I started my fishless cycle on 10/21/11...about 6 weeks ago.
Ever since the 2nd-3rd week of cycling, I've have about .5-1ppm of Nitrite with no real fluxuation....it's been stuck, however, my ammonia drops down to about 1ppm before I dose it back up to 4ppm.
Some More Info:
I decided to test my pH today...it was about an 8.2. I did a PWC (50%) to see if I could lower the pH and maybe help out my cycle, it only brought the pH down to about 8.0.
My tap water is about 7.8
I think I'm stuck somehow, but I'm not sure. I'm new to all this, but I've picked up on it all pretty quickly.
What do you think? I'm worried because the Nitrates haven't changed in a few weeks as well as not having a single hint of Nitrate.
Ever since the 2nd-3rd week of cycling, I've have about .5-1ppm of Nitrite with no real fluxuation....it's been stuck, however, my ammonia drops down to about 1ppm before I dose it back up to 4ppm.
Some More Info:
- I have never had a single trace of Nitrates.
- I run the heater and filter 24/7...tank is about 82F all the time...can't get any higher with what I have
- I test every 2 days. I lose about 3L (3/4 Gal) every 2 days due to evaporation (tank doesn't have a lid...Fluval Chi)
- The water has been cloudy for about 2 weeks
- I couldn't get my hands on any seeding material
- I'm using pure ammonia (well, 10% solution with water - Ace Hardware stuff) with no sufficient, dies, or scents (passes the shake test)
- Every time I add water to my tank (every 2 days), I add some Prime in the correct ratio (5mL/200L = .5mL/19L[5gal] = 0.075mL/3L [lost water]) = 0.025mL Prime to dechlorinate the added water.
I decided to test my pH today...it was about an 8.2. I did a PWC (50%) to see if I could lower the pH and maybe help out my cycle, it only brought the pH down to about 8.0.
My tap water is about 7.8
I think I'm stuck somehow, but I'm not sure. I'm new to all this, but I've picked up on it all pretty quickly.
What do you think? I'm worried because the Nitrates haven't changed in a few weeks as well as not having a single hint of Nitrate.