Nearing end of cycle, some questions

[DavidK]

I'm about 7-8 weeks into my cycle and I think I'm getting close to done. Still have three tetras that have survived the cycle just fine and don't show any signs of stress.

My amonia levels dropped to 0.0 a couple of weeks ago but my nitrite seems to be stalled at .25 ppm and my nitrates are at 20 ppm. Last week I also began to see some algae starting to form on the rock structure I have in the tank.

Does it sound like things are progressing normally or is the algae a sign that I need to do something? Also do I need to do something to facilitate the moving nitrites down to 0?

 

[severum mama]

It is normal for the nitrite spike to last longer than the ammonia spike, don't worry. Just keep changing water when nitrites creep up over .25 ppm. It sounds like you are almost done, and eventually your nitrite will drop to 0 and your nitrates will increase. Is the algae brown? If so it is likely diatoms, very normal in a new setup and generally will go away on its own. It is so hard to be patient at this point but you are almost there! Good luck.

 

[EmptyH]

What color is the algae? I have seen a brown/rust algae near the end of the three tanks that I have cycled. I think that is normal. If it is not the brown/rust algae then I am not sure. What kind of lights do you have on the tank? Is it in direct sunlight?

 

[DavidK]

The algae is actually green. There is not a lot of it an it appears to be only on the one large rock in my landscape right now. My light is a single bulb in the hood (don't recall the wattage) and the tank is not in a position where it gets sunlight.

 

[EmptyH]

Sounds like everything is doing real well. I wouldn't worry about the algae if there is just a little bit it won't harm anything. After your tank has been cycle a few weeks you might want to look into some ottos or maybe a clown pleco to clean the algae.