Help with ammonia readings!

[freshy]

Hi everybody, sorry for all the questioning but I'm really new at this.
I´ve been fishless cycling my tank for 19 days now. Yesterday I was very happy after noticing my ammonia was 0 ppm and had been steady for 2 days. I'm freaking out a little now because today's readings are all over the place!
ph went up a notch (from 7 to 8 ), KH dropped (from 4 to 3) and GH also went up (from 7 to 8 ), but what worries me the most is my ammonia test, instead of turning into one of the shades of green in the color chart (I'm using a Tetra kit) it turned into a pink-yelowish shade! That color is not even there!
Does anybody know what it means?

One more thing, I'm sorry if this sounds stupid but, I've noticed some sort of slimy veneer on the rubber thingies (you know, the ones that hold the thermostat and powerhead in place). Is this part of the bacteria, or is it just a muckish thing that I should scrub away?

Thanks for any help!

 

[skimpy]

Never used Tetra testing kits so not sure.

I'm sure someone will come to you aid soon, but if you are fishless cycling, there is no need to panic, whatever is happening to your water it won't kill any fish.

I do know that after the ammonia spike, the nitrites will start to spike, most probably off the chart and they will take longer to come down to zero than the ammonia did.

good luck - hope someone helps you soon

 

[clutterydrawer]

that slime stuff seems inevitable I'm afraid, a lot of people have it in the suction cups of heaters + filters. You can wipe it off without disrupting the cycle. it'll come back though.