Si's Fishless Cycle

[PDSimon]

What, you're not a baker and cook?

Yes, remember, always follow a fairly strict rule with ammonia dosing in your Add&Wait Fishless cycle: Have an "add-hour," a regular hour out of each 24 hours that will be your main time to run your 24-hour test set and record results and then to dose ammonia. IF ammonia has dropped to zero ppm any time in the previous 24 hours, then you wait and add ammonia at this "add-hour." Even if you were to perform a 12-hour test on ammonia and find it at zero ppm you would still wait for your add-hour before dosing up again. Got it?

Your pH has only dropped to 6.8, so the bacteria will still be active. Even if you don't have any bicarb, you'll still likely be ok for a few days (but continue testing of course) and we can perform a large water change (with good technique, as always) if the pH goes down to 6.2, where the cycle stalls.

~~waterdrop~~

haha I do a bit but rarely use bicarb!

I understand and ok got it

I don't want this time to be my add-hour time though, so is it ok to wait until say, tomorrow at 9pm (21.00)? it being 00.52 now. I'm up late doing uni work Or is that to long?

 

[waterdrop]

Well, you could put just a little in now and then bring it up to about 4ppm or so tomorrow at your 9pm time. But no, it would be hard to do anything particularly wrong at this point timing-wise.

WD

 

[PDSimon]

Well, you could put just a little in now and then bring it up to about 4ppm or so tomorrow at your 9pm time. But no, it would be hard to do anything particularly wrong at this point timing-wise.

WD

Ok i'll put 2ppm in. Any reason why 4 instead of 5?

Thanks

 

[waterdrop]

No particular reason. If you feel you can guesstimate 5ppm then that's fine. I just use 4ppm at this stage so people can just try to match that particular API ammonia color stripe.

WD

 

[PDSimon]

No particular reason. If you feel you can guesstimate 5ppm then that's fine. I just use 4ppm at this stage so people can just try to match that particular API ammonia color stripe.

WD

it's gone down so quick the 2ppm I put in very early in the morning had almost gone! so i've added another 2ppm and its just showing up as 2. Wouldn't be surprised if thats already gone by tomorrow...

Cheers for your help. pH looks about the same but will get some bicarb tomorrow hopefully.

 

[PDSimon]

going to add two tbsp(15ml) of bicarb as pH is still 6.6

edit: ammonia was also 0 so 5ppm of ammonia added - 5.26ml exactly thats 2ppm gone in 24 hours. soon it shall be 5

 

[kaivalagi]

Excellent stuff! going well now

 

[PDSimon]

Cheers

I just did a pH test to see what effect the bicarb had. It isn't even a colour on the high range pH card Will do normal pH to see if it hasn't had an effect yet.

It's gone a pinkish colour, with yellowy brown being 7.4 and 8.8 being purple. No way has it gone over. I didn't even do the dose waterdrop said, I did less!

time for a double check...

edit: so I checked again with high pH and it was still the same. I did it with a normal pH test and it was dark blue, possibly a bit more than the 7.6 on the card.

Don't get why its not showing up as a colour on high pH.

Hopefully its alright anyway

 

[waterdrop]

Naw, I think you're fine. A nice dark blue on the normal range pH is what I used to look for to tell me the bicarb was giving me a nice "above 8" type range and that's what the bacteria will like. It takes a while to realize that all of this stuff is a little more crude and less detailed than you first think. It jumps around on you and happens in sudden changes in the midst of long multiday time periods, so as you get more of the feel of it, fine details begin to seem less important (...'course I may just need sleep, lol)

WD

 

[PDSimon]

Thanks waterdrop. I shall see how the cycle is going in an hour or so.

I am so tired, been staying up everynight for a couple of weeks now to get all my uni work finished! Finally finished today - early I know but I have lots of portfolio work to but that is much more relaxing!

Probably will go to some of the futher away fish stores and see what they have this weekend. I also want some bogwood and stuff so I can soak it.

 

[waterdrop]

Yeah, its getting to the end here too and all the students look tired...

 

[PDSimon]

Ammonia went down 4.5ppm in a day

edit: tested pH as well, which is now 7.8. I could add some more bicarb but is 2 really worth it lol

 

[waterdrop]

Not worth it, your pH is fine. Good that you're getting some ammonia movement. --WD

 

[PDSimon]

The nitrogen cycle has never been so exciting. Why didn't they make us get fish tanks when I did biology

So, tomorrows results should be 0ppm. therefore I will add 5ppm, and hopefully that will be gone by the next day. So thats stage 1 over and i'll start adding 3ppm and testing for nitrates occaasionally?

 

[kaivalagi]

The nitrogen cycle has never been so exciting. Why didn't they make us get fish tanks when I did biology

So, tomorrows results should be 0ppm. therefore I will add 5ppm, and hopefully that will be gone by the next day. So thats stage 1 over and i'll start adding 3ppm and testing for nitrates occaasionally?

Sounds about right to me, nitrates not dropping at all yet? Just peaked so far?