Here we go

[Rendao]

Added ammonia to tank last night. 4 parts per million. Really hope this works so I can go back to my LFS and tell him he now knows someone who has successfully cycled a fishless tank. Even managed to get a nice piece of dirty old filter from my now new favourite LFS. PH 7.8, tank still cloudy but seems to be improving slightly over the last few days. Will test for ammo, trates and trites this evening.

 

[librarygirl]

Awesome, good luck!

 

[Hholly]

Great! Good luck!

 

[Rendao]

Ammo 3, ph 7.6. Will check it again tomorrow.

 

[Rendao]

ammo 3, ph7.6. Water noticeably clearer. Ah the waiting game begins!!

Night all.

 

[Rendao]

No change tonight!

 

[swimwithme]

Patience is key to fishless cycling but it is well worth it. Wish you the best!

 

[Rendao]

Mum still no change - hope things happen soon, want some fish......

 

[swimwithme]

It took me 3 months to get fish. Just ask Libraygirl. I think hers took almost 4 mos. But these are probably the worst case scenarios. Just be patient. A good suggestion made to me was to start adding some live plants. Gives you something to take care of so to speak while you're waiting on your tank to cycle.

 

[Rendao]

It took me 3 months to get fish. Just ask Libraygirl. I think hers took almost 4 mos. But these are probably the worst case scenarios. Just be patient. A good suggestion made to me was to start adding some live plants. Gives you something to take care of so to speak while you're waiting on your tank to cycle.

Not sure if I have that kind of patience, but I have ordered some plants, which with a bit of luck should arrive tomorrow! 3 to 4 months deserves a patience medal. How is your tank now?

 

[Mumma.of.two]

6 weeks is usually the average. Less if you have seeded media.

 

[swimwithme]

Not sure if I have that kind of patience, but I have ordered some plants, which with a bit of luck should arrive tomorrow! 3 to 4 months deserves a patience medal. How is your tank now?

It's doing pretty good. I have 4 German Blues and 8 Long Finned Tetras. I am looking at getting some panda corys, just trying to find some. Here is a pic of a few of my rams.

 

[LyndaB]

Normal cycling time is 4-6 weeks..... you can hang in there. Kudos for going fishless!!!!

 

[swimwithme]

Normal cycling time is 4-6 weeks..... you can hang in there. Kudos for going fishless!!!!

Agreed! You can do it. I tried not to focus on it too much and let it do it's thang. I also have a 10 month old so she keeps me pretty busy....

 

[Rendao]

It's doing pretty good. I have 4 German Blues and 8 Long Finned Tetras. I am looking at getting some panda corys, just trying to find some. Here is a pic of a few of my rams.

Nice tank, love the funky coloured gravel. Pics are good too. Plants arriving tomorrow, will do set of water tests before I put them in.

 

[librarygirl]

I think mine and some others were exceptional cases, not the norm. On average it should take about a month or so. Ammonia typically starts dropping around week 2. If you can get some seeded media it would help speed things along. There's a site online that sells seeded sponge filters if you want to try one. It'll be worth the wait in the end.

 

[Rendao]

I think mine and some others were exceptional cases, not the norm. On average it should take about a month or so. Ammonia typically starts dropping around week 2. If you can get some seeded media it would help speed things along. There's a site online that sells seeded sponge filters if you want to try one. It'll be worth the wait in the end.

Managed to get some actually a couple of days ago ( friendly LFS). Looking forward to getting the rocks and plants.

 

[Rendao]

Ok this morning ammo down to 1/1.5, so topped it up to 4 again. pH up to 8.1, will keep an eye on it but think if it doesn't get much higher then it's ok, he said really asking a question!

 

[swimwithme]

Ok this morning ammo down to 1/1.5, so topped it up to 4 again. pH up to 8.1, will keep an eye on it but think if it doesn't get much higher then it's ok, he said really asking a question!

Your PH should be ok. Doesn't looked like it increased all that much from what your PH was at the beginning of the thread. Just keep an eye on it in case there was a dramatic drop. If that happens, do a water change to get it back up to the 7.8 - 8.0 range.

 

[Rendao]

Plants arrived. Not sure what they are, but have rigged up the CO2, one bubble every four seconds and fed them some flourish.