Fishless Cycle stalled?

[EmptyH]

I am doing my first fishless cycle in a 90 gal tank. My readings have been Ammonia 2 NitrIte 2 NitrAte 5ish (tap water has Nitrate of 5ish) for 6 days with no movement. I have not added any Ammonia since Saturday. Did I use too much Ammonia? Should I do a PWC? or am I just too impatient? I am anxious to get this tank cycled so I can start stocking it. What, if anything, should I do to get the cycle moving again?

Thanks,

MTH

 

[crazyred]

You have got to continue to add ammonia. If not, you're starving the bacteria that are trying so desperately to grow. When you add ammonia and your level drops to zero the next day and you're getting nitrite readings you still need to add ammonia. You can only quit when you add ammonia and immediately after you ammonia and nitrite readings are zero and your nitrate readings are off the chart. Then, you do a large water change and add fish.

The fish then add the ammonia for you to keep feeding the bacteria.

 

[EmptyH]

The Ammonia is alread at 2 I was afraid if I added more there would be too much. How could the bacteria be starving if there is already 2ppm of Ammonia?

 

[Purrbox]

If you've got Nitrite readings you should be having to dose Ammonia on a daily basis to keep them readable, otherwise the bacteria that convert Ammonia to Nitrite could starve. Ammonia of 2ppm is definately not too high. I doubt that 2ppm of Nitrite is too high either. You know that they are too high when they're off the top of your test kit chart.

How long total have you been cycling the tank?

What is the current temp of the tank? If you haven't already, you could boost the temp to the mid 80's to speed things along. Just make sure to turn it back down before adding fish.

What type of test kit are you using? If it's test strips, your kit may have gone bad and started giving you false readings. Liquid reagent kits are much more accurate and reliable.

Good Luck!

 

[crazyred]

Every article that I've read on fishless states that you have to keep adding ammonia until the cycle is complete (ammonia used up right away, no nitrites, and high nitrates) I would imagine that that ammonia level is not enough to coninue feeding the bacteria and there has been some die off. Here's a good article

http://www.tropicalfishcentre.co.uk/Fishlesscycle.htm

Actually, this article is my favorite!!

http://www.aquatic-hobbyist.com/profiles/misc/fishlesscycling.html

 

[Macrosill]

Keep adding ammonia. I had a stalled cycle for a few weeks. Once I added more ammonia, through two more shrimp bringing the total to 4 ina 55 gal, the cycle took off and i was done in about two more weeks. Due to the stall the cycle took me 10 weeks.

Good luck,
Brian

 

[EmptyH]

Thanks I will add some more ammonia and hopefully get things moving again

 

[Guest]

in a normal cycle ammonia can reach levels of 4-8ppm without stalling the cycle.

 

[Macrosill]

in a normal cycle ammonia can reach levels of 4-8ppm without stalling the cycle.

Fishless of course, that ammonia level would kill any fish.

Just a little clarafication for anyone new to the hobby.

 

[Guest]

but you do have to continue to add ammonia to keep those levels up otherwise you will take forever to cycle becuase your bacteria won't have enough food to establish a good colony