Oneonion's First Fishless Cycle

[OneOnion]

Yes! I just started my FIRST fishless cycle(11/13/09)! I added the first 4 ppm of ammonia just a few minutes ago. I cycled one aquarium before, but it was not a fishless cycle. This is my first FISHLESS cycle.

EDIT: Added the second filter, AquaClear20, at 12/25/09. Both are still running.

Tank:
10 Gallon
TOP FIN 10 Power Filter w/ media from my cycled 5 gallon
Temperature set to 85 degrees F
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
FISHLESS CYCLE LOG
DAY 1 - ammonia: 0 PPM - 4PPM Ammonia added
DAY 2 - ammonia: 4 PPM
DAY 3 - ammonia: 1 PPM
DAY 4 - ammonia: 1 PPM
DAY 5 - ammonia: 1 PPM
DAY 6 - ammonia: 1 PPM
DAY 7 - ammonia: 1 PPM
DAY 8 - ammonia: 1 PPM
DAY 9 - ammonia:0.5 PPM
DAY 10 - ammonia:0.2 PPM
DAY 11 - ammonia: 0 PPM - 4 PPM Ammonia added
DAY 12 - ammonia:0.5 PPM, nitrite: ~5 (quicker than usual)
DAY 13 am - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: ~5 - 4 PPM Ammonia added(WOO)
DAY 13 pm - ammonia: 1 PPM, nitrite: ~5
DAY 14 am - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: ~5 - 4 PPM Ammonia added, topped water level
DAY 14 pm - ammonia: 1 PPM, nitrite: ~5
DAY 15 am - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: ~5 (What's nitrite supposed to do now?)- 4 PPM Ammonia added
DAY 15 pm - ammonia:0.2 PPM, nitrite: ~5 (Yeah! I'm almost halfway there, I think)
DAY 16 am - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: ~5 - 4 ppm ammonia added
DAY 16 pm - ammonia:0.2 PPM, nitrite: ~5
DAY 17 am - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: ~5 - 4 PPM added
DAY 17 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: ~5 - 4 PPM added
DAY 18 am - ammonia: 8 PPM, nitrite: ~5 What happened
DAY 18 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: ~5 - 4 PPM added (That was weird.)
DAY 19 am - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: ~5 - 4 ppm added (I'm running out of ammonia in my bottle x__X)
DAY 19 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: ~5 - 4 PPM added (I see planaria!)
DAY 20 am - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: ~5 - 4 PPM added
DAY 20 pm - ammonia: 8 PPM, nitrite: ~5 (O.O What happened???)
Couldn't do AM today. Woke up late had to go to school.
DAY 21 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: ~5 - 4 PPM added
DAY 22 am - ammonia:0.2 PPM, nitrite: ~5
DAY 22 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: ~5 - 4 PPM added
DAY 23 am - ran out of ammonia!
Day 23 pm - ran out of ammonia!
DAY 24 am - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 0 - 4 PPM added (WOO! nitrite finally 0)
DAU 24 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 5 - 4 PPM added
DAY 25 am - ammpnoa:0.5PPM, nitrite: 5
DAY 25 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 5 - 4 PPM added
DAY 26 am - ammonia: 2 PPM, nitrite: 5
DAY 26 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 0 - 4 PPM added
DAY 27 am - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 5 - 4 PPM added
DAY 27 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 5 - 4 PPM added
DAY 28 am - ammonia:0.2PPM, nitrite: 5
DAY 28 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 0 - 4 PPM added
DAY 29 am - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 5 - 4 PPM added
DAY 29 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 5 - 4 PPM added
DAY 30 am - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 5 - 4 PPM added
DAY 30 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 5 - 4 PPM added
DAY 31 am - couldn't test
DAY 31 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 0 - 4 ppm added
DAY 32 am - ammonia:1.5PPM, nitrite: 5
DAY 32 pm - ammonia: 1 PPM, nitrite: 0, nitrate: 70, pH: 6 - 30% water change
DAY 33 am - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 0
DAY 33 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 0, nitrate: 70, pH: 6.9 - 4 PPM added
DAY 34 am - ammonia:0.5PPM, nitrite: 5 - water change
DAY 34 am - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 0, pH: 7.2 - 4 PPM ammonia added
DAY 35 am - ammonia: 1 PPM, nitrite: 5
DAY 35 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 0 - 4 PPM ammonia added
DAY 36 am - ammonia: 0 PPM, Nitrite: 0 - 4 ppm added
DAY 36 pm - ammonia: 0 ppm, nitrite: 0 - 4 ppm added
DAY 37 am - ammonia: 1 PPM, nitrite: 5
DAY 37 pm - ammonia: 1 PPM, nitrite: 0, pH: 6 - water change
DAY 38 am - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 0
DAY 38 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 0, pH: 7.4 - 4 PPM added
DAY 39 am - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 5
DAY 39 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 0, pH: 7.6 - 4 PPM added
DAY 40 am - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 5
DAY 40 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 0, pH: 7.6 - 4 PPM added
DAY 41 am - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 5
DAY 41 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 0, pH: 7.2 - 4 PPM added
DAY 42 am - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 5
DAY 42 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 0, pH: 7.1 - 4 PPM added
DAY 43 am - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 5
DAY 43 pm - VACATION. 4 PPM added before I left.
DAY 44 am - VACATION
DAY 44 pm - VACATION
DAY 45 am - VACATION
DAY 45 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 0 - 4 PPM added
DAY 46 am - ammonia:0.5PPM, nitrite: 5
DAY 46 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 0 - 4 PPM added
DAY 47 am - ammonia: 1 PPM, nitrite: 5
DAY 47 pm - ammonia: 4 PPM, nitrite: 5 - accidentally added 4 PPM. -__-
DAY 48 am - forgot to test
DAY 48 pm - ammonia: 4 PPM, nitrite: 0
DAY 49 am - ammonia:2.5PPM, nitrite: 0
DAY 49 pm - ammonia:2.5PPM, nitrite: 0
DAY 50 am - ammonia:2.5PPM, nitrite: 0
DAY 50 pm - ammonia:2.5PPM, nitrite: 0 Come on, is accidentally adding 4 PPM
DAY 51 am - ammonia:2.5PPM, nitrite: 0 THIS bad?
DAY 51 pm - ammonia:2.5PPM, nitrite: 0
DAY 52 am - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 5
DAY 52 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 0 - ph6 WATER CHANGE - forgot to add ammonia.
DAY 52 am - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 0 - 4 PPM added forgot to do it yesterday
DAY 52 pm - ammonia: 3 PPM, nitrite: 5, pH 7.6
DAY 53 am - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 0
DAY 53 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: o, pH 7.6 - 4 PPM ammonia added
DAY 54 am - ammonia: 3 PPM, nitrite: 5
DAY 54 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 0, pH 7.2 - 4 PPM addded
DAY 55 am - ammonia: 3 PPM, nitrite: 5
DAY 55 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 0, pH 7.1 - 4 PPM added
DAY 56 am - ammonia: 3 PPM, nitrite: 5
DAY 56 pm - ammonia: 1 PPM, nitrite: 0, pH 6.4
DAY 57 am - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 0
DAY 57 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 0 - 4 PPM ammonia added
DAY 58 am - couldn't test
DAY 58 pm - ammonia: 1 PPM, nitrite: 0, pH 7.6 (Uhmmmmmm....)
DAY 59 am - ammonia: 1 PPM, nitrite: 0
DAY 59 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 0, pH 6.0 Water change, 4 PPM ammo added
DAY 60 am - ammonia: 2 PPM, nitrite: 5
DAY 60 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 0, pH 7.6, 4 PPM ammonia added
DAY 61 am - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 0
DAY 61 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 0, pH 7.4 - 4 PPM ammonia added
DAY 62 am - ammonia: 4 PPM, nitrite: 5
DAY 62 pm - ammonia: 4 PPM, nitrite: 0, pH 7.2
DAY 63 am - ammonia: 4 PPM, nitrite: 5
DAY 63 pm - ammonia:1.5PPM, nitrite: 0, pH 7.2
DAY 63 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 0, pH 7.2
DAY 64 am - ammonia: 4 PPM, nitrite: 5
DAY 64 pm - ammonia:1.5PPM, nitrite: 0, pH 7.3
DAY 65 am - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 0
DAY 65 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 0, pH 7.2 - 4 PPM ammonia added
DAY 66 am - ammonia: 4 PPM, nitrite: 0
DAY 66 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 0, pH 7.3 - 4 PPM ammonia added.
DAY 67 am - ammonia: 4 PPM, nitrite: 0
DAY 67 pm - ammonia:1.5PPM, nitrite: 0, pH 7.2
DAY 68 am - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 0
DAY 68 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 0, pH 7.1 - 4 PPM ammonia added
DAY 69 am - ammonia: 2 PPM, ntirite: 5
DAY 69 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 0, pH 7.1 - 4 PPM added
DAY 70 am - ammonia: 4 PPM, nitrite: 5
DAY 70 pm - ammonia:0.5PPM, nitrite: 0, pH 6.5
DAY 71 am - unable to test
DAY 71 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM, nitrite: 0, pH 6.4 - 4 PPM added
DAY 72 am - ammonia: 8 PPM, nitrite: 0 - I'll do a water change when I get back at 3:00
DAY 72 pm - Ran out of ammonia drops nitrite 0. I'll buy some tomorrow.
DAY 73 am - ran out of ammonia drops nitrite 0 getting more in afternoon
DAY 73 pm - AAH! Plans changed, I couldn't get it. x__x I'll have to get it tomorrow.
DAY 74 am - none yet
DAY 74 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM pH: 7.5 - 4 PPM ammonia added
DAY 75 am - ammonia: 1 PPM nitrite:0.5PPM
DAY 75 pm - ammonia: 4 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM pH: 7.5
DAY 76 am - ammonia: 0 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM
DAY 76 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM pH: 7.5 - 4 PPM added
DAY 77 am - ammonia: 4 PPM nitrite: 5 PPM
DAY 77 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM pH: 7.2 - 4 PPM added
DAY 78 am - ammonia: 1 PPM nitrite: 5 PPM
DAY 79 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM pH: 7.1 - 4 PPM added
DAY 80 am - ammonia: 8 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM
DAY 80 pm - ammonia: 2 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM pH 7.1
DAY 81 am - unable to test
DAY 81 pm - ammonia: 8 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM pH 7.6
DAY 82 am - ammonia:0.5PPM nitrite: 0 PPM
DAY 82 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM pH 7.0
DAY 83 am - ammonia: 3 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM
DAY 83 pm - ammonia:1.5PPM nitrite: 0 PPM pH 7.6
DAY 84 am - ammonia: 1 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM
DAY 84 pm - ammonia: 1 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM pH 6.4 - water topped
DAY 85 am - ammonia:0.3PPM nitrite: 0 PPM
DAY 85 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM pH 6.9 - 4 PPM ammonia added
DAY 86 am - ammonia: 1 PPM nitrite:0.5PPM
DAY 86 pm - ammonia:1.5PPM nitrite: 0 PPM pH 8.3
DAY 87 am - ammonia:0.5PPM nitrite: 0 PPM
DAY 87 pm - ammonia:0.3PPM nitrite: 0 PPM pH 6.4
DAY 88 am - ammonia: 0 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM
DAY 88 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM pH 6.4
DAY 89 am - ammonia: 2 PPM nitrite:0.3PPM
DAY 89 pm - ammonia: 2 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM pH 7.6
DAY 90 am - unable to test
DAY 90 pm - ammonia: 2 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM pH 6.6
DAY 91 am - ammonia: 1 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM
DAY 91 pm - ammonia: 1 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM pH 6.4
DAY 92 am - ammonia: 1 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM
DAY 92 pm - unable to test x____x
DAY 93 am - ammonia: 0 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM
DAY 93 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM pH 6.8 - 4 PPM Ammonia Added
DAY 94 am - unable to test
DAY 94 pm - ammonia: 4 PPM nitrite: 1 PPM pH 7.6
DAY 95 am - ammonia:0.5PPM nitrite: 0 PPM
DAY 95 pm - ammonia:0.2PPM nitrite: 0 PPM pH 6.8
DAY 96 am - ammonia: 0 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM
DAY 96 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM pH 7.0 - 4 PPM ammonia added
DAY 97 am - ammonia: 4 PPM nitrite: 1 PPM
DAY 97 pm - ammonia:0.5PPM nitrite:0.1PPM pH 7.0
DAY 98 am - ammonia: 0 PPM nitrite: 0 PPPM
DAY 98 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM pH 7.0 - 4 PPM Ammonia added
DAY 99 am - ammonia: 8 PPM nitrite: 5 PPM
DAY 99 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM pH 6.4 - 4 PPM ammonia added
DAY 100 am - ammonia:0.5PPM nitrite:0.5PPM (Woohoo! Double-0's!)
DAY 100 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM pH 6.0 - 4 PPM... forgot to be added.
DAY 101 am - unable to test
DAY 101 pm - ammonia: 0 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM pH 6.0 - 4 PPM actually added.
DAY 102 am - ammonia:1.5PPM nitrite:0.5PPM
DAY 102 pm - ammonia: 1 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM pH 6.4
DAY 103 am - ammonia: 1 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM
DAY 103 pm - ammonia: 1 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM nitrate: 20 PPM pH 6.4
DAY 104 am - ammonia: 1 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM nitrate: 20 PPM
DAY 104 pm - ammonia: 1 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM nitrate: 20 PPM pH 6.0

one filter got unplugged.

DAY 1 am 3.5.10 - ammonia: 1 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM nitrate: 20 PPM pH 6.0
DAY 1 pm 3.5.10 - ammonia: 1 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM nitrate: 20 PPM pH 6.4
DAY 2 am 3.6.10 - unable to test
DAY 2 pm 3.6.10 - ammonia: 1 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM nitrate: 20 PPM pH 6.4
DAY 3 am 3.7.10 - ammonia: 1 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM nitrate: 20 PPM
DAY 3 pm 3.7.10 - ammonia: 1 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM nitrate: 20 PPM pH 6.4
DAY 4 am 3.8.10 - ammonia: 1 PPM nitrite: 0 PPM nitrate: 20 PPM
DAY 4 pm 3.8.10 - ammonia:0.5PPM nitrite: 0 PPM nitrate: 20 PPM pH 6.4

 

[Truck]

you may want to drop the temperature a little, it does seem a little high IMO 82oF is fine

 

[drobbyb]

TOP FIN 10 Power Filter w/ media from my cycled 5 gallon

Be careful with this brand of filter. They usually don't come with enough space for your beneficial bacteria. When you go to change the insert (which should only be done when it is physically falling apart) you will lose most of your bacteria leaving you with a fish-in cycle situation.

I would go out and get an aquaclear 20 (about $23.) Awesome little filter with many options on how you want to set the media up.

 

[OneOnion]

you may want to drop the temperature a little, it does seem a little high IMO 82oF is fine

Okay, thank you, I'll lower it a little then.

TOP FIN 10 Power Filter w/ media from my cycled 5 gallon

Be careful with this brand of filter. They usually don't come with enough space for your beneficial bacteria. When you go to change the insert (which should only be done when it is physically falling apart) you will lose most of your bacteria leaving you with a fish-in cycle situation.

I would go out and get an aquaclear 20 (about $23.) Awesome little filter with many options on how you want to set the media up.

Thank you for warning me. The Top Fin filter be fine for the time being, right? Like, at least until around christmas? Do you think it'd be okay if I just bought the AquaClear 20 at Christmas time (I've got no money right now)? And then, I just switch over the cycled media to the AquaClear filter.

 

[OldMan47]

Most of the filters that we really don't care for do a fine job while they are working. The problem with a lot of filters that I personally don't like is that they are hard to clean or they are unreliable. Many of them work just fine right up until the day they fail completely. I had that happen just a few weeks ago with a filter that seemed to be working great. It was one of the ones with a good reputation but one day I walked into my fish room to find that it was very quiet and there was no water flow at all. I got it running again and came back a few days later to find it stopped again. After the second try, I pulled the plug on it and moved one of my emergency filters to that tank. I always have a few cycled filters running as extras on heavily populated tanks so that they can take over for a failed filter. This is the first time I have actually needed one due to a filter failure. More often I use one because I need to set up a tank in a hurry for an impulse buy at an auction.

 

[drobbyb]

Yes, saving the media is going to allow you to cycle the new filter in a short period of time. In the mean time, you can cut your insert open and put some bio-media in place of the carbon.

 

[OneOnion]

Day 3. My ammonia went down to 1ppm, but I have no nitrite? Should there be at least some present?

 

[rebrn]

Scientifically speaking yes you should see nitrites, however, in both of my fish less cycles, I did not see nitrites until approximately 7-8 days after the ammonia started to drop. Additionally, I saw nitrates before I saw nitrites. And since you moved media from your 5 gallon tank over, it would make sense that you would have both types of bacteria present, so your nitrites might still be low enough that your current colony is able to keep them under control. You may want to check for nitrates, if you don't have nitrates then I might question something (unless you have live plants, then you might not be seeing nitrates either).

 

[OneOnion]

Scientifically speaking yes you should see nitrites, however, in both of my fish less cycles, I did not see nitrites until approximately 7-8 days after the ammonia started to drop. Additionally, I saw nitrates before I saw nitrites. And since you moved media from your 5 gallon tank over, it would make sense that you would have both types of bacteria present, so your nitrites might still be low enough that your current colony is able to keep them under control. You may want to check for nitrates, if you don't have nitrates then I might question something (unless you have live plants, then you might not be seeing nitrates either).

Uh oh. I have 0 nitrates, too. And i have no live plants. Is there anything I could've done wrong?

 

[rebrn]

Well not sure then. I can tell you that in both my tanks it took about 5 days after the ammonia drop before I saw nitrates and about 2-3 days after that before I saw nitrites. I know it's not much help, but maybe it just hasn't been long enough

 

[waterdrop]

OneOnions problem here is in thinking that this is all going to happen in much quicker time periods than it is. OneOnion, what you're seeing is totally normal and very typical. You're not doing anything wrong. You have to settle in to keeping up with good logging of every test you take and then watching or graphing the numbers you get over weeks, not days or hours.

In the first two or so weeks, things are rarely really underway yet. Often the slow output of nitrite from the A-Bacs (the Ammonia Oxidizing Bacteria) gives the few N-Bacs (Nitrite Oxidizing Bacteria) just enough time to process enough of the nitrite into nitrate that the nitrite(NO2) test can't detect any. Likewise, there is still such a small amount of nitrate(NO3) overall in the tank that it can settle in the gravel and filter and just not be detectable yet by the nitrate test yet.

We all tend to pick our favorite temperature numbers to settle in on. My favorite is 84F/29C, so one degree cooler than you had it. Truck likes 82F I see and RDD was hoping to experiment with temps in the 90'sF when I last talked to him, but I think DocTim felt there would be some problems with the warmer temps.

~~waterdrop~~

 

[OneOnion]

Thanks, guys. I just thought I just read on a site that you'll get a reading of Nitrite the first time the Ammonia started dropping. I guess that isn't true.

 

[waterdrop]

I'm doing a Q-Tank right now and the ammonia has dropped many times but no sign of nitrite yet.

In chemistry you put individual substances into a glass container and expect clear results, even quantitatively predictable results. Glass aquariums with water and chemicals being put in and tested make you -think- of the same sorts of results...

But in fact its biology we're watching. The bacteria themselves are the "processors" and they are living cells with thousands of organic molecules at work and thousands of different individuals and competing species. Its just not chemistry and not predictable.

Besides that, we are taking "snapshots" of substances that can potentially move up and down in quantity very rapidly. A small spike of nitrite could move through the process and be detectable at an hour when you don't test. Some members might test and report their nitrite on a similar day of their cycle whereas others might really have a very similar cycle but test at a different hour relative to ammonia introduction or nitrite creation by the A-Bacs and report seeing no nitrite.

Keeping good records of your ammonia and nitrite tests, your somewhat less frequent pH tests and even less frequent nitrate(NO3) tests is really the best way to eventually spot things that might be happening.

You are correct though that the general range of time to first get a peek at nitrite(NO2) beginning to be more than the N-Bacs can handle is somewhere along the timeline after ammonia has begun to be dropped from 3-5ppm to zero ppm on a regular basis. Sometimes it appears sooner, sometimes later.

~~waterdrop~~

 

[OldMan47]

When you start seeing rapid ammonia drops, maybe drop by 2 ppm every day or something like that, you will very likely see the nitrogen show up as high nitrites. It can often take well over a week for just the first drop to zero, but the speed will pick up as time goes by. Once things are moving well, each 1 ppm of ammonia will show 2.7 ppm of nitrite, again using the straight chemistry model, and each 1 ppm of ammonia will eventually process through to 3.6 ppm of nitrates. As WD has said, the pure chemistry model does not represent what we see in practice all that well but the chemistry can often help you understand what you see in the numbers.

 

[OneOnion]

Bumping up. Still no changes.

Is it common for it, on the first day, to go from 4 PPM to 1 PPM, and then stay at 1 PPM for this long(6 days)?