Something is slightly amiss here. When both the ammonia and nitrite bac reproductiion kicks off, it starts slowly and accellerates. I should take longer for the 1st ppm to be processed than the 3rd for ammonia. For nitrite you are actually getting up towards 15 ppm but certainly over 10. It starts down slowly and moves faster the lower it gets. The final 1 or 2 ppm should go fast.
The fact that yours isn't say something may be amiss. I would opt for a testing error over anything else. So let me make sure of a few things.
1. Are you rinsing out the test tube first in tap and then in tank water (including the cap) before you take your sample?
2. Are you inverting the tube so the open end is facing down and water will not enter it when you put it into the tank. Then you should reach down mid water before you fill it so you are not taking water from the surface?
3. Are you holding the reagent solution bottle completely vertical above the tube when you add the drops?
4. Are you putting the cap on when you shake the tube as directed and not using a finger?
5. When you read the results are you placing the tube against the white portion of the card along side the color bars?
6. Are you making sure the light source is from behind you so it illuminates the bars and test tube the same?
If you added ammonia according to the cycling article, you cannot add enough ammonia or have enough nitrite created to stall a cycle. So the next place to look is at pH. Where is this now and has it dropped much from the start of the cycle? If it has, test the KH. If you don't have this test your local store should test a water sample for this if you bring one in.
I would remind folks of this part in the cycling article:
To get a tank cycled in a reasonable amount of time, you need to make sure that, in addition to ammonia, the bacteria will also have:
- Lots of oxygen by keeping the surface of your water well agitated to let oxygen in.
- Inorganic carbon (as carbonates) by keeping your KH up. Do not let it drop below 3 dg (55 ppm).
- A good pH level by insuring it is above 6.5. The closer to 8.0 the faster the cycle will go. We do not recommend one alter their pH if it holds fairly steady anywhere between 6.8 - 8.5.
- An optimal temperature by having a heater set to between 75F and 85F. Lower tends to slow the cycle while higher won’t make things go even faster.
