Fishless cycle?

tmccaffery · 04/27/2018, 05:20 PM

I have been doing a cycle with pure ammonia, Started this April 2nd.

My Ammomia at 4/9 was 5ppm now 0
I don't want to dose anymore ammonia until I see a Nitrite change.
Nitrite Maxed and still maxed seems not going down and curious on why.. Did I use too much ammonia or something?

Should I also test for Nitrate?

sde1500 · 04/27/2018, 05:30 PM

5ppm is somewhat excessive. But not crazy. Just gave the system a lot to process through. Too high of levels can stall out a cycle. Give it a little more time and if nothing happens do a water change.

mcgyvr · 04/27/2018, 05:36 PM

5ppm is excessive and can actually be detrimental to bacterial growth too..

1ppm is preferred.. 2ppm is as far as I would ever take it..

Keep waiting..
And yes you can actually start doing water changes now too if you want.
Many won't agree with that.. but well.. they are totally fine and will just get you started on nitrate removal because typically with ammonia levels that elevated nitrate levels will be high too.. The bacteria is colonizing all over the surfaces of the tank.. water changes aren't disturbing that at all..

Easy E · 04/27/2018, 06:07 PM

There are 2 different kinds of bacteria that need to grow before the cycle is complete. One eats ammonia and produces nitrite. The other eats nitrite and produces nitrate. So you're halfway through the cycle. If the nitrites are maxxed out then you probably did add too much ammonia, but it's nothing to worry about since there's no livestock in the the tank. Now you need to start testing for nitrate. You should see the nitrate going up and the nitrite going down. When the nitrite reaches zero, your tank is cycled. At that point your nitrates will probably be maxxed out, so you will need to change out most of the water and leave your filter media intact. Wait a couple days and test all 3 parameters again. If the ammonia and nitrite are zero, and the nitrate is at a reasonable level, then the cycle is complete and you can start adding livestock a little at a time.

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04/27/2018, 05:20 PM	#1
tmccaffery Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2011 Posts: 170	Fishless cycle? I have been doing a cycle with pure ammonia, Started this April 2nd. My Ammomia at 4/9 was 5ppm now 0 I don't want to dose anymore ammonia until I see a Nitrite change. Nitrite Maxed and still maxed seems not going down and curious on why.. Did I use too much ammonia or something? Should I also test for Nitrate?

04/27/2018, 05:30 PM	#2
sde1500 Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2015 Location: Glocester, RI Posts: 3,336	5ppm is somewhat excessive. But not crazy. Just gave the system a lot to process through. Too high of levels can stall out a cycle. Give it a little more time and if nothing happens do a water change. __________________ My build thread: http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2548422 Current Tank Info: 65 gallon mixed reef, Eshopps sump and HOB overflow, RO-110int skimmer, Reefbreeder 32" photons V1.

04/27/2018, 05:36 PM	#3
mcgyvr Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: North Carolina Posts: 20,050	5ppm is excessive and can actually be detrimental to bacterial growth too.. 1ppm is preferred.. 2ppm is as far as I would ever take it.. Keep waiting.. And yes you can actually start doing water changes now too if you want. Many won't agree with that.. but well.. they are totally fine and will just get you started on nitrate removal because typically with ammonia levels that elevated nitrate levels will be high too.. The bacteria is colonizing all over the surfaces of the tank.. water changes aren't disturbing that at all.. __________________ Who me?

04/27/2018, 06:07 PM	#4
Easy E Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2012 Location: Iowa Posts: 101	There are 2 different kinds of bacteria that need to grow before the cycle is complete. One eats ammonia and produces nitrite. The other eats nitrite and produces nitrate. So you're halfway through the cycle. If the nitrites are maxxed out then you probably did add too much ammonia, but it's nothing to worry about since there's no livestock in the the tank. Now you need to start testing for nitrate. You should see the nitrate going up and the nitrite going down. When the nitrite reaches zero, your tank is cycled. At that point your nitrates will probably be maxxed out, so you will need to change out most of the water and leave your filter media intact. Wait a couple days and test all 3 parameters again. If the ammonia and nitrite are zero, and the nitrate is at a reasonable level, then the cycle is complete and you can start adding livestock a little at a time. Sent from my RS988 using Tapatalk __________________ “It is better to keep your mouth closed and let people think you are a fool than to open it and remove all doubt. ~Mark Twain~” Current Tank Info: 55 gal FOWLR w/15 gal above tank refugium, 10 gal nano FOWLR