Cycling and still no ammonia...

eutimio · 10/25/2012, 01:41 AM

Im in the 4th day of the cycle and i tested the water twice and theres 0 ammonia..I did some waterchanges or more like top offs of 3-5 gallons twice so far cuz i cleaned the canister so i had to fill it up somehow...The LR still has a bunch of slime on it that seems like it wont give up easily.I got 2 powerheads today and pointed at the rocks to clean them up a little while the canister will suck up the dirt...Shouldnt there be some ammonia by now?the tank is 55G with 55 pounds of LR ..I keep my lights on for 14-16 hours a day...I just noticed yesterday a little bit of diatom on one of the rocks that is hit directly by the light but not others that are in the same area...I want to know what is happening...Is it taking a lot of time for ammonia to rise?If the LR is indeed live then i should have seen the ammonia by now i suppose?

On the other hand...i tested the water in the quarantine as well...i have around .25ppm of ammonia in the water.Now the weird thing is that i changed the water like every day around 25% and siphoned out the uneaten food as well as the poop...whats going on in there?I mean water changes of 25% every day as well as cleaning the tank of debris should keep ammonia at 0 right?Could it be from my sponge i run in the HOB filter?I didnt clean that and i just remembered as im typing that that is the one thing i forgot to do..Let me know.Thanks

shifty51008 · 10/25/2012, 01:47 AM

If it is good live rock and you hardly had it out of the water then you may not see a cycle because the rock is already cured. You can add fish food then check for ammonia the next day and if still nothing i would start to add your cuc and 1 fish

eutimio · 10/25/2012, 01:59 AM

the rock was wrapped in wet newspaper and on top of that with another plastic placed inside of a styrofoam container ...i would say it was in there for like 30min then it went straight into the aquarium.How much fish food should i put in there?I have frozen mysis shrimp.Should i throw a cube in there til tomorrow then test?

Innovatereefer8 · 10/25/2012, 02:02 AM

Try seeding the tank by adding some live bacteria an maybe a few hermits to help produce waste ( a 1$ loss is better then a 20$ loss) an let them work on the rocks also algae is photosynthetic so the more the lights are on the more algae there is to worry about. If there is no livestock currently in the tank a good way to cut down on algae is by leaving ur our lights off for a few days

shifty51008 · 10/25/2012, 03:45 AM

A cube of food will work just fine. I agree with the last poster also, adjusting your light time to 8 hours a day will make a diffrence. And turing them off with no livestock for a few days will also help

sponger0 · 10/25/2012, 06:35 AM

It can take up to 2 weeks before ammonia can be detected. Wait......

MuffsAbby · 10/25/2012, 06:37 AM

To answer your question about the QT: Daily WC's and syphoning debris will help to reduce ammonia, but won't necessarily keep it at 0. Fish excrete ammonia through their gills and ammonia is in their urine, neither of which can be removed via syphoning. WC's help to dilute the ammonia, but they don't remove it entirely. You can use Amquel or Prime on your QT (in addition to the WC's and syphoning) to help control ammonia in your QT.

eutimio · 10/25/2012, 07:47 AM

Thanks for all the info.I added 2 cubes of mysis shrimp last night and this morning i was excited to test the water to find out that the ammonia is still at 0.What does that mean?is my LR cured and working ?Should i still wait to see ammonia like sponger suggests ?Or should i start adding the CUC?

sponger0 · 10/25/2012, 07:48 AM

It could mean your bacteria is high enough, but IMO Id still wait minimum of 2 weeks. If you never see ammonia at that point, add a CUC.

eutimio · 10/25/2012, 07:51 AM

Thanks sponger will do that!

andy2966 · 10/25/2012, 07:59 AM

You can use Amquel or Prime on your QT (in addition to the WC's and syphoning) to help control ammonia in your QT.[/QUOTE] If you use Amquel or Prime you will still get a reading of .25 Ammonia in Your QT.

Gregs138 · 10/25/2012, 09:34 AM

Pretty solid advice so far I think. If your live rock never really had a chance to die off, then it is not really going to produce much ammonia if any. If you can go 5 days with no signs of ammonia, add some snails/crabs, maybe a chromie or two. I actually used this as my strategy for getting my tank going.

Theres a big difference between live rock that has been on a plane/truck for 3-4 days and then shipped to you 3-4 days later/ and live rock that is in an active filter system at the LFS that has been cleaning their system for the last month-it's already probably fully cured and very strong.

MuffsAbby · 10/25/2012, 09:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by andy2966

If you use Amquel or Prime you will still get a reading of .25 Ammonia in Your QT.

If you're using API (or any kit that tests for total ammonia) that's true, since Amquel and Prime don't remove the ammonia...they simply "convert" free ammonia to ammonium, which is much less toxic than free ammonia. Alternatively, if you're still concerned, you can use a test designed for free ammonia only (for example, Seachem).

eutimio · 10/25/2012, 06:48 PM

Ive got some Prime but the false readings are only in the first 24 hours.After that the readings will be pretty much of what you have in the tank.But i will def dose some Prime cuz i didnt do it yet.

10/25/2012, 01:41 AM	#1
eutimio Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2012 Posts: 102	Cycling and still no ammonia... Im in the 4th day of the cycle and i tested the water twice and theres 0 ammonia..I did some waterchanges or more like top offs of 3-5 gallons twice so far cuz i cleaned the canister so i had to fill it up somehow...The LR still has a bunch of slime on it that seems like it wont give up easily.I got 2 powerheads today and pointed at the rocks to clean them up a little while the canister will suck up the dirt...Shouldnt there be some ammonia by now?the tank is 55G with 55 pounds of LR ..I keep my lights on for 14-16 hours a day...I just noticed yesterday a little bit of diatom on one of the rocks that is hit directly by the light but not others that are in the same area...I want to know what is happening...Is it taking a lot of time for ammonia to rise?If the LR is indeed live then i should have seen the ammonia by now i suppose? On the other hand...i tested the water in the quarantine as well...i have around .25ppm of ammonia in the water.Now the weird thing is that i changed the water like every day around 25% and siphoned out the uneaten food as well as the poop...whats going on in there?I mean water changes of 25% every day as well as cleaning the tank of debris should keep ammonia at 0 right?Could it be from my sponge i run in the HOB filter?I didnt clean that and i just remembered as im typing that that is the one thing i forgot to do..Let me know.Thanks

10/25/2012, 01:47 AM	#2
shifty51008 12-5 Chiefs record Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: NW Iowa Posts: 10,134	If it is good live rock and you hardly had it out of the water then you may not see a cycle because the rock is already cured. You can add fish food then check for ammonia the next day and if still nothing i would start to add your cuc and 1 fish __________________ 75 gal. mixed DT, 100 gal. sump, 50 gal. fuge, Clownfish breeder

10/25/2012, 03:45 AM	#5
shifty51008 12-5 Chiefs record Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: NW Iowa Posts: 10,134	A cube of food will work just fine. I agree with the last poster also, adjusting your light time to 8 hours a day will make a diffrence. And turing them off with no livestock for a few days will also help __________________ 75 gal. mixed DT, 100 gal. sump, 50 gal. fuge, Clownfish breeder

10/25/2012, 06:37 AM	#7
MuffsAbby Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: Mississauga, Ontario Posts: 327	To answer your question about the QT: Daily WC's and syphoning debris will help to reduce ammonia, but won't necessarily keep it at 0. Fish excrete ammonia through their gills and ammonia is in their urine, neither of which can be removed via syphoning. WC's help to dilute the ammonia, but they don't remove it entirely. You can use Amquel or Prime on your QT (in addition to the WC's and syphoning) to help control ammonia in your QT. __________________ Susan Current Tank Info: 150g fish only DT, with 2 ocellaris clowns, flagfin angel, bangaii cardinal, flame hawk pair and lyretail anthias.

10/25/2012, 07:59 AM	#11
andy2966 Registered Member Join Date: May 2012 Location: Saint Louis, MO. Posts: 376	You can use Amquel or Prime on your QT (in addition to the WC's and syphoning) to help control ammonia in your QT.[/QUOTE] If you use Amquel or Prime you will still get a reading of .25 Ammonia in Your QT. __________________ Just a little patience Current Tank Info: 90 Gallon (FOWLR) and 29 Gallon used for QT mostly

10/25/2012, 01:59 AM	#3
eutimio Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2012 Posts: 102	the rock was wrapped in wet newspaper and on top of that with another plastic placed inside of a styrofoam container ...i would say it was in there for like 30min then it went straight into the aquarium.How much fish food should i put in there?I have frozen mysis shrimp.Should i throw a cube in there til tomorrow then test?

10/25/2012, 02:02 AM	#4
Innovatereefer8 Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2012 Posts: 1	Try seeding the tank by adding some live bacteria an maybe a few hermits to help produce waste ( a 1$ loss is better then a 20$ loss) an let them work on the rocks also algae is photosynthetic so the more the lights are on the more algae there is to worry about. If there is no livestock currently in the tank a good way to cut down on algae is by leaving ur our lights off for a few days

10/25/2012, 06:35 AM	#6
sponger0 Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Virginia Beach Posts: 6,659	It can take up to 2 weeks before ammonia can be detected. Wait......

10/25/2012, 07:47 AM	#8
eutimio Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2012 Posts: 102	Thanks for all the info.I added 2 cubes of mysis shrimp last night and this morning i was excited to test the water to find out that the ammonia is still at 0.What does that mean?is my LR cured and working ?Should i still wait to see ammonia like sponger suggests ?Or should i start adding the CUC?

10/25/2012, 07:48 AM	#9
sponger0 Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Virginia Beach Posts: 6,659	It could mean your bacteria is high enough, but IMO Id still wait minimum of 2 weeks. If you never see ammonia at that point, add a CUC.

10/25/2012, 07:51 AM	#10
eutimio Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2012 Posts: 102	Thanks sponger will do that!

10/25/2012, 09:34 AM	#12
Gregs138 Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2012 Location: Mission Viejo Posts: 90	Pretty solid advice so far I think. If your live rock never really had a chance to die off, then it is not really going to produce much ammonia if any. If you can go 5 days with no signs of ammonia, add some snails/crabs, maybe a chromie or two. I actually used this as my strategy for getting my tank going. Theres a big difference between live rock that has been on a plane/truck for 3-4 days and then shipped to you 3-4 days later/ and live rock that is in an active filter system at the LFS that has been cleaning their system for the last month-it's already probably fully cured and very strong.

10/25/2012, 06:48 PM	#14
eutimio Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2012 Posts: 102	Ive got some Prime but the false readings are only in the first 24 hours.After that the readings will be pretty much of what you have in the tank.But i will def dose some Prime cuz i didnt do it yet.