3 weeks fishless and nothing has happened

[mx756]

I've had my 29 gallon going for 3 weeks and nothing has happened. Ammonia level drops from about 3 to 1 in about a day but I have NEVER had a nitrite or nitrate reading the entire 3 weeks. I'm using the AP master test kit and none are expired. I have even seeded the tank with gravel from and established aquarium in a stocking. Should I just keep waiting?




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[Caliban07]

I've had my 29 gallon going for 3 weeks and nothing has happened. Ammonia level drops from about 3 to 1 in about a day but I have NEVER had a nitrite or nitrate reading the entire 3 weeks. I'm using the AP master test kit and none are expired. I have even seeded the tank with gravel from and established aquarium in a stocking. Should I just keep waiting?




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Are you sure you are following the nitrate test correctly? It's never happened to me but I believe you have to shake bottle number 2 quite vigorously before you do the test as the reagents form on the bottom causing a false negative.


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[RevLine]

have you considered a bacterial supplement to speed up the process? i used nutrafin cycle with success in speeding the process up a week or two in my 2.2g cube.
or if available you can use some filter media from a friend that already has a cycled tank. might be more reliable than gravel.

also what is your ammonia source?

 

[ImACoolguy]

have you considered a bacterial supplement to speed up the process? i used nutrafin cycle with success in speeding the process up a week or two in my 2.2g cube.
or if available you can use some filter media from a friend that already has a cycled tank. might be more reliable than gravel.

also what is your ammonia source?

Bacterial supplements have always really been a hit or miss. It works for some and does nothing for others. Established filter media would be 10x better.


Caleb

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[chykityta]

I've had my 29 gallon going for 3 weeks and nothing has happened. Ammonia level drops from about 3 to 1 in about a day but I have NEVER had a nitrite or nitrate reading the entire 3 weeks. I'm using the AP master test kit and none are expired. I have even seeded the tank with gravel from and established aquarium in a stocking. Should I just keep waiting?




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Please check out my recent thread on the same topic: http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f15/changed-from-fish-less-to-fish-in-cycle-331274.html. I started with fish less and 10% Ammonia for 3.5 weeks with no luck (Nitrites and Nitrates 0 although Ammonia decreased too). I then did fish in for 3.5 weeks with daily water changes of 50% with no luck (Nitrites and Nitrates 0 but I removed the Ammonia myself). A week ago, I stopped doing the water changes in an attempt to try something else, and I finally see Nitrates 8 weeks in, although it is only 1 week from just letting Ammonia build up. I would say wait a little more but don't add more ammonia until it is about 0.25 so the bacteria doesn't starve, then bring it back up to 3-4 ppm. You can always try something else like me but always give it time.

 

[hjsvt]

I've had my 29 gallon going for 3 weeks and nothing has happened. Ammonia level drops from about 3 to 1 in about a day but I have NEVER had a nitrite or nitrate reading the entire 3 weeks. I'm using the AP master test kit and none are expired. I have even seeded the tank with gravel from and established aquarium in a stocking. Should I just keep waiting?

Do you know what your water parameters are? KH, pH, GH? And what is the temperature in your tank?

For instance, if you have soft water with a low KH, the bacteria could be using up all of the KH which can lower pH down to where the bacteria do not function and stall cycle.

Where is your water coming from? All clear liquid is NOT created equal and it is very important to know your water source parameters.

Figure those things out and we can probably figure out what it going on with your cycle.

 

[chykityta]

Do you know what your water parameters are? KH, pH, GH? And what is the temperature in your tank?

For instance, if you have soft water with a low KH, the bacteria could be using up all of the KH which can lower pH down to where the bacteria do not function and stall cycle.

Where is your water coming from? All clear liquid is NOT created equal and it is very important to know your water source parameters.

Figure those things out and we can probably figure out what it going on with your cycle.

In my case, GH and KH were high. One was like 180-300 and the other 80-120. The pH was 8.4 initially and is now 7.4 but it hasn't increased since my ammonia increased. Could these have stalled my cycle or just never started it? Please feel free to continue with suggestions on my thread referenced above.


Sent by me; a Newbie
10g partially planted with 7 Bloodfin Tetras - Est. 1/29/2015

 

[MarshlDillon]

Seems im having the same issue...just started another thread before i saw this one...ammonia going down (slowly in my case) but no nitrite or nitrate...maybe this is more common than we all thought?