Silent Cycle Ammonia

[Zonatedsumo]

Hi guys and gals,

Tank: 120l
Actual water capacity: 88l
Filtration: Fluval 206
Plants: Real 20 bunches
Substrate: Sand

So I am cycling my tank and am about 5 days in and my ammonia reading is 0.011. I have no fish in the tank nor have I added ammonia. Should I be adding ammonia while doing a silent cycle or not and how long should I be expecting the ammonia to drop.

 

[jetajockey]

Yes you should be adding an ammonia source, whether it be ammonia or live fish. Plants will reduce ammonia levels (nh4) but won't eliminate them completely on their own because a portion of that ammonia (nh3) is not available to them.

 

[aqua_chem]

Ammonia and ammonium rapidly interconvert to maintain their equilibrium ratios, so all of the ammonia is effectively available to them. It's complicated, but in essence, you can be affected by the ammonia ratio, but you can not affect the ammonia ratio without mucking with pH/temp.

EDIT: Also, what plants do you have? You need fast growing plants for a silent cycle to work.