ThomasG07
Aquarium Advice Freak
- Joined
- Jul 16, 2012
- Messages
- 253
After a 50 gallon is cycled, how long should it take for the tank to build up to let's say 20 ppm nitrates
ThomasG07 said:After a 50 gallon is cycled, how long should it take for the tank to build up to let's say 20 ppm nitrates
shellieca said:You should have nitrates before the cycle has completed, ammonia ~ nitrites ~ nitrates. As for how high your nitrates will be depends on stocking, filtration, etc.
ThomasG07 said:I mean after it is cycled and I do a water change. How quickly should nitrates accumulate
ThomasG07 said:I mean after it is cycled and I do a water change. How quickly should nitrates accumulate
librarygirl said:With all of those fish, most of which have pretty heavy bioloads, you should be seeing some nitrate. What test kit are you using? STrips aren't very accurate. The API kit is finnicky and needs to be done correctly or else you can get false readings. Shake and bang both nitrate bottles for 30 seconds then after adding the amount of drops to the tube (be sure you add the drops in the right order) shake the tube vigorously for 60 seconds then wait a full 5 minutes for the results.
FYI you're going to have problems with your stocking:
Red tailed black sharks should be kept alone; they are aggressive with their own species, so eventually it's likely one will kill the other.
You shouldn't mix Gourami types: the OPalines are likely to go after the dwarfs or vice versa
Common plecos can grow up to 18+ inches. I'd rehome it now as your tank size and filtration aren't enough to sustain this fish.