tank cycle

[ojmenard]

what do you mean by regimen. I followed the instructions. and the kit is brand new unless it sat on the shelf for to long. but it does not look old.
thanks for trying to help. I dont know what to do if i should just start over or just wait or throw another shrimp in or what. The shrimp i put in last week is not completely gone yet but almost. and it was an XL jumbo shrimp. I sent my wife to the seafood place to get a 1 large shrimp and they kinda laughed at her. then gave her the biggest one they had and didnt charge her for it lol.

 

[roka64]

You are probably not off, maybe the lighting is a little different where you last tested the nitrAtes. You can always add a pinch of food and check for ammonia, or, you can have you LFS test your water sample just for a double check. I know I sometimes get a little clumsy when I test my water and maybe one or two drops are larger/smaller than the the last test.

 

[ojmenard]

I am going to take water to LFS tomorrow. as for ammonia there is still the shrimp in the water so it should still be creating ammonia. but i have none so i assume those bacteria are working.

 

[HN1]

what do you mean by regimen. I followed the instructions. and the kit is brand new unless it sat on the shelf for to long. but it does not look old.
thanks for trying to help. I dont know what to do if i should just start over or just wait or throw another shrimp in or what. The shrimp i put in last week is not completely gone yet but almost. and it was an XL jumbo shrimp. I sent my wife to the seafood place to get a 1 large shrimp and they kinda laughed at her. then gave her the biggest one they had and didnt charge her for it lol.

LOL. I can relate, I got the weirdest look ever when I asked for just one shrimp!

I agree with Roka. Possibly lighting and a second opinion is always good. My wife and I definitely see colors differently.

 

[roka64]

And forget reading the pH test kit on the APIs! LOL!

 

[ojmenard]

why do u say forget the ph on API test kit?

 

[ojmenard]

well just retested the nitrite and had my wife and my 9 yr old son who helps me with all of this stuff look at it also. they both see the same color so I guess im gonna see what the LFS says. but still the question is if it is staying at 1 and my nitrates are coming down what do i do ro what does that mean?

 

[Boulder]

For what it's worth - as I've been testing my water with API test kits I have been taking water samples to my local LFS regularly as well. One thing I have noticed is that the kits we use at home only have a half dozen or so color references whereas the LFS has an API wall chart with dozens of color references for each test.

So when my test was showing 0ppm on Ammonia their chart actually showed .25ppm. I guess the LFS probably get those charts sent to them for selling the API kits.

I mention this as I think your idea of having your LFS double check your readings is wise.

 

[roka64]

I was saying the pH test is hard for me to read, I can't tell the differences between the purples....

 

[ojmenard]

lol i am that way with the nitrites but 3 of us are sure its 1.

 

[thincat]

You are coming along fine. the Nitrites will drop to 0. What are you using for a nitrogen source? When your readings go to O except for Nitrates, do a large water change ~30-40%. Do this before you add livestock. Once you add livestock a water change that large would only shock your stock. After the water change add your CUC, let that go for about a week then add one or two small fish. wait another week and repeat. Even if you have a large tank your bacteria is only built up to reduce the amount of ammonia that was added to the tank so you have to build up on them slowly as you add more stock.
I hope that helped.

 

[ojmenard]

helped very much. as for a nitrogen source. i am not sure what you are asking about. If the shrimp in the tank is what you are talking about then that is it. If I am suppose to be doing something else I am not aware of it. I thought the shrimp turned to ammonia then that to nitrites then to nitrates all from bacteria.

 

[thincat]

OOPS, I meant "AMMONIA SOURCE"...Your shrimp is your source. It gives you more leeway then if you added straight ammonia. For a 55 two would have been a better option, but one will do if you take it slow. It should drop down in a day or so, so just keepa an eye on it and you should be fine.

 

[ojmenard]

ok thank for the info.

 

[InfernoST]

LOL. I can relate, I got the weirdest look ever when I asked for just one shrimp!

I agree with Roka. Possibly lighting and a second opinion is always good. My wife and I definitely see colors differently.

I had my wife get me 3 shrimp from the market and they gave them to her free of charge along with a smile and confused look.

 

[CementShoes]

The shrimp is your ammonia source. I guess if you want to plow it all the way through to the 'possible' anaerobic conversion of nitrate then you could, though that's a stretch since if you wanted a nitrogen source you could just dose nitrate.