Where in the cycle am I?

[Montyfish]

Hey all. I have been keeping fish for a few years now but this is the first time I have cycled the tank myself. I have a 66g (or 79 US gallons) andhave had it set up for 2 days now. I put in all the water from my previous tank, all the gravel, ornaments etc and squeezed out the filter media from the old tank. There are about 20 tetras, 3 gouramis and a ram in there (I know they are sensitive but I have no choice) and put quite a lot of cycle in there.

I did an ammonia and nitrite test after I added the fish and it was .25 ppm ammonia and .25 ppm nitrite. I tested again today and ammonia is the same but nitrite has gone up to around the 2-5 ppm mark. I would like to know where abouts in the cycle it is, has the old water, gravel etc. speeded up the cycle. How long should the cycle take from this point? I am going on holiday for a week, will it be finished by the time I get back? Thanks.

 

[Nisha]

You seem to be in the nitrIte rising part of the cycle. In time, your nitrItes will peak and drop followed by your nitrAtes rising. When your Ammonia and NitrItes are at "0", your cycle is finished.
I'm not too sure how long the cycle will take for your tank but test it when you come back and *fingers crossed* it will be done.

 

[jrd77]

I am not really sure but another week does not sound like enough time for it to be finished cycling...

Will someone be able to look after the tank while you are away? Maybe if they can do a few readings you'll have a good idea about where you are by the time you get back...

 

[Montyfish]

I doubt someone could do that. They wouldn't really understand what to do. i'll just do a reading when I get back.

I don't mind waiting, it's just my lfs is keeping a largeish oscar round the back for me, and its in this small tank. So i'd like to get it in my larger tank as soon as it's cycled really.

If it hasn't cycled by then it'll just have to wait.

 

[Montyfish]

Ok, back off holiday. From what I can see, the tank has finished cycling. Ammonia and nitrite are at 0. A few dead fish but most are ok. There is a lot of algae though, how do I get that off without damaging the bacteria? Thanks.