krazitrain
New Member
How high should my nitrite get before I cut back ammonia drops? its at .25ppm currently.
130 drops of ammonia to get to 5ppm originally.
130 drops of ammonia to get to 5ppm originally.
fishless cycling.. nitrite peak?
- Thread starter krazitrain
- Start date
Sapper
New Member
i was under the impression from the guides ive read that the amount of ammonia should be cut back to half once the nitrite is visible.
krazitrain
New Member
I'll ask differently.. What is considered high nitrite levels? Ya.. I know it should be 0 for fish to be happy.
aquamanis
Fish Crazy
Let's Cycle!
1. Add the appropriate amount of ammonia into the tank. Use a test kit and check the ammonia level. Make sure it is 3 ppm to 5 ppm. Add seeding material if you have it. That’s it for the first day! Wasn’t that easy?
2. For the next few days you need to check the levels of ammonia and nitrite daily. If the ammonia level drops, you will need to add just enough ammonia to bring it up to the 3 ppm to 5 ppm target range. However, you do not need to add ammonia everyday, only when you see the ammonia level has fallen. Nitrite levels will be zero for a while but I recommend you to check it daily anyway.
3. At some point you will start seeing the nitrite level rise and the ammonia level fall. The timing for this varies from a few days to a few weeks, mainly depending on the amount of seeding, so be patient. Once nitrite is visible, you need to start adding 1/2 the original amount of ammonia daily (say if you needed 5 ml of ammonia the first day to make 3 ppm of ammonia in the tank, then you will start adding 2.5 ml every day).
4. Typically from here on you will see more and more nitrite and less and less ammonia every day. I said typically but not always, sometimes the cycling process will not go as planned, the best approach is to remain patient. You may witness your nitrites rising higher than your test kit can read. This is common for fishless cycling, because you’ve been adding a lot of ammonia, there is simply going to be far more nitrite in the water than the tester can recognize. When this happens, simply do some water changes to bring down the nitrite level to 2 ppm to 5 ppm. Water changes will not delay the cycling process if you do not disrupt the filter media or gravel bed. Don’t forget to add some more ammonia to get back to the 3 ppm to 5 ppm target range after the water change.
5. So you’ve seen ammonia spike and nitrite spike. Despite the daily dosing of ammonia, your ammonia reading is close to zero and the nitrite level is coming down. You are almost there. You may want to take out the nitrate test kit and test the water. As nitrite levels come down, the nitrate level will naturally go up.
6. Finally ammonia and nitrite are zero. You’ve done it! Before you rush to the local fish store (LFS) to get fish, you need to do a few more things. First I would like for you to wait one or two more days to make sure that your tank is fully cycled. Simply add some more ammonia and monitor your water parameters. After two days if the levels of ammonia and nitrite are still zero, you know can rest assured that your tank is cycled.
7. The last thing you need to do is a big water change. A 60% to 90% water change is necessary before adding fish. All that ammonia you have added has now turned into nitrate, and its level is simply too high for your fish. After the water change, don’t let the tank sit empty for a long time. The bacteria you have just cultivated in the tank will need ammonia as food to stay alive.
8. Go out and get those fish that you have been waiting for all this time. Remember to stock and feed the tank moderately.
Reprinted from the aquamaniacs.net website Hope this helps.
1. Add the appropriate amount of ammonia into the tank. Use a test kit and check the ammonia level. Make sure it is 3 ppm to 5 ppm. Add seeding material if you have it. That’s it for the first day! Wasn’t that easy?
2. For the next few days you need to check the levels of ammonia and nitrite daily. If the ammonia level drops, you will need to add just enough ammonia to bring it up to the 3 ppm to 5 ppm target range. However, you do not need to add ammonia everyday, only when you see the ammonia level has fallen. Nitrite levels will be zero for a while but I recommend you to check it daily anyway.
3. At some point you will start seeing the nitrite level rise and the ammonia level fall. The timing for this varies from a few days to a few weeks, mainly depending on the amount of seeding, so be patient. Once nitrite is visible, you need to start adding 1/2 the original amount of ammonia daily (say if you needed 5 ml of ammonia the first day to make 3 ppm of ammonia in the tank, then you will start adding 2.5 ml every day).
4. Typically from here on you will see more and more nitrite and less and less ammonia every day. I said typically but not always, sometimes the cycling process will not go as planned, the best approach is to remain patient. You may witness your nitrites rising higher than your test kit can read. This is common for fishless cycling, because you’ve been adding a lot of ammonia, there is simply going to be far more nitrite in the water than the tester can recognize. When this happens, simply do some water changes to bring down the nitrite level to 2 ppm to 5 ppm. Water changes will not delay the cycling process if you do not disrupt the filter media or gravel bed. Don’t forget to add some more ammonia to get back to the 3 ppm to 5 ppm target range after the water change.
5. So you’ve seen ammonia spike and nitrite spike. Despite the daily dosing of ammonia, your ammonia reading is close to zero and the nitrite level is coming down. You are almost there. You may want to take out the nitrate test kit and test the water. As nitrite levels come down, the nitrate level will naturally go up.
6. Finally ammonia and nitrite are zero. You’ve done it! Before you rush to the local fish store (LFS) to get fish, you need to do a few more things. First I would like for you to wait one or two more days to make sure that your tank is fully cycled. Simply add some more ammonia and monitor your water parameters. After two days if the levels of ammonia and nitrite are still zero, you know can rest assured that your tank is cycled.
7. The last thing you need to do is a big water change. A 60% to 90% water change is necessary before adding fish. All that ammonia you have added has now turned into nitrate, and its level is simply too high for your fish. After the water change, don’t let the tank sit empty for a long time. The bacteria you have just cultivated in the tank will need ammonia as food to stay alive.
8. Go out and get those fish that you have been waiting for all this time. Remember to stock and feed the tank moderately.
Reprinted from the aquamaniacs.net website Hope this helps.
krazitrain
New Member
Thanks! That helps a lot.
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