Fishless Cycle Log/Rebuild - Take II

[librarygirl]

Well of course trust is an issue but it's just an option but getting seeded material somehow is gonna help you see those magic numbers

I don't know....I bought a seeded sponge from a reputable company online and while it gave me nitrates and one drop in ammonia, it never gave me nitrItes and then the ammonia stalled. Again that was the old cursed tank though. lol.

I'm confused

 

[JimmyA]

That is weird. How do you get nitrates without nitrites?

 

[barterking85]

That is weird. How do you get nitrates without nitrites?

Because an established sponge mainly carries nitrates cause it's from an established tank and established tanks show little to no nitrites

 

[eco23]

Also it seems that some seeded media contains an abundance of no2 to no3 bacteria as opposed to ammo to no2. It's possible the nitrItes can be constantly converted as they are produced keeping the levels of no2 at zero during the process.

 

[JimmyA]

Wow, my nitrites went through the roof with my Angelsplus seeded sponge! If you get one, go through the process and allow for 60 days for the process.

 

[eco23]

Wow, my nitrites went through the roof with my Angelsplus seeded sponge! If you get one, go through the process and allow for 60 days for the process.

Your sponge seemed to be the opposite. I think you had an abundance of ammo to no2 bacteria. They definitely seem unbalanced in types of nitrifying bacteria with different sponges people get.

 

[JimmyA]

Right, I agree, but if you give the sponge enough time, it should all balance out.

 

[librarygirl]

libray ive been banned im back upadte my please

Just sent you a PM

I don't want to keep updating this thread for no reason, so I wasn't going to post until something changed or I decided to give up.

Tonight:

Ammonia still at 2 (since re-dosing after the large pwc on Sunday the ammonia isn't even moving at all now, at least before it was dropping some)
Nitrites: 0

I'm going to let it sit until Friday and then test again. Then I'll decide on what to do, if anything. I'm really at a loss as to whether I'm being impatient or if something is wrong. Is it possible for a tank to never cycle? I guess maybe I'll find out if I wait long enough.

I'll shut up now, feeling very discouraged and depressed today and second-guessing why I've been trying this since April. Going into hiding for a while I think...

 

[eco23]

Is it possible for a tank to never cycle? I guess maybe I'll find out if I wait long enough....

I'm not a micro-biologist, but my guess would be that unless there was some variable (sanatizer in the water, etc..) or you live in a vacuum inside a hospital clean room...it'll cycle. It's the nitrogen cycle that happens all over planet earth...not something limited to an aquarium setting.

 

[xxwolfpackof1xx]

libray any results? i have a good feeling about this

 

[JimmyA]

Yes, Libraygirl, how is it going?

 

[zparticle]

Since LG doesn't want to spend the money on a new active sponge, does anyone have a well established tank with some extra filter material already loaded up with BB?

I don't know how long it would take to transfer the BB to a new chunk of filter but I'd be willing to put a piece of filter next to mine and send it to LG. I assume I can just stuff it in next to the existing filter.

 

[xxwolfpackof1xx]

i just added 5 6inch strips of filter media to my filter i also have exsiting filter media. she's only 10min away and ive given her media before

 

[zparticle]

I don't want to hijack this thread but I'm curious, how long does it usually take to get a good colony transferred to the new media? How do you tell when it is ready to go?

 

[xxwolfpackof1xx]

that i dont know but id say 2-3weeks is a good stand point

 

[jetajockey]

the longer the better, but it just depends on the tank bioload, the type of filtration, etc. If it's just a sponge sitting in the tank it's probably not going to get a lot. If it's a sponge filter running in the tank it'll get plenty. I think Steve @ angelsplus told me that he keeps those in tank for a minimum of 4-6 weeks, but I can't say for sure.

 

[librarygirl]

Thanks for asking about my progress everyone....Unfortunately I have no further news other than I'm totally exasperated at this point.

I didn't test last night but as of tonight no nitrites and ammonia is still at 2 from when I dosed last Sunday, so it seems things have stalled even further since before the pwc last Sunday ammonia was at least starting to move. It is 27 days today since I started this cycle.

I'll probably try another sponge from AngelsPlus at this point. However I'm hesitant to use it with my current water. If something in my water is preventing the BB from forming or killing them off as they form, then the sponge won't help. So I'm trying to decide whether to just try the sponge with my water and see what happens or go with Eco's recommendation of using Spring Water.

I'll probably do a bit of research on using spring water in tanks. Does anyone have experience with this? Are there drawbacks to using it as opposed to tap water, other than the cost and inconvenience? Is it safe for fish in the long run?

 

[eco23]

As long as it's not reverse osmosis purified or distilled (strips all nutrients and minerals from the water) it'll be fine. I've never used spring water in a tank, but I'm the sales director for a water purification company and have a fairly good knowledge of bottled and purified water.

Just pick a certain brand and stick with it. Different brands may have different pH and hardness levels.

 

[librarygirl]

As long as it's not reverse osmosis purified or distilled (strips all nutrients and minerals from the water) it'll be fine. I've never used spring water in a tank, but I'm the sales director for a water purification company and have a fairly good knowledge of bottled and purified water.

SO this is probably another dumb question, but say for the sake of argument the spring water works and the tank cycles. During water changes with fish, how would I match the temp of the spring water to the tank water? Would I have to heat it up somehow first? Letting it sit out at room temp may or may not match it closely enough, what if it doesn't? Or what if it's too warm? I already foresee complications lol And I bought my pretty Aqueon Changer too, now I won't be able to use it except to suck the water out. lol Plus putting water into the tank from gallon jugs is probably going to be messy and heavy. lol. Although if it works maybe it'll be worth it.

You mentioned Deer Park water. I've never seen that brand here (of course, I've never looked for it either lol). Any others I should use or stay away from aside from Dasani and Aquafina?

Also wouldn't the GH/KH and PH of the water be very low, or even too low? I guess I could start by buying a few brands and testing those levels for each, right? Sorry, just playing devil's advocate to make sure I have everything covered before I decide to do this.

 

[eco23]

You mentioned Deer Park water. I've never seen that brand here (of course, I've never looked for it either lol). Any others I should use or stay away from aside from Dasani and Aquafina?

Also what about the PH, GH and KH of spring water? Won't they be very low, or even too low? Sorry, just playing devil's advocate to make sure I have everything covered before I decide to do this.

All brands have to list the source. You'd be surprised how many are actually municipal water simply run through carbon filtration. If it is reverse osmosis or distilled, it will say on the bottle. The pH, hardness and alkalinity is only an issue if your are using the RO or distilled waters.

As long as the temperature is similar to the touch, it'll be fine. Lord knows my temperatures aren't exact when I use my water changer every week.

The cheapest way may be to buy the big jugs used on water coolers in offices. If you can find something to sit it on higher than your tank, you can do a reverse syphon to refill the tank during pwc's.

Wal-mart also has machines where you fill your own water containers for cheap...but I don't know how it's purified.