FishFanatic04
I'm in Planted School.
Oh the cycle wasn't the issue. I am just upset because you can do everything right and still have a problem. Live pets and all. If I had chosen to have dogs, they would get fleas. 
A Cycling Log
- Thread starter Nosphaer
- Start date
gregswimm
Fish Addict
Once you have nitrates you are good to go. There is no reason to wait for the full 2ppm, if you create the colony too large then u can have ammo spikes from starving bacteria. The colony can double in size in 24h. I always let my filter naturally adjust to the fish load once it is showing nitrates.
OP
OP
Nosphaer
Fish Fanatic
Well, here's the Nitrite and Nitrate. Ammonia is at a level somewhere between 1-2ppm
Very purple... A bit hard for me to read. I'm sure it's at a lethal or near-lethal level. I'll give it some time to creep downward. Estimate? Perhaps 5ppm... I'm honestly uncertain. There's no color on the chart that is the exact same as this one.
Nitrate... A vibrant, yet dark orange, but it's another scenario of me staring at it and looking at the chart, saying "That shade isn't even on there!" My guess is that it is definitely at or past 5ppm
FishFanatic04
I'm in Planted School.
When my nitrites were that purple, I counted it as "off the chart" When you get down to 5 or 2 ppm, you will be able to color match it easier.
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OP
Nosphaer
Fish Fanatic
That's helpful to know, indeed!
The tests today are good results, but they've seriously raised questions for me.
Ammonia:0.5-1ppm
Nitrite:~5ppm
Nitrate:40+ppm?!
Yes, with the nitrate reading, I'm looking at it, and I'm in utter awe. The color in my test solution for two days now has read as very high. Compared to the chart, it's seemingly around 40ppm. Is this even possible, or is this test simply difficult to read?
My big question is a straightforward one. At this point, I'm coming to have a good digestion-rate of ammonia, and there's obviously bacteria in there munching away wt the nitrite. However, every time I add more ammonia, I'm just going to wind up with more nitrite. If I cease feeding the bacteria with ammonia, they will perish, and I'll have to work with an ammonia spike or a dead colony. What should I do? Can I add fish into the tank at 2-3ppm of nitrite without risking killing them?
My worry is that I'll always be about 2ppm heavier of nitrite than with ammonia.
All in all, I want to add in my fish at the right moment, so the fish can produce their lower ammount of ammonia, so the bacteria will produce less nitrite, and thereby less nitrate.
The tests today are good results, but they've seriously raised questions for me.
Ammonia:0.5-1ppm
Nitrite:~5ppm
Nitrate:40+ppm?!
Yes, with the nitrate reading, I'm looking at it, and I'm in utter awe. The color in my test solution for two days now has read as very high. Compared to the chart, it's seemingly around 40ppm. Is this even possible, or is this test simply difficult to read?
My big question is a straightforward one. At this point, I'm coming to have a good digestion-rate of ammonia, and there's obviously bacteria in there munching away wt the nitrite. However, every time I add more ammonia, I'm just going to wind up with more nitrite. If I cease feeding the bacteria with ammonia, they will perish, and I'll have to work with an ammonia spike or a dead colony. What should I do? Can I add fish into the tank at 2-3ppm of nitrite without risking killing them?
My worry is that I'll always be about 2ppm heavier of nitrite than with ammonia.
All in all, I want to add in my fish at the right moment, so the fish can produce their lower ammount of ammonia, so the bacteria will produce less nitrite, and thereby less nitrate.
Your cycles is fine. Do not add fish if your reading nitrites. Just keep redosing, no greater than 2ppm of ammonia. Your nitrites will just start dropping one day.
Personally I wouldn't bother measuring the nitrates. The only worry about nitrates are they can cause your ph to crash and stall your cycle, so measure the ph instead.
Don't forget if you want to stock your tank fully you want 4-5ppm clearing in 12 hours. You can let 2ppm clear but stock accordingly.
It's not about stocking at the right moment to produce less waste(ammonia-nitrate), it's the amount of fish, bio load you add to the tank which will determine that. With proper filtration and water changes a week, the nitrates will be taken care off in a cycled filter.
Personally I wouldn't bother measuring the nitrates. The only worry about nitrates are they can cause your ph to crash and stall your cycle, so measure the ph instead.
Don't forget if you want to stock your tank fully you want 4-5ppm clearing in 12 hours. You can let 2ppm clear but stock accordingly.
It's not about stocking at the right moment to produce less waste(ammonia-nitrate), it's the amount of fish, bio load you add to the tank which will determine that. With proper filtration and water changes a week, the nitrates will be taken care off in a cycled filter.
FishFanatic04
I'm in Planted School.
+1
I kept a log in a notebook and went back and looked at both of my cycles. I had the nitrite spike for quite a few days-2 weeks. Don't bother wasting your nitrate test, nitrites when that high will show up on the nitrate test for a false reading.
Don' stock yet! This is the hardest part of the cycle to wait through, but it will be so worth it. I unknowingly had a fish-in cycle in the beginning and the nitrites were the worst part on the fish, I didn't lose any fish through the ammonia spike, but the nitrites killed 2.
I kept a log in a notebook and went back and looked at both of my cycles. I had the nitrite spike for quite a few days-2 weeks. Don't bother wasting your nitrate test, nitrites when that high will show up on the nitrate test for a false reading.
Don' stock yet! This is the hardest part of the cycle to wait through, but it will be so worth it. I unknowingly had a fish-in cycle in the beginning and the nitrites were the worst part on the fish, I didn't lose any fish through the ammonia spike, but the nitrites killed 2.
OP
OP
Nosphaer
Fish Fanatic
Thanks, guys... one thing that I'm considering doing is just adding in my first few fish after the nitrites mellow out...
If I only add 3 cories, wait a week, add 3 more cories, wait a week, and add 3 more cories, and do such onward with all of my stock, won't the filter and the colony gradually adapt?
I mean, I'm just saying that I understand the importance of following through with the cycle, but I wanted to know if that would be rather unnecessary for the amount of fish I'd get at once...
If I only add 3 cories, wait a week, add 3 more cories, wait a week, and add 3 more cories, and do such onward with all of my stock, won't the filter and the colony gradually adapt?
I mean, I'm just saying that I understand the importance of following through with the cycle, but I wanted to know if that would be rather unnecessary for the amount of fish I'd get at once...
FishFanatic04
I'm in Planted School.
In theory you could. But you could end up with a lot of problems. When I was doing the fish-in I thought the cycle was over enough and added cories, then more cories, then a Pleco, then tetras, over a few weeks and now I am fighting a bad case of ich. I either bought an infected fish, or caused it. I had a small nitrite spike for 2 days the week of the pleco...
Then again, I cycled my other tank perfectly and exactly I should have, and bought over half my stock at once. Now I'm treating THAT tank for some kind of internal parasites. One of my Apistos WAS bought sick, and infected the whole tank.
So either way, I have 2 sick tanks. I guess, you have to make a decision yourself and just watch your water parameters. Nitrites mean daily water changes.
Then again, I cycled my other tank perfectly and exactly I should have, and bought over half my stock at once. Now I'm treating THAT tank for some kind of internal parasites. One of my Apistos WAS bought sick, and infected the whole tank.
So either way, I have 2 sick tanks. I guess, you have to make a decision yourself and just watch your water parameters. Nitrites mean daily water changes.
You really don't want to be adding fish if you are not clearing ammonia and nitrite. Unless you want to do a fish in cycle which means alot of water changes in your future.
I didn't catch the size of your tank to determine how much a pain it will be to do large water changes. Don't forget ammonia above 0.25 is harmful to the fish.
Its your decision. Good luck.
I didn't catch the size of your tank to determine how much a pain it will be to do large water changes. Don't forget ammonia above 0.25 is harmful to the fish.
Its your decision. Good luck.
gregswimm
Fish Addict
You really don't want to be adding fish if you are not clearing ammonia and nitrite. Unless you want to do a fish in cycle which means alot of water changes in your future.
I didn't catch the size of your tank to determine how much a pain it will be to do large water changes. Don't forget ammonia above 0.25 is harmful to the fish.
Its your decision. Good luck.
He has a 40 gallon breeder tank so a 50% water change would be (4) five gallon spackle buckets or so.
Oh, and I agree about not adding any fish whatsoever while you're still showing nitrites, especially not that high.
gregswimm
Fish Addict
On the flip side, im trying a fish-in cycle. *crosses fingers/toes*
OP
OP
Nosphaer
Fish Fanatic
Shoot me ><
Well, I want to come in with the rough of what has happened over the last few days.
- My cycle completely crashed.
- I didn't notice.
- I have 5 harlequin rasboras and two mystery snails
- I am now keeping the fish safe in some "surprise" fish-in that I'm now doing, by use of detoxifiers, water changes, and consistent monitoring.
Earlier today, the water levels were 0.5ppm ammonia, 0 nitrite, and 0 nitrate.
The risky behavior of "dump some dechlorinator on it" didn't seem like a good streak, so I went ahead and did a 50% water change today, and now it rests at >0.25ppm ammonia.
Seachem prime and API stress coat are being used. (API is nearly finished, in-bottle).
I'm being honest... I did not mean to charge into this fish-in cycle... I've brought in a filter pad from the local LFS that seemed very well established, with no notable results.
The fish have been showing very healthy signs, and I have been feeding them very conservatively, keeping them under guard of ammonia-locking dechlorinators, but I know it is not enough. I really wish that this mature media would work out for me, yet it's showing no change so far. This is scary, to say the least... The intense death of all my media came to me by surprise, but I'm more than aware of how acidity gradually kills bacteria, so I should have made my pH tests dozens of times more frequent ><
Well, I want to come in with the rough of what has happened over the last few days.
- My cycle completely crashed.
- I didn't notice.
- I have 5 harlequin rasboras and two mystery snails
- I am now keeping the fish safe in some "surprise" fish-in that I'm now doing, by use of detoxifiers, water changes, and consistent monitoring.
Earlier today, the water levels were 0.5ppm ammonia, 0 nitrite, and 0 nitrate.
The risky behavior of "dump some dechlorinator on it" didn't seem like a good streak, so I went ahead and did a 50% water change today, and now it rests at >0.25ppm ammonia.
Seachem prime and API stress coat are being used. (API is nearly finished, in-bottle).
I'm being honest... I did not mean to charge into this fish-in cycle... I've brought in a filter pad from the local LFS that seemed very well established, with no notable results.
The fish have been showing very healthy signs, and I have been feeding them very conservatively, keeping them under guard of ammonia-locking dechlorinators, but I know it is not enough. I really wish that this mature media would work out for me, yet it's showing no change so far. This is scary, to say the least... The intense death of all my media came to me by surprise, but I'm more than aware of how acidity gradually kills bacteria, so I should have made my pH tests dozens of times more frequent ><
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