OK, NOW I'm just confused

[freshy]

Hi all,
I've been fishless cycling my 10 gal. tank for about 16 days. I started off with high ammonia readings, by high I mean off the color chart, with 0 nitrites which made me think nitrates would be just as low, so I didn't test them. A copule of days ago I got a nitrite spike, which made me cut down the ammonia dose by half. The ammonia is still very high. Today I tested for nitrates for the first time expecting a somewhat low value, but it turned out to be off the chart as well.
Is it normal to have these 3 very high readings ocurring at the same time?
Should I just keep adding the ammonia and wait?
My KH and PH readings decreased a bit today.

What do you guys think?

Any help would be highly appreciated!

 

[Chasing Puck]

Test your water source for nitrates--many water sources have nitrates already. While this is a huge problem, it can cause problems down the line. You might need to either a) filter your water to remove the nitrates (RO, mot likely, some tapwater filters will work) or B) purchase filtered water. You should be able to dilute this clean water with tapwater successfully, and may need to do so, as it sounds lik eyou may have low KH water. The biological processes that are taking place use KH. Low KH water is prone to pH shifts. Anything less than 3.0 ppm KH will likely need to be buffered to prevent pH shifts.

It's not unusual to have all three reading high. If your tapwater doesn't have nitrates present, it simply means that the bacteria are processing amonia into nitrites and nitrites into nitrates, just slower than the new source of ammonia. If your pH drops too much, it can inhibit the bacteria though, so it's important to monitor this as well. What are you readings for KH and pH, both initially and currently?

 

[freshy]

Hi! Thank you for your answer!
I have tested my tapwater and found 0 nitrates
My readings are as follows:

PH: initially 9.5 current 8.5 (it didn't drop too much, did it?)
KH: initially 14 current 11
GH: initially 6 current 5
NH3: initially and current 5+ ppm (its color is getting clearer though)
NO2: initially 0 current 3.3+ ppm (this is the top of my chart)
NO3: initially (didn't test) current 400+ ppm

I'm using the Tetra Laborette kit, just so you know.

Someone suggested doing water changes. Is there really a point in trying this, since I have no fish yet?

Come on everybody, feel free to participate!
Thanks for the help

 

[canarsie11]

Hi! Thank you for your answer!
I have tested my tapwater and found 0 nitrates
My readings are as follows:

PH: initially 9.5 current 8.5 (it didn't drop too much, did it?)
KH: initially 14 current 11
GH: initially 6 current 5
NH3: initially and current 5+ ppm (its color is getting clearer though)
NO2: initially 0 current 3.3+ ppm (this is the top of my chart)
NO3: initially (didn't test) current 400+ ppm

I'm using the Tetra Laborette kit, just so you know.

Someone suggested doing water changes. Is there really a point in trying this, since I have no fish yet?

Come on everybody, feel free to participate!
Thanks for the help

no need for water change

 

[Chasing Puck]

Definitely no reason for a water change right now. The bacteria will thrive in those conditions, and will soon establish themselves. The fact that nitrates are showing up now indicates that small colonies are already present, it will be a matter of time for them to catch up with your food source.

The drop in KH isn't too worrisome--I'd keep monitoring it, and make sure it doesn't drop too much more.

With a pH in that range, you'll need to acclimate your fish purchases carefully, since most will likely be coming from lower pH, around 6.8-7.2. Not a big deal, but a precaution you'll need. I would encourage you to look into African lakes fish--they will appreciate the higher pH just like it is.

 

[freshy]

Great! Thank you all for the answers.
Today my ammonia came down to 3 ppm which made me happy as did the ph, it is around 7.5 now! Yippie!