Did my tank finally cycle? (Fishless cycle)

[chrono1081]

Hi guys,

I'm at the point where I have to add ammonia every day because its gone in 24 hours. Does that mean I'm finally ready for fish?

Here is a picture of the spreadsheet I've been keeping. The last two tests are done roughly 12 hours apart. When I check it again tonight most likely the ammonia will be gone from both tanks and I'll have to add more.

Please if someone could let me know if its finally ready to put fish in

Also thank you to everyone who has helped me so far

 

[jlk]

Does your ammonia & nitrite completely zero out in 24hrs? If they they do, how many days have they been steadily zeroing out? The charts are bit hard to look at on my phone.

 

[chrono1081]

Yep they go to zero in 24 hours. The chart is a little weird looking because the times aren't the same each day, but for at least a week I'll dose it and within a day the ammonia and nitrites are gone again.

 

[jlk]

Sounds good for fish!! Just make sure you skip the amm the day of fish purchase & do a big water change to bring down your nitrate levels to your tap level. Adjust your temperature if it was cranked up. Check out U-tube for how to videos on 'drip acclimation' if your not familar with the process. If you have any questions, do not hesitate to ask! Good luck with your new fish!

 

[chrono1081]

Awesome! Thanks!

It'll probably be a few days before I get fish. The fish locally are generally not very healthy in appearance so I'll be getting them from a store fairly far away.

I'm still trying to decide anyway between 3 guppies and a few ghost shrimp or 5 neon tetras and a few ghost shrimp. Its only an 8 gallon tank so I don't want to overpopulate.

 

[jlk]

Sounds good! Just keep dosing your ammonia until the day before you plan on getting fish. Ghost shrimp are pretty interesting little creatures!

 

[librarygirl]

Looks good as Jlk said if the ammonia and nitrites are going to 0 in 24 hours and have been doing so for at least 3 consecutive days (preferably more). IMO, I wouldn't put neons in a tank that small; they are very active little fish and should have more swim space. A few guppies would be ok, or a school of nano fish like ember tetra, celestial pearl danio or chili rasbora. Endler's livebearers would also work and they are very colorful fish. Be careful with guppies if you can more than one sex; they breed prolifically and you'll soon be overstocked.

 

[chrono1081]

Thanks guys for the advice!

I stayed away from neons and got three (supposedly all male) guppies and three ghost shrimp. Our Petco doesn't have much and sadly its the only pet store.

I wanted to get my fish from a store far away but I"m afraid of taking them that long in the car so I just bought locally.

They're all floating in their bags as we speak. I'll be adding them in the next 10 min to the tank.