Cycling after only 3 days?

[starquest]

Just got the temp up to 79° on Sunday, in my new 50G tank, so I dosed it to 4 ppm NH3. On Monday, there was a trace of trites; on Tues trites were up to 3; and today they were bright purple, so I tested trate, and I think they were >80. I only seeded it with a fake plant and a rock from the old tank. Does this even seem possible?

 

[Ice Man]

Test your tap water with API master kit for ammonia, nitrites and nitrates and then compare with water from your tank.
I was doing fishless cycle but instead of ammonia I was dosing fish food every three days. I got my master kit 2 week after starting and first test showed 0 ammonia, 0 nitrites, but 80 nitrates. Looked like cycle was done! I was Wrong! My tap water contains around 40 ppm nitrates. That confused me a lot. So test your tap water! Good luck with cycling, I know how frustrating that might be.

 

[Ice Man]

Btw. It seems very little possible that with amount of seeded material you got it started cycling in 3 days.

 

[starquest]

Btw. It seems very little possible that with amount of seeded material you got it started cycling in 3 days.

I know! That's the reason that I am asking here on the forum. But, BTW, I tested the tap water on Sunday, just to be sure where I was, and it tested the same as always: NH3 - 0, NO2 - 0, NO3-0, so I'm feeling kind of lost. It isn't making any sense to me. But thanks for the response.

 

[Ice Man]

It this case you are a lucky one If you added ammonia and already seeing some NO2 and NO3 them it means it is cycling. Just keep it going for at least 2, 3 weeks before adding any fish.

 

[starquest]

Yeah. That's what I was thinking. Probably should do a huge pwc, so I can actually read the results. Thankfully I just got a water changer, or that'd be a lot of buckets.
my substrate is EcoComplete. Think that could have helped?

 

[Ice Man]

Yeah. That's what I was thinking. Probably should do a huge pwc, so I can actually read the results. Thankfully I just got a water changer, or that'd be a lot of buckets.
my substrate is EcoComplete. Think that could have helped?

I don't think that Eco complete had anything to do with it. Just monitor the water parameters once a day for few days. Make sure that bacteria have enough food (NH3) and do pwc 20% every other day. Also use air stone because bb need a lot of oxygen.

 

[starquest]

Update on my cycling today: pH still 8.2, NH3 0 !, NO2 still >5, and LO3 still > than 80. So there's less question in my mind today: the tank IS cycling, and I DO need to do a big pwc today. Dosed the ammo back up to 4 for now.

 

[Wy Renegade]

Sounds like you are on your way!

 

[starquest]

I might as well use this thread as my cycling log:
11/4 pH 8.2, NH3 0, NO2 >5, NO3 >80 60%pwc NH3 added
11/5 pH 8.2, NH3 0, NO2 >25, NO3 40 NH3 added
11/6 pH 8.2, NH3 0, NO2 0,NO3 >40 NH3 added
11/7 pH 8.2, NH3 0, NO2 0, NO3 80 NH3 added
11/8 90% pwc done
pH 7.6, NH3 0, NO2 0, NO3 10-20

So I went ahead and transferred the fish from the 16 gallon to the now cycled 50: that is 1 pleco
1 leaf fish (according to petsmart) it's a leopard ctenopoma, by my research
1 upside down cat
1 clown loach
5 red eyed tetras

Now when we have some cash, I would like to add 2 more clown loaches, and 5 more red eyed tetras. Is that reasonable stocking for a 50? And also I want to plant it with low light plants, until we can afford better plant lighting. Oh, and I have an aqueon 50 HOB and an AC 50 HOB filter until we can afford either a canister or bigger HOB's.
The water has held steady at 0 ammo, 0 trites, and trates <20.

Thanks for reading and for any input....

 

[LyndaB]

What species of pleco do you have?

In my opinion, your 50 gallon tank is going to be too small for 3 clown loaches. They can reach 12 inches in a home aquarium. And they should be kept in groups.

Your leopard ctenopoma will hunt down small fish and eat them.

Your upside down cat should be kept in groups of 3-6.

If it were my tank, I'd rehome the leopard ctenopoma and the clown loach and possibly the pleco, depending on that species.

 

[starquest]

I wish I knew what kind of Pleco he is, but I can't find a match on any websites I have checked. He is about 4 years old and 9 to 10" long. Well I keep trying to add a picture of him, but can't seem to get it up, but I think he may be a sailfin pleco. And the leopard ctenopoma is the same age, and hasn't touched the tetras, isn't even interested in them, since they joined us a few months ago. I would get some more cats, but this guy has a huge lump on his abdomen which I addressed in the health forum a couple months ago, when he first developed it, so I am not sure how long he will be with us. The consensus was that it was some kind of cancer or tumor, not dropsy. He is still going strong though, and loves to eat and play. The clown loach is about 3 to 4" long, and is the same age as the rest of them. These were all purchases made by my daughter 4 years ago, from that infamous lfs, for her 10 gallon tank. I had taken it over from her during the summer, and have finally gotten them into a more appropriate sized tank. Don't think we can go any bigger, because we live in a house on stilts, because its in a 100 year flood plain, and I don't think the floor joists will hold anything bigger than this one.