My fishless cycle

[eco23]

Hi, just checked my ph..it's close to 6. What happened? Is my tank cycled or not? What do I do next? LMK. Thanks.

pH crash. Fairly common at the end of cycles in low alkalinity water. Did you ever add that crushed coral I recommended before?

Do a massive water change to restore the natural value of your tap water, and test the bio-filter a couple more times to make sure the pH crash didn't negatively effect the bacteria.

There's a section in the article in my signature about pH crashes and how to handle them.

 

[eco23]

I just saw your edit...so the ammonia has not moved since you last dosed it up? If not, the crash most likely stunned the bacteria, and it can take a couple days to recover. You'll just need to wait it out and make sure pH stays stable. This is why it's important to buffer the water while cycling in low alkalinity situations IMO.

 

[giants1249er]

pH crash. Fairly common at the end of cycles in low alkalinity water. Did you ever add that crushed coral I recommended before?

Do a massive water change to restore the natural value of your tap water, and test the bio-filter a couple more times to make sure the pH crash didn't negatively effect the bacteria.

There's a section in the article in my signature about pH crashes and how to handle them.

I was planning to get some aragonite sand from the lfs (they sell it by the pound) but the ph became stable so i figured I didn't need it. Should I still get some? I just did a 85-90% pwc.

 

[eco23]

I was planning to get some aragonite sand from the lfs (they sell it by the pound) but the ph became stable so i figured I didn't need it. Should I still get some? I just did a 85-90% pwc.

Has the pH been stable in the other tank? You're pretty much done with this one (it'll probably take a couple days to recover from the crash), but the problem is pH crashes can still happen even after a tank is cycled. In that case it's potentially devastating for any fish in the tank. If the pH in the other tank has been pretty stable it may not be worth worrying about. If you still see fluctuations in the level, using a small mesh bag of crushed coral in the filter can be a great safeguard to prevent pH crashes and fluctuations in the long run.

Just make sure you keep an eye on pH in both the tanks whether they're stocked or still cycling. Normally a good water change routine can solve the issue once the tank has fish.

 

[giants1249er]

Has the pH been stable in the other tank? You're pretty much done with this one (it'll probably take a couple days to recover from the crash), but the problem is pH crashes can still happen even after a tank is cycled. In that case it's potentially devastating for any fish in the tank. If the pH in the other tank has been pretty stable it may not be worth worrying about. If you still see fluctuations in the level, using a small mesh bag of crushed coral in the filter can be a great safeguard to prevent pH crashes and fluctuations in the long run.

Just make sure you keep an eye on pH in both the tanks whether they're stocked or still cycling. Normally a good water change routine can solve the issue once the tank has fish.

The ph has been stable in the other tank when I've checked it. I just buy a small amount of aragonite sand just to have in case I need it. Ph should be good in the other tank since I've been doing pwc multiple times daily. Thanks for the help.

 

[giants1249er]

9/22/11
ammo 0 - redosed to 4ppm
nitrite 1
ph 7.6

 

[giants1249er]

Just bought some aragonite sand from the lfs. Do I still need to put some in the tank even though the ph is 7.6?

 

[eco23]

Just bought some aragonite sand from the lfs. Do I still need to put some in the tank even though the ph is 7.6?

You might as well. That will ensure the pH stays stable so your cycle can finish smoothly. Stick it in a mesh bag or an unwashed stocking so you have the choice to remove it before adding fish.

I wouldn't add any to the tank with fish though. You don't want to suddenly shift the pH and shock them.

 

[giants1249er]

I rinsed the aragonite sand with tank water and put it in a mesh bag and put it near the filter.
9/23/11 results:
ammo 0 - redosed to 4
nitrite 1
nitrate not tested
ph 7.6

 

[giants1249er]

Today's results:
ammo 0 - redosed to 4
nitrite 1
nitrate not tested
ph 7.4

35 days (5 weeks) of cycling.

 

[giants1249er]

9/25/11
ammo 0 - redosed to 4
nitrite 1
nitrate not tested
ph 7.0 - pwc done...later measured at 7.6

9/26/11
ammo 0 - redosed to 4
nitrite 1
nitrate not tested
ph 7.6

 

[giants1249er]

9/27/11
ammo 0 - redosed to 4
nitrite 1
nitrate not tested
ph 7.6

I guess I'm not cycled...yet.

 

[giants1249er]

9/28/11
ammo 0 - redose to 4
nitrite 1
nitrates not tested
ph 7.0

 

[giants1249er]

9/28/11
ammo 0 - redosed to 4
nitrite 1
nitrates not tested
ph 7.0

 

[librarygirl]

You're dropping 4 ppm of ammonia every day which is excellent. Nitrites should be starting to spike. Is the PH out of your tap 7.6? If the PH falls any lower than 7 I'd do a water change to get it back up as lower PH can affect the bacteria. Otherwise it's going well; if nitrites don't start to spike soon we'll have to figure out why. Are you using seeded media from another established tank?

 

[giants1249er]

You're dropping 4 ppm of ammonia every day which is excellent. Nitrites should be starting to spike. Is the PH out of your tap 7.6? If the PH falls any lower than 7 I'd do a water change to get it back up as lower PH can affect the bacteria. Otherwise it's going well; if nitrites don't start to spike soon we'll have to figure out why. Are you using seeded media from another established tank?

The ph is the tank's ph reading. My tap ph is 7.6. i will doing a pwc later tonight. I do have a mesh bag of aragonite sand in the tank. I am not using seeded media. The weird thing is my nitrite levels had a light blue color before (see post #34 and on) and then my ph went down. By the time, I got it up, I started getting results similar to the last few days. Do you think my other tank ("high nitrite level" thread) is cycled?

 

[giants1249er]

Just got a surprise today.....
ammo 0
nitrite 0
nitrate between 40-80 (hard to tell..somewhere in between)
ph 7.6
redosing ammo to 4

Doing a about 40% pwc....

 

[giants1249er]

Looking good so far today....
ammo 0
nitrite 0
nitrate 40
ph 7.6
redose ammo to 4 + pinch of fish food

 

[librarygirl]

Looks good. Interesting that nitrites were 1 and then went back down. Hm....I'd keep dosing and see what happens over the next few days. No need to do a pwc unless PH falls below 7.

 

[giants1249er]

ammo 0
nitrite 0
nitrate 40
ph 7.6

3rd straight day of same results.