1st time Cycle stuck?

[Ruffers99]

ok did wc, tested again, doesn't look too different so the trites must have been way over 5 ... going to leave till tomorrow and test when i get back in after work. hopefully it will start coming down in the next day or so and i start seeing the trates? will does ammo again on Sat/Sun?

Dalto and everyone, just wanted to say thanks for helping out through my first fish-less cycle. I wanted to ask, based off of my last results post the 30% wc. Do I still go ahead and dose the ammo back up to 2ppm tomorrow to keep the bb happy, even though my nitrites haven't come down and I haven't seen any nitrates yet?

thanks in advance!

 

[tiger terror]

This opinion differs from my success with prior fishless cycles..I never once stopped dosing up the ammo&in every case my nitrite levels bottomed out as the bacteria reached mature levels...I've only ever done one huge water change at the end of the cycle to bring the nitrates down to reasonable levels..this being my personal experience in the process I've completed without fail...remember bb needs an ammonia source which to feed on,I wouldn't go more than a couple days without dosing ammo for fear of starving the bb out that convert ammo to nitrite..the more you feed the bb the larger the colonies grow...

My opinion and experience are based off my post above. So since you've not completed the cycle the bacteria will need a food source, thus the reasoning for dosing the ammonia levels where they need to be.

Sent from my HTC Desire 610 using Aquarium Advice mobile app

 

[Ruffers99]

My opinion and experience are based off my post above. So since you've not completed the cycle the bacteria will need a food source, thus the reasoning for dosing the ammonia levels where they need to be.

Sent from my HTC Desire 610 using Aquarium Advice mobile app

ok thanks Tiger, I was just torn between trying to get the nitrite level down to a point where I could measure the value before I re-dosed, but if we don't need to do that I will just add more ammo tomorrow am to get me up to around 2ppm?

 

[dalto]

remember bb needs an ammonia source which to feed on,I wouldn't go more than a couple days without dosing ammo for fear of starving the bb out that convert ammo to nitrite

So since you've not completed the cycle the bacteria will need a food source, thus the reasoning for dosing the ammonia levels where they need to be.

It actually takes weeks for the bacteria to die off like that.

That being said, it actually won't hurt anything to keep dosing daily. It will just cause the nitrite spike to be larger.

A too large nitrite spike will stall the cycle. I am not sure where that exact amount is but probably above 8ppm. The problem is the test kits most of us use don't read that high which is why I recommend keeping it lower.

Dalto and everyone, just wanted to say thanks for helping out through my first fish-less cycle. I wanted to ask, based off of my last results post the 30% wc. Do I still go ahead and dose the ammo back up to 2ppm tomorrow to keep the bb happy, even though my nitrites haven't come down and I haven't seen any nitrates yet?

thanks in advance!

I would go ahead and dose again every 2-3 days until nitrite goes away. Doing water changes everytime nitrite get too high. Also, unless it is burdensome for you feel free to a larger water change. You might not have to do them as frequently that way.

 

[Ruffers99]

I would go ahead and dose again every 2-3 days until nitrite goes away. Doing water changes everytime nitrite get too high. Also, unless it is burdensome for you feel free to a larger water change. You might not have to do them as frequently that way.

ok thanks Dalto, so based on my test last night after the 30% wc you can see that the nitrites are probably over the highest measurement?
Do I need to keep changing or do a larger change to get the nitrites back down to where I can measure it against the chart, THEN dose w/ammo?

 

[dalto]

ok thanks Dalto, so based on my test last night after the 30% wc you can see that the nitrites are probably over the highest measurement?
Do I need to keep changing or do a larger change to get the nitrites back down to where I can measure it against the chart, THEN dose w/ammo?

Yes, do the water change before dosing or you will remove part of the ammonia you just added.

Once again, feel free to do a bigger change. Even if the nitrite falls to 1ppm or less the rate at which you are converting ammonia->nitrite is so much higher than nitrite->nitrate that you are going to have big nitrites again as long as you are dosing ammonia.

 

[Ruffers99]

ok, will work on that in a short while, going to go for a 60% wc, then leave it for 30 minutes, test again and if the nitrites are scale-able, dose up to 2ppm.

According to my ammo dosage calc its about 6ml.
will post back w/results. thanks

 

[Ruffers99]

ok, so did a 60% wc last night dosed w/prime to tank volume. left it about an hour then dosed 6ml ammo.

Here are the results as of testing this morning. looks like my nitrates are on the move also? hoping i am over the half way hump ...


figure im going to let it go today and test again tomorrow with a possible 30% wc to keep the nitrates down? what do you think??

 

[dalto]

You don't need to worry about keeping nitrates down. Just ammonia and nitrites. That being said, a day after a 60% water change your nitrates should not have shot up like that.

I would do another test and make surer the first one was accurate.

 

[trennamw]

6ml of ammonia would raise ammonia levels in your tank about 2ppm. Just wanted to throw that out there in case ammonia wasn't zero before you dosed.


Sent from my iPhone with three hands tied behind my back.

 

[Ruffers99]

You don't need to worry about keeping nitrates down. Just ammonia and nitrites. That being said, a day after a 60% water change your nitrates should not have shot up like that.

I would do another test and make surer the first one was accurate.

Yeah it wasn't that dark directly after the wc, but about an hour after the test and wc, i added 6ml of ammo to bring it up to about 2ppm.

and as of this mornings test the ammo has dropped slightly so I thought that hike in nitrites was due to the new ammo being processed?

Should I do another wc then? if I do it will prob cut my ammo down < 1ppm ?

Whatever you think I should do next I will follow your suggestions.

 

[Ruffers99]

6ml of ammonia would raise ammonia levels in your tank about 2ppm. Just wanted to throw that out there in case ammonia wasn't zero before you dosed.


Sent from my iPhone with three hands tied behind my back.

yeah it was 0, intended to dose up to 2, but thanks for checking trennamw!

 

[dalto]

and as of this mornings test the ammo has dropped slightly so I thought that hike in nitrites was due to the new ammo being processed?

It is

Your nitrItes are just where I would expect them to be. Your nitrAtes are what I find odd.

 

[Ruffers99]

It is

Your nitrItes are just where I would expect them to be. Your nitrAtes are what I find odd.

i thought it may have just been an elevation due to the nitrites starting to be processed? could be a color thing though .. which is why i posted the pic of the results, just in case you saw it as a slightly different color than i did.

 

[dalto]

i thought it may have just been an elevation due to the nitrites starting to be processed? could be a color thing though .. which is why i posted the pic of the results, just in case you saw it as a slightly different color than i did.

Yeah, I can't tell from that angle. It does look fairly dark to me.

Unfortunately, that would be way too much growth in nitrAtes to account for the beginning of the consumption of nitrItes. Especially since you had just done a large water change.

When you do your next test lets see if nitrates looks lower.

 

[Ruffers99]

Yeah, I can't tell from that angle. It does look fairly dark to me.

Unfortunately, that would be way too much growth in nitrAtes to account for the beginning of the consumption of nitrItes. Especially since you had just done a large water change.

When you do your next test lets see if nitrates looks lower.

ok sounds good, so leave as is for today and just run tests again tomorrow evening. sound ok?

Thanks Dalto!

 

[dalto]

ok sounds good, so leave as is for today and just run tests again tomorrow evening. sound ok?

Thanks Dalto!

Yep, sounds perfect.

 

[Ruffers99]

Yep, sounds perfect.

word .. thx Cpt

 

[tiger terror]

Ruffers99,

I've just completed my fishless cycle in 9 days total..even though my nitrites were off the charts between days 7&9 it began to show signs of change before completely bottoming the morning of day 9...I stand by the process passed on to me by not interfering in the cycle(pwc's)&continue dosing ammo until nitrites drop out..To me it's about consistency&patience..good look&hope your cycle completes sooner than later..

Getcha feet wet fish tank people!

 

[tiger terror]

Removed

Getcha feet wet fish tank people!