Frustrated Fishless Cycler

[njnauticalnut]

I have posted a few times about my fishless cycle without getting much response, am hoping for some advice or even moral support as I wait and wait.

I am currently fishless cycling a 75 gallon tank. I began on May 27th. I have been adding amonia daily. The daily amonia reading is between 6ppm and 7ppm, a little high. At first I did not seed the tank. On June 2nd I added bacteria starter. On June 6th I added a sponge from a small cycled tank. On June 15th I added more bacteria starter. My nitrites are still reading 0 and nitrates read O. The test kit, I believe, is fine as it recently was used where it gave readings. I may get another one just to make sure, but I really don't think there is a problem with it.

I am feeling a bit frustrated as it has been 3 weeks. I just want to make sure that I am on the right track and that eventually I will see a nitrite spike.

I'd really welcome your comments or suggestions.

 

[luxum]

Yes, you will eventually see the nitrites, be patient. I would definitely confirm the test kit results though, i've had some go bad and some were bad right from the store, and you're right that 22 days is a significant delay. You don't have anything like ammo lock or anything of that nature in there do you? I've also heard that sometimes amquel can interfere with the fishless cycle although it has never bothered mine. What temp is your tank?

 

[impur]

Try taking your water to the LFS and have them test it. Have you been testing since day 1? Is it possible you missed the nitrite spike? You should have 0 nitrates since there are no fish to produce waste and you are not feeding the tank. My 55 cycled in about a week. I used ornaments from a cycled 10 gal, along with some of the gravel in a pantyhose sock in the filter. I also added a product called Cycle that claims to add the beneficial bacteria. I have read conflicting info about the product, but it worked for me in some form.

 

[njnauticalnut]

The tank is currently at 78 degrees F.

I have tested every day except one. From what I read the nitrites would not spike and go down that quickly, would they? Plus I should have then had a rise in nitrates, correct? And my amonia should be 0 if the tank cycled, yes?

I am still adding amonia every day.

I added Proquatics Bacteria Starter which is supposed to aid in the development of the biological filter. I have added nothing else. So I don't think I should have any ammo lock in the tank. This is my first fishless cycle so I am definitely green at it.

Would a partial water change help at all? Should I add gravel from my cycled tank in a pantyhose sock or some such to seed it more?

I have the patience as long as I know it will cycle. I am getting worried that it won't due to the length of time it has taken thus far. Can a tank not cycle?

 

[jaywings19]

My first attempt at fishless cycling was just like yours... long wait, no results. After 3-4 weeks, I got frustrated and did a decent water change to get fresh water in there.

Obviously, I reduced ammonia during the water change, so I had to add some back to keep the ammonia level up. I actually adding too much ammonia (over a few days), but on Day 12 nitrite started to show up!

One word of advice... raise your tank temperature to 84F. There are no fish in there to harm, but the bacteria will multiply faster at a higher temperature.

I'm now on Day 16 and my Nitrite is at 3ppm... while Ammonia is still high.

I definitely feel your frustration... I was just as frustrated when I wasn't seeing any results (or progress). Now I am seeing progress, so I'm a bit more relaxed.

Good luck!

 

[tstenback]

First thing that i would do is jack up the heat to at least 86 as this will help with the bacteria growth. Also add an airstone or two to up the oxygen in the tank. I know the air stones dont add oxygen but they will agitate the surface so more oxygen will be dissolved in the water.
If after a few more days you have no additional action then i would do your water change to see if you can shake things up.

So let me understand this. You add ammonia daily but your level doesnt go up but it doesnt go down either? If this is the case then it is only a matter of time before things move along. The bacteria is obviously using the ammonia you add daily if the level of ammonia is not going up day to day. Therefore the bacteria colony just has to get larger to consume the rest. If this is the case then turning up the heat and providing more surface agitation may just do it for you.

 

[luxum]

Hehe, yes your tank will cycle. You could try a water change if you want but make sure you keep the ammonia at 5ppm or higher, you may need to redose after the change. It probably won't help but it might make you feel like you are doing something. Raising the temp a bit would help more imo, and definitely add as much seed material to the tank as possible.

 

[panther1505]

I am having the same problem as you njnauticalnut. I've got my ammonia level around 5ppm, 0ppm nitrite. It's been 11 days now since I started fishless cycling.
Nobody told me to raise the temp in my tank. I have the temp at a constant 80 degrees F.

I think I will raise it to about 86.

tstenback,

Should I keep adding the daily dose of ammonia, even though I'm going to raise the temp in the tank?

Should I keep to the fishless cycling procedures?
Keep adding the ammonia until I see a nitrite spike, then cut the dose in half until the ammonia level and nitrite level go down to 0ppm.
Test for nitrates, make a 50% water change. Then add fish?

Does that sound right?

 

[luxum]

I'm sorry i forgot to mention the temperature thing to you earlier, i thought it was mentioned in the fishless cycling articles but upon reviewing them it seems not. It should help speed it up. Yes you should keep adding the ammonia every day, half dose once the nitrites show up.

 

[panboy]

my cycle for the 46g took 2 months........

i was soooo happy when it was done

 

[BirdofPray]

Oh geez. 2 months? I just had a nitrite spike 4 days ago. The ammonia is a 0 every day when I check it but the nitrites are off the chart and the nitrates are somewhere between 40-80 (Stupid test strips). I heard getting rid of the nitrites is the longest part of the cycle too. Any tips on how to speed just that part of the cycle up? Also, I don't have any other cycled tanks so all that stuff is out of the question.

 

[impur]

Are you using the right kind of ammonia?? Just need to be sure here.

 

[njnauticalnut]

When I initially added amonia, the reading was at 6 to 7 ppm (had a bit heavier hand than I ought to have ). That is the highest my chart goes so it may even be higher. So I can't tell if the amonia is rising or not, to be honest.

I have two biowheel filters on each side of the tank and there is a LOT of surface agitation from them. Do you think that this is enough? I am not going to use an air pump and therefore would prefer not to buy one if I don't have to.

I have turned up the temp.

I think it may be a good idea for me to do a water change so that I can get the amonia down to 5ppm so that I can see if it is dropping if I do not add any. What percent change would you recommend?

In the articles on fishless cycling, they say to add amonia each day. It reads that you start out with 5ppm on Day 1 and add the same amount of amonia on Day 2 that you did on Day 1. The assumption is that the reading will remain at 5ppm. If that is the case, what is keeping the amonia at 5ppm instead of it rising? I ask this because if in a brand new tank on Day 2 the amonia will not rise, then it should never rise, correct?

Thanks for your input.

 

[njnauticalnut]

Are you using the right kind of ammonia?? Just need to be sure here.

I am using amonia that I bought from the hardware store. It contains 10% ammonium hydroxide and no phosphates. There are no other ingredients on the label.

 

[njnauticalnut]

My first attempt at fishless cycling was just like yours... long wait, no results. After 3-4 weeks, I got frustrated and did a decent water change to get fresh water in there.

Obviously, I reduced ammonia during the water change, so I had to add some back to keep the ammonia level up. I actually adding too much ammonia (over a few days), but on Day 12 nitrite started to show up!

One word of advice... raise your tank temperature to 84F. There are no fish in there to harm, but the bacteria will multiply faster at a higher temperature.

I'm now on Day 16 and my Nitrite is at 3ppm... while Ammonia is still high.

I definitely feel your frustration... I was just as frustrated when I wasn't seeing any results (or progress). Now I am seeing progress, so I'm a bit more relaxed.

Good luck!

Just curious, when you say that you got a nitrite spike on Day 12, was that 3-4 weeks + 12 days? Are you counting from the day that you did the water change?

This gives me some light at the end of the tunnel, small light as then I know I will be wishing for the nitrites to decrease!