I think my fishless cycle has stalled, help!!

[TeamTIV02]

I am new to the site. This is my first post on here. I was wondering if someone could help me.

I bought a 60 gallon fish tank a few months ago. I have been trying to use the fishless cycle so i can finally get some fish. I started the cycle on 10/19/12 and as of 11/09/12 I'm still in the process of cycling it.

I have been testing it pretty much everyday since I started. I raised the temp to 80-84 degrees F. I have a 3 stage filter and i cranked up the bubbles. I read that is the best way to help keep the cycle going. I seeded my tank with a fake plant from my established tank downstairs. I also added a microscopic amount of flake fish food to give the bacteria nutrients (I also read this was best).

The part I am having trouble with is I think the cycle has stalled. Here is the chemistry of the water currently:

pH-6.4
Ammonia-1 ppm
Nitrites and Nitrates-0 ppm

It has been that way for the past few days no matter what I do to it. I put some "proper pH" that i bought from Petsmart. I add at least 2-3ppm of ammonia everyday and neither will go up. Also I can't get my nitrites and ammonia to convert to nitrates. Could use some help with that.

Up until now the pH has been about 7. The ammonia, nitrites, and nitrates has all gone up and down. There are currently no fish in the tank. Just artificial rocks and plants.

The chemistry of my Tap Water is:

pH-8.4
ammonia-.5 ppm
Nitrites and Nitrates-0 ppm.

When I add new water after some has evaporated I put some water conditioner in there get rid of the chlorine and chloramines

I want to do a PWC but I read that you shouldn't do that because it would mess up the cycle.

Thanks for your time in advance. Any advice would help.

 

[BlaseMrNiceguy]

I would do a 50% change its kind of a myth that changing the water will hurt the cycle there is very little beneficial bacteria in the water column itself its mostly attached to your decor and filter. Even doibg a gravel vac shouldnt really hurt the bacteria sticks and sticks hard. Over tine the water will loose the things needed to keep the ph thus part of the need for water changes. Of course add your dechlorinator. This should help bring your ph up if not there are other natural ways of doing most frown upon useing chemicals.

 

[shellieca]

I would do a 50% change its kind of a myth that changing the water will hurt the cycle there is very little beneficial bacteria in the water column itself its mostly attached to your decor and filter. Even doibg a gravel vac shouldnt really hurt the bacteria sticks and sticks hard. Over tine the water will loose the things needed to keep the ph thus part of the need for water changes. Of course add your dechlorinator. This should help bring your ph up if not there are other natural ways of doing most frown upon useing chemicals.

+1, it may have stalled because your Ph is on the low side. Doing a water change will bring it up,to your tap water Ph which is more where you want it. Also, don't wait to add the water conditioner as the chlorine, if I'm not mistaken, can kill your BB.

 

[Coco1019]

Yeah, I had the same thing happen to me. My pH started to tank, around 6-6.2. I added 2T of crushed coral to a media bag and placed that in the housing (a 10 gallon tank). The next day when I tested the pH it was 7.4.

Once that happened, my cycle started moving again.

 

[TeamTIV02]

Thanks for the replies guys. In a few days I'll update you on my tank and let you know if it worked. I'm sure it will.

 

[librarygirl]

Do a good sized water change to get PH back up; the PH drop is likely why the cycle is stalling. Also are you adding just fish food or are you adding pure ammonia also? Here's a calculator that will tell you how much ammonia to add (scroll down to the part where it says ammonia calculator): Calculator What test kit are you using?

 

[TeamTIV02]

I don't know what else to do. I put about 1/4 lb of crushed coral. The day before I did a 50% water change. My pH still won't go up. It's still 6.4. I think it may have gone up to 6.5 or 6.6 but I can't tell. Any more suggestions?

 

[phishfriend]

You may need to add more coral because of the size of your tank. Put it in media bag and either stick in in your filter or place it in an area that has good water flow.

 

[TeamTIV02]

That's a good idea. I just put 2 small media bags (one for each side) into my filter. I'll update in a few days. BTW i just checked my results again and my pH actually is 6.6, higher but not as high I want it to be)

 

[librarygirl]

Have you left a glass of tap water out for 24 hours and then tested PH again? If not, try it. Sometimes PH can shift after the water degasses. Out of the tap my water is 8.4 PH but then it outgasses to 7.2 which is what my tank's PH is. Your tap could be bottoming out to the mid-6's which won't be too good for the cycle so more coral would help. If it's higher than the mid-6's after leaving it out for 24 hours then the cycle is causing PH to drop in which case the coral can help as well and/or to raise it faster you could do a larger water change and try to add enough coral to keep it at the level it outgasses to. (I hope that made sense lol).

 

[TeamTIV02]

I checked my tank again on Wednesday (11/14/12) and my pH was back upto 6.6-6.8. I went ahead and added some ammonia so that could get started back up. That was .50ppm when i checked it. Nitrite and Nitrate were still at 0ppm when i checked it Wednesday I'll check it again today when I get home. I'll update again then.

 

[TeamTIV02]

Ok, so here are my numbers as of 11-16-12:

pH=6.8
Ammonia=4.0ppm
Nitrite=0ppm
and
Nitrate=0ppm(dark yellow but not yellow-orange)


I don't know if my nitrites are just taking a while to form but I put ammonia in there 2 days ago. Then the pH was 6.6.


Any help? Or am I just being inpatient?

 

[Coco1019]

How much crushed coral do you have I there now total?

 

[TeamTIV02]

Um... I would say about 1-1 1/2 lb. It's 2 bags about the size of a fist and 2 bags(in the filter) that are about the size of a small orange

 

[Coco1019]

You're not rinsing out the filters are you?

What was your pH after you gassed it?

 

[TeamTIV02]

No I'm not rinsing them off.

I haven't gassed it yet. I'm not sure what that is exactly. Is that leaving the viles out for 24 hrs? If so should I do 1 of tap and 1 for the tank itself? Also, cap or no cap? (Just wondering)

(Sorry if I sound like an idiot. Not real good with the whole thing yet)

 

[librarygirl]

If you've been trying to cycle for over a month and nitrites and ammonia levels have gone up and down I'm suspecting the PH drops are stalling things. Mid-6's is pretty low for the cycle; the bacteria like it at least around 7+. So you did have nitrites at some point? For how long and how high did they get? What size tank and what filter do you have?

To check the tap water as it gasses out, leave a glass of water out for 24 hours (stir it up occasionally) and then test the PH again after 24 hours; this is what your "true" PH is and what your tank's PH should be. If it's higher than the PH in the tank now then the cycle is causing the PH to fall which is also stalling the cycle.

Try doing a full water change, wait an hour or two, then check levels again. Try to get the PH up at least over 7. If you have coral in the filters, squeeze the bags to release some of the calcium in the coral which should help stabilize the PH some.

Then only dose ammonia to 2 and keep a glass of water out for 24 hours. At the 24 hour mark tomorrow, let us know what the glass of water's PH is and what the levels in the tank are for ammonia, PH etc. Also for the nitrate test, if you're using the API kit, shake and bang both bottles for 30 seconds and then make sure you're adding the drops from the bottles in the right order. Then shake the tube vigorously for 60 seconds and wait 5 mins for the results; the nitrate test can cause false readings if not done correctly.

 

[TeamTIV02]

Yes, a few weeks ago I had nitrites. They got up to 2ppm and they stopped there for a several days (almost a week). Then they dropped down to 0 over a period of 2 days. I have a 60 gallon Marineland Tank. The filter is for 30-60 gallons. It's a Tetra.

 

[TeamTIV02]

I just checked my tank again!!! I have nitrites and nitrates!!!! They are not very high but there is some in there. pH is still around 6.6-6.8 and the ammonia went down to 2.0 ppm. But the nitrites are .25ppm and the nitrates are 5ppm!

 

[Coco1019]

Awesome! Maybe it's getting settled again?