Started my fishless cycle!
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I did another large wc yesterday, at least 90%, and tested my nitrites afterwards and they were either 2 or 5ppm. So i did nothing else. This morning my results are: ammo 0, nitrite 5.0ppm, nitrates look like 10ppm (started w/5ppm) and Ph 7.6 ....
jlk
Aquarium Advice Addict
Ok! We have some forward movement of the nitrites! We just need them to move fwd a bit faster (lol)! Dont be alarmed-leave everything as it is for another day (no amm). Your bb will not die off from a day or two (or even multiple days) of no food. Lets see if the nitrites/nitrates look any different tommorrow & we will go from there! 
librarygirl
Look It Up
Looks good!The nitrite phase is the longest of the phases and can last up to 3 weeks on average;it's normal for nitrites to rise high during cycling. There's some debate on whether insanely high nitrites can stall a cycle but I don't know how high they have to go in order to do it. Your seem pretty high so the pwc were a good idea. Nitrite after 9 days is exceptional, so I'm wondering if the sand was playing a role. Did it come with a packet of bacteria that you used or was the sand wet when you bought it? Unfortunately sometimes those bacteria products contain the wrong bacteria which can actually outcompete the bacteria you really want. No way to know if that's happening, it's early and your readings are good, we'll see what happens. So your nitrates are 10? Usually they should be rising; nitrite is converted to nitrate, so it seems your ammonia to nitrite conversion is happening but then getting stuck. No worries though it's still early. Also shake both nitrate bottles very well (and #2 for the entire 30 seconds) and bang both botttles on a hard surface a few times; bottle #2 has a reagent powder in it that can get clumped and cause false readings. Then shake the tube vigorously for the full 60 seconds.
Edit: oops jlk beat me to it. I was going to suggest redosing but maybe jlk has the better idea, so let's hold off for today.
jlk
Aquarium Advice Addict
Thanks for asking!! Progress? Well, i have a great set of amm>nitrite bb but the nitrites (as usual) do not want to move! Doing some experimentation to see how else to approach this thus my rec to skip the amm for a day (or longer) to see if theres fwd movement. It gives us an idea if something is actually happening here! Ive got about 2 wks before this switches to a fish-in cycle because I want to get 2 new fish in March from a private breeder (he only sells them 2x a year- march & october). I have some media to play around with but i am trying this cycle the hard way (from scratch). So, we will see what happens!
Good luck jlk and i hope your cycle works out the way you want!! My results today are: ammo 0, nitrites are starting to turn pinker than 5.0ppm and nitrates are10ppm. I'm going outside to read these as the results are slightly different inside, not direct sun just the brightness
jlk
Aquarium Advice Addict
Ok! Go ahead & dose some amm & we will have to wait out these nitrites! Your ph is staying stable, correct?
jlk
Aquarium Advice Addict
Dose it 2-3 (not quite a full 4ppm) & we will see how things look tommorrow!
Hi! I dosed 3ml of ammo yesterday and this morning my results are: ammo 2ppm, nitrites are more pink than purple again, nitrates are darker than 20 but not 40 (that's being outside. Under kitchen lighting they are 40) and ph7.6. Hmmmmm, which lighting should i go by?
jlk
Aquarium Advice Addict
Ok! Most of these tests are a pain in the rear because theres such a fine distinction between colors! Your seeing nitrates & thats what is important! Let skip dosing for tonight & see how things look tommorrow!
jlk
Aquarium Advice Addict
Stop worrying! As long as you can detect drops in amm (and eventually drops in nitrite), your fine! As your nitrates increase, you will see the tube turn more red though the darker shades of red look all the same, too!
boadams87
Aquarium Advice Addict
Justme68 said:
Just dose it back to 4. Has the ph dropped any? If it drops it can stall the cycle but at 7.6 it looks ok
boadams87
Aquarium Advice Addict
Justme68 said:
Just keep dosing it to 4 until trites are zero and ammonia 0 out in 24 hrs
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