Strange readings during cycle

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Thanks again mate. I read somewhere that my KH needs to be around 75-100ppm in order to successfully buffer a constant pH in the region of 7.0-7.5. If I'm reading that right, then my KH of 5mg/l (?? 5ppm ??) is WAAAAAY below that level.

Looking forward to another full test tonight - will revert here with the results when I'm completed. I'm at the point now where I may never buy any fish, as the whole "science experiment" vibe is way too much fun, lol!
 
I'm willing to bet that's why a lot of people stick with this "hobby". It's all about science and learning, it's like we are teaching ourselves marine biology as we go.
 
Well, pH back up to 6.5, ammonia still at 5ppm but Ites & Ates have spiked to 0.8 and 40 respectively. Can't seem to get pH above 6.5 though...

Will run another set of tests tomorrow and perhaps add another 50g or so of coral, see if I can break that 7.0 :)
 
So, the readings rollercoaster continues...

NH4 down to 1.5, NO2 up to 1, NO3 steady at 40, KH up to 6, pH down to 6...

Put another 200g of coral in the filter last night (400g total in there now - weighed it all last night and no signs of loss yet) so hopefully can get a decent buffer into the water & get that pH up.

Only problem now is, I'm running out of space in the filter - if i need any more, I may have to put it directly into the tank, and that will just look stoopid! Lol.
 
Got ADA Power Sand & Aquasoil so don't really want to be getting rid of that.

I was thinking about putting a thin layer of sand on my soil, to get rid of that "mud brown" effect, so may swap out the filter coral for coral sand in the tank itself, but then I'll have the issue of replacing the coral sand when its buffering capacity runs out (I think?)

I'll take some more pH readings tonight and see if the extra 200g has made a difference. if not, I'll try hiding an additional batch of coral somewhere in the tank. That'll be the last resort though :/
 
Well, the Aquarium Fairies came on Thursday night; everything seemed to happen at once. Cycle finished, with textbook readings and pH remained stable for 3 days at 6.5 (and has remained there for a further 2 days). Did a 30% PWC and all readings were good afterwards, so added a Siamese Algae Eater yesterday (started to get a bloom) and he's still happy as Larry in there today, with another full set of tests coming back A-Ok.

I'm gonna do another big PWC (50%) tomorrow and clean my filter and, if all's well in another couple days, I'll start adding my tetras and other stock.

Thanks a lot for your help guys, very much appreciated & looking forward to the next stage - keeping stuff alive!
 
IanT76 said:
I'm gonna do another big PWC (50%) tomorrow and clean my filter and, if all's well in another couple days, I'll start adding my tetras and other stock.

I'd be reluctant to clean my filter that soon after cycling. Am not sure of everyone else's take on it but I'd be inclined to leave it as it is for a while and if its absolutely necessary only give the media a quick rinse in tank water (definitely don't use tap water, it'll kill the bacteria)
 
Apologies, that's what I meant - just a rinse out, not a thorough clean ;)
 
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