Kh which was initially 5-6 has also dropped to 2-3. The pH bottomed out on what my test kit (API test tube/solution) would show at 6.0 on Monday evening. I freaked out because I had read that low pH can kill by BB. I did a 50%wc and my pH rebounded to 7.0 within an hour. Last night when I tested, the pH had bottomed out again. I did a 15-20% wc and raised it to 6.4, but this morning it has bottomed out AGAIN. I am really trying to do this the right way but there are so many opinions! Is this something that is normal during the nitrite spike phase of the cycle or should I be alarmed? I mulled over my journal last night to see if I had done anything differently and I couldn't put my finger on the culprit of my pH drop. To give you some handle on what I have added, I dosed the recommended time with Stability, and I have been dosing with Flourish and Flourish Excel as recommended on the bottle. I also conditioned my water with Prime. Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thank You!
