Crazy Water Results

[mollymagic]

I am on day 18 of a fishless cycle. 216 litre tank.
I did a 50% water change around day 12 as the ammonia was 0 and nitrite almost 0. Then the nitrite shot up againto 5.00. Has been slowly coming down to day 17, and nitrate rising. Then I dropped the ammonia drops down to 3.00ppm. Tested this morning, and got this!
Ammonia 0
nitrite 3.0 (yesterday 1.2) rising
nitrate 5.0 (yesterday 6.25) falling
and the ph has dropped from 8.00 to 7.4!!!!
What's going on? totally confused
Have not added anything new in tank
Have 13 plants. one bit of bog wood.
shipwreck (aquaruim safe, bought in fish centre)

 

[RedStarCommie]

Sorry to steal the thread but while on the subject of water.....

Can someone tell me the differant ways of lowering ammonia and nitrate/nitrite?

I can find test kits to check the levels but not much in the way of means of lowering.


Thanks, that would be really really apreciated.

 

[rdd1952]

Hi mollymagic, and welcome to the forum.

During a fishless cycle, it isn't necessary to do any water changes unless the levels have gotten so high that the cycle stalls. Let the ammonia and nitrite run their course. Ammonia usually takes about 7 to 10 days to drop back to 0 and nitrite about another 14 to 20 days. It sounds as if you have had some sort of progress if the levels were both 0 after 18 days but I don't know what would have caused the nitrite to shoot back up after the water change.

RedStarCommie, the only way to lower them during a cycle with fish is through water changes. Once the tank cycles, the bacteria will take care of the ammonia and nitrite but you still have to do water chagnes tolower nitrate.