starting a fishless cycle

[awilson133]

so im excited about starting this fishless cycle. but I have a question about dosing..i know you have to dose ammo to 4ppm. so how much could put in all together in a 29 gallon tank?

 

[jlk]

Depends on the type of ammonia you have. Standard percentage is 10% but some are more dilute. Do you have a baby medicine syringe (measures in mls)? Most pharmacies will give you one for free. I would start at 2mls, wait 15mins, test amm. Then add .5ml increment, wait, then test until you hit 4ppm. Theres an ammonia dosing calculator if you do a search on here but you will need to know the percentage of your amm to use it. Good luck & keep us posted!

 

[awilson133]

its the ammo from ace hardware. ill just do that then. ill update tonight when I get it all set up

 

[HooKooDooKu]

If you don't already, get a test kit for ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate (the liquid test kits, not the test strips or the 'meter' type).

Then start by dosing with a few DROPS (I would say no more than 10 max for your 1st dose). Then wait about an hour to give the ammonia a really good chance to evenly disperse through out the tank. Then measure your ammonia levels with the test kit. Since none of the ammonia is going to initially be getting converted to nitrites, you'll be able to do simple math to determine how much dosing you need to get to 4ppm.

For example, I wouldn't be surprised if those 10 drops gave you an ammonia reading as low as high as 1 to 2 ppm. If you get a reading of 1ppm, then you know you need to add 30 more drops. If you get a reading of 2ppm, then you need 10 more drops.

I found it convenient to place the ammonia in an old eye dropper bottle of some sort (like the bottles used for contact solution).

 

[jlk]

its the ammo from ace hardware. ill just do that then. ill update tonight when I get it all set up

Glad to hear you are using Ace. Ace is 10% ammonium hydroxide to water. Ill see if i can find you the calculator for dosing but a guess of the top of my head here, you will need @4mls of amm (5mls is a teaspoon) to reach 4ppm if your tap has zero ammonia. You will want to run the parameters for your tap water (amm, nitrite, nitrate, ph) so you know where you are starting from. Ph needs to be tested after 24hrs- let a cup of tap sit out preferably with an airstone/bubbler for 24hrs before testing. If you dont have an extra airstone/bubbler, just give the water a good stir every so often to help it gas out. Post your tap results when you get a chance.

 

[awilson133]

yeah I use those api liquid tests. ill try the drops or which ever.

 

[jlk]

I just figured I would test out the 'drop' method with my 5ml syringe- it took approximately 20-25 drops to empty 1ml of liquid (tried it 3x). Granted, these are larger drops than an eye dropper. This may be a bit tedious to try & measure almost 80+ drops. I linked the calculator below- just over 4mls of ammonia needed.

Calculator

 

[HooKooDooKu]

I just figured I would test out the 'drop' method with my 5ml syringe- it took approximately 20-25 drops to empty 1ml of liquid (tried it 3x). Granted, these are larger drops than an eye dropper. This may be a bit tedious to try & measure almost 80+ drops. I linked the calculator below- just over 4mls of ammonia needed.

Calculator

80+? Wow. I don't think I ever used more than 4 on any given day when I was cycling a 5 gallon tank.


For the amount's you're calculating, those 5ml medicine syringes do sound like the best tool for the given tank size. And those of us with kids likely have a few of those lying around the house.

 

[awilson133]

yeah I just tested it after I did 1ml of ammo.
ammo 1.0
nitrites 0
ph lil over 7.8 dark blue I cant compare it cause its off the color chart.. tap water sits at ammo 0 nitrites 0. im testing my ph now. that calc works great 4.39 is was it said so I guess ill do 3.0 of ammo now??

 

[awilson133]

oh and that pure ammonia will knock you off your feet... D:

 

[jlk]

oh and that pure ammonia will knock you off your feet... D:

Yes, it will!!!! Make sure you check your tap for nitrates, too.

 

[awilson133]

I will. so should I dose it??

 

[jlk]

You have only added 1ml so far, correct? As your tap is zero for amm, add another 3mls & your good to go!

 

[awilson133]

okay :3

 

[awilson133]

quick question..will this stuff hurt my dogs?

 

[jlk]

The bottle of ammonia? Or your tank water? Dont let them them near the bottle of amm and do NOT let them drink the tank water. Although 4ppm is a relatively small amount of ammonia, I would not consider it a good thing for dogs (or anything else) to drink.

 

[awilson133]

the bottle...yeah I didnt think it be good.. okay ammo now is 4.0!! . checking tap nitrates

 

[awilson133]

tap nitrate 5.0

 

[jlk]

Ok! You may want to write down your tap levels so you can refer back to them as your cycle progresses. Alot people will keep a log of dates & test results so you keep track of your progress & see how everything is moving along. Keep us posted!

 

[awilson133]

okay! ima post some pics of my 55gal and my 29.