Ammonia - Wrong Type?

Doing a fishless cycle and I went and bought ammonia to add. I checked the label and it lists only water and ammonium hydroxide. I only now noticed a thread that said to shake it and if it bubbles don't use it. I shook mine and it bubbled up like little soap bubbles. I found a different brand and it doesn't list ingrediants, it is a no name brand from lowlaws but it is non scented plain stuff and no bubbles of any kind when I shake it.
 
So I will switch to the second brand, but have I done anything bad by adding the first type that bubbles?

Possibly. We'll just have to wait and see whether the new stuff causes bacteria to grow. If you don't see any drop in ammonia and rise in nitrite within 2 weeks, then you will need to give the filter media a good clean.

While I never suggest that people follow my lead on this, I can report that the first 50 or so tanks I did a fishless cycle on, I used regular household ammonia that did contain surfactants. I know this goes against everything we read everywhere, even from the scientific community.
 
The thing is when I began using this type of ammonia I had no clue it was an issue. So I dosed ammonia daily (using a drops/10gal. method which is a low level type dosing). But I did two things which changed the equation, imo- regular water changes and running carbon during the cycle. WCs, when performed, were done prior to the daily dosing. And then, when the tank was cycled, I always did a huge water change and then stocked immediately
 
I never had any issues. Moreover in three different tanks over the years which I had assumed were empty of fish i dosed this same ammonia to whole the cycled pending new fish. I mention these because I was forced to stop dosing when I discovered new fry in the tank. The first time it was zebra danios, the second Pseudomugil furcatus and the third Choprae danios. Not only were the surfactants not an issue, but the ammonia itself, at low levels, didn't kill the odd eggs or the fry that hatched out. Of course, I have no clue what the hatch rates were since I had no clue eggs were even present.
 
Like I said, I am not suggesting that anybody do what I did. I have since switched to using ammonium chloride in any case. But my point in relating this is to let the OP know that their short term "mistake" is probably not an issue, especially if it was minimal and there have been water changes and or carbon involved.

I thik I am ok, from the look of this test I have Nitrites starting to appear

Yep, I'd agree with that.

Even better today, so I am going to assume the wrong ammonia was not a big mistake and carry on. Here is my Nitrite reading tonight
 

Definite spiking going on there.