How Long For Nitrite Readings?

[Boromir]

Been putting 30mls of Ammonia once every 24 hours since Friday and Ammonia levels before I put a new dose of it in reads at 0.50. But there is no sign of Nitrites.

I got the homebase value Ammonia the only one they had in there it says Hazardous ingredients: Ammonia Im aking it this has the 9.5% in it and nothing else?

Do I wait till the Ammonia reading goes down to zero before I add more in?

Thanks

 

[SandraNewbie]

Do I wait till the Ammonia reading goes down to zero before I add more in?

No, try to top the ammonia up to the same level each time you add ammonia. 3ppm I am advised.

You can get a cycle where no visible nitrite build up occurs if the nitrifying bacteria grow at the same rate as the nitrosifying bacteria. The real test is to see how much nitrate you have. If your Ammonia is going down over the day and your nitrate is going up over time, your cycle is well under way.

 

[Lizi_angelfish]

Hi, I used homebase ammonia a few weeks ago and it was useless. I would get some kleen off on amazon if I were you. I've started cycling with that and I've found I only needed 3 ml coated to half a bottle of the homebase stuff!
I think the kleen off is 9.5% and I took a whiff of it and it almost blew my head off compared to the mild smell from the homebase stuff I had.

 

[Lizi_angelfish]

Do I wait till the Ammonia reading goes down to zero before I add more in?

Check out the beginners resource centre. That's what I've been using as guidelines for how much to add and when. And as Sandra says, I wonder where you don't have to get the massive nitrite spike... My tank has been cycling very slowly and so I have had nitrates before the massive nitrite spike I read about.

 

[Essjay]

It's only four days since last Friday, and it can take a couple of weeks before you see anything happening. Just keep testing and waiting for a few more days yet.

You asked about adding more ammonia, yes wait until the level drops below 1ppm before adding more. If you add too much ammonia you could end up with a reading of 8 or above, when the wrong species of bacteria grow. And also, the more ammonia you add the moe nitrite you'll end up with while waiting for the nitrite eaters to grow - and there is some evidence that too much nitrite inhibits the growth of the baceria.

 

[Boromir]

Hi, I used homebase ammonia a few weeks ago and it was useless. I would get some kleen off on amazon if I were you. I've started cycling with that and I've found I only needed 3 ml coated to half a bottle of the homebase stuff!
I think the kleen off is 9.5% and I took a whiff of it and it almost blew my head off compared to the mild smell from the homebase stuff I had.

Thankyou just looked on amazon and ebay and you can buy two bottles of it on ebay for the same price as one thats on Amazon. I'll just use the bottle I have now till they turn up.

 

[Boromir]

Well my nitrite reading after 7 days of feeding ammonia to the tank is now reading 0.50ppm and Nitrate is 5ppm in tank and 0ppm from tap. But I may have overdosed on the ammonia today as its reading at 8.0ppm after 8 hours. I did put in 30 mls for the 557litre I calculated using the calculater at the top, do you think I should drop this down to 20 or 25mls?

I have also noticed that there is less snails I can see in the tank whats happened to them have they died or just hiding?

thanks

 

[Essjay]

I'd do a water change large enough to get the ammonia reading down to 5. Too much ammonia encourages the wrong bacteria to grow, and makes a huge amount of nitrite.

It is possible the snails have died, and they'd be decomposing to make ammonia. Though some people report having live snails in their tanks throughout a fishless cycle.

 

[Boromir]

Well Nitrites are starting to move now, is that a good thing? Have not tested for Nitrates yet. Im adding less ammonia and seems to be in the right dosage. Im so tempted to put some fish in but know I have to wait for the right time.

Edit: Nitrates are reading at 10ppm but may have problem with PH levels its reading at 8.4 Should I get the API proper PH 7.0 product?

 

[Essjay]

Leave your pH alone. What is your tapwater pH, both freshly run and a sample that's stood overnight? If they are around 8-ish as well as the tank, the chances are your water is also hard. It is difficult to lower the pH with hard water as carbonate hardness (KH) is most likely also high, and this buffers the water against pH changes, so you end up with a tabnk which has a pH yoyoing all over the place. Also, during cycling the pH can go all over the place, so don't worry about the pH till cycling has finished. Besides, the bacteria grow faster at your pH.


Resist the temptation to get fish! Think about all the water changes you could be stuck doing, that should focus your mind

 

[Boromir]

K thanks. When cycling is finished is there anything I can get to help? I am really interested in Shrimps at the moment and think I will focus on them then get some fish, so whats the best ph level for shrimp?

Thankyou.

 

[Boromir]

I can be a bit of a dummy sometimes I did the earlier test just after I added a dose of ammonia to the tank , so I decided to do a retest and this time it came out as 7.4. Sorry for me being hasty.

 

[Essjay]

That's the problem with testing pH during a fishless cycle. Ammonia increases pH, then when the ammomia starts to fall and nitrite appears, nitrite and later nitrate lower pH.
The best thing to do is check the pH of your tapwater, both freshly run and a glass of water that's stood overnight (it could change a bit on standing and you need to know if it does). That'll give you a base line to work from. Same with nitrate - when you test your tank and find a small amount you need to know if your filter bacteria are making it or whether it comes from your tapwater.

Unless you have something in your tank like a limestone rock or sand/gravel made from coral, once the cycle has finished your tank pH should be similar to your tapwater that's stood overnight.

 

[Boromir]

Just done my 100% water change and Nitrates are down to 5%< Also took advantage of the empty tank and added some rocks. Now I got to wait for the temp to go up and I can add fish .

Im planning to get:
3-5 Silver sharks,
10 Neon tetra's
6 Danio's,
2 Plecs,


Then some assasin snails and some shrimp

The setup

I think the plecs and shrimp will be at home when they arrive.