New Tank Cycle- 3rd Week

[bal009]

Guys,

So I'm on my third week of cycling my tank and my only fish (a chromis) died due to the expected ammonia spike. At this point i'm going to let the cycle finish without adding any more fish. Will the cycle finish if i don't add any other fish or food daily? Do i need to keep adding a little bit of food to the tank to help the cycle finish at this point?


Here are my current numbers:

Ammonia 0.50
Nitrite 0.25
Nitrate 10

 

[kegogut]

You should get some Smart Start. Its a wonderful product.

 

[jlmawp]

Guys,

So I'm on my third week of cycling my tank and my only fish (a chromis) died due to the expected ammonia spike. At this point i'm going to let the cycle finish without adding any more fish. Will the cycle finish if i don't add any other fish or food daily? Do i need to keep adding a little bit of food to the tank to help the cycle finish at this point?


Here are my current numbers:

Ammonia 0.50
Nitrite 0.25
Nitrate 10

As long as you have a decent amount of rock in the tank, the cycle should take care of itself at this point.

 

[bal009]

Help Reading Test

Help Reading Test

Hey Guys,

A quick help here reading the nitrites... does this looks to you guys more like 0.25 or 1.0? lol

 

[OldReefGuy]

to answer your q, dont add anything now, it will continue.

 

[bal009]

not even food?

 

[homer1475]

Not even food. Once you have ammonia present, there is no need to keep adding ammonia(food in your case). Just let the tank process that ammonia, then if you like, stress test the tank by adding pure ammonia up to 2ppm and see if it clears to nitrates in 24 hours. Using pure ammonia is faster and more precise then adding food and waiting for it to breakdown.

Then do a large water change(as much as you can possibly due, 90% is great if you can) to clear the tank of the eventual high nitrate's. Then add your fish slowly, like 1 a week would be good.

 

[canadianeh]

Hey Guys,

A quick help here reading the nitrites... does this looks to you guys more like 0.25 or 1.0? lol

looks like 1.0? lol I think this type of test is more accurate than electronic photometer ones.

 

[canadianeh]

Not even food. Once you have ammonia present, there is no need to keep adding ammonia(food in your case). Just let the tank process that ammonia, then if you like, stress test the tank by adding pure ammonia up to 2ppm and see if it clears to nitrates in 24 hours. Using pure ammonia is faster and more precise then adding food and waiting for it to breakdown.

Then do a large water change(as much as you can possibly due, 90% is great if you can) to clear the tank of the eventual high nitrate's. Then add your fish slowly, like 1 a week would be good.

I am also using pure ammonia during my fishless cycle, and my tank can eliminate 4 ppm of ammonia within 24 hours.

 

[Mark9]

Hey Guys,

A quick help here reading the nitrites... does this looks to you guys more like 0.25 or 1.0? lol

1, but it doesn't really matter, the fact you have nitrite means your cycle is progressing nicely.
Just let it go for a bit, only bother checking nitrite every few days.
One day it will drop to 0, then you're good to go.
Do a water change to bring down nitrate, add a fish, go slow.

 

[bal009]

Guys i installed a 200 w heater on my 30 gal biocube and i did notice that even tough the heater is set at 82, the thermometer reads 76. I initially though that the issue was maybe the heater but i m getting the same number using another thermometer. 200 W heater should be more than enough to handle a 30 gal biocube, what s going on? any ideas?

 

[canadianeh]

you may need to calibrate your heater. What heater do you use? I know Ehiem Jager ones you can calibrate them.

 

[LJC6780]

I'm sorry, I'm only used to fresh water, but don't you need to continue to add ammonia to feed the bacteria until the cycle is finished? Is this different with salt tanks?


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[kegogut]

You ignored my remark about getting Smart Start. Why dont you get some? It will help with your cycle.

 

[canadianeh]

I'm sorry, I'm only used to fresh water, but don't you need to continue to add ammonia to feed the bacteria until the cycle is finished? Is this different with salt tanks?


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I added ammonia every other days or two days, and my tank seems to be okay meaning able to consume ammonia within less than 24 hours.

 

[LJC6780]

I added ammonia every other days or two days, and my tank seems to be okay meaning able to consume ammonia within less than 24 hours.

That's what I was thinking ... add enough to maintain a certain level until it is processing the bio load you want in 24hr, then keep it fed until you get fish. I may have misread, but it seemed like someone said once there are ammonia and nitrites to just let it go and finish cycling on it's own. Seems hat would allow the ammonia eating bacteria to starve.


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[thegrun]

I added ammonia every other days or two days, and my tank seems to be okay meaning able to consume ammonia within less than 24 hours.

You should only add ammonia once, adding more only prolongs the cycle and leaves you with much higher nitrates at the end of the cycle. Add enough ammonia to raise your level to 2ppm and then let nature take it from there. Once your ammonia and nitrites drop to zero it is safe to start slowly adding livestock. You can add one of the bacteria in a bottle products to speed up the cycle if you want, but it certainly isn't necessary. At the three week mark adding bacteria seems to be waste of money since the cycle is getting close to being complete.

 

[canadianeh]

You should only add ammonia once, adding more only prolongs the cycle and leaves you with much higher nitrates at the end of the cycle. Add enough ammonia to raise your level to 2ppm and then let nature take it from there. Once your ammonia and nitrites drop to zero it is safe to start slowly adding livestock. You can add one of the bacteria in a bottle products to speed up the cycle if you want, but it certainly isn't necessary. At the three week mark adding bacteria seems to be waste of money since the cycle is getting close to being complete.

If I don't eat more ammonia though every other day, will I not starve the bacteria who eat ammonia to death?

 

[thegrun]

If I don't eat more ammonia though every other day, will I not starve the bacteria who eat ammonia to death?

The bacteria have been proven to last over a year without a food source, so unless you plan on keeping a tank fallow for a year there is no reason to feed them

 

[canadianeh]

The bacteria have been proven to last over a year without a food source, so unless you plan on keeping a tank fallow for a year there is no reason to feed them

ahhh. Good to know. I won't put in more ammonia then. My nitrite is only 17 ppm left in the tank.