3 weeks into cycle, showing nitrates, am I nearly there??

feedl0rd · 12/13/2016, 08:14 PM

Hi guys,

Last week I posted here because I was having trouble with ammonia levels being incredibly low so I took your advice and added fish food daily. I started to get an ammonia reading (0.25ppm) but it never spiked too high. I added a bunch of food so I didn't want to add more (I can still see all the little shrimp food on the bottom of the tank). I never noticed a spike in nitrites or ammonia but I am now getting nitrates.

A week later and I am still getting a small ammonia reading (0.25ppm) with 0 Nitrites and 10-20ppm nitrates.

I have been dosing Seachem stability since the start, it is a 40Gal tank with about 20kg of live rock. I am also using a skimmer and seachem matrix in my sump.

My question is, am I nearly there? Am I just to wait until the nitrite and ammonia are consistently 0?

Thank you for any help, its greatly appreciated.

mal7887 · 12/13/2016, 08:25 PM

You will want to wait for ammonia to be zero. If you are starting to read nitrates that's a good thing, that means ammonia is being broken down.

feedl0rd · 12/13/2016, 08:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mal7887

You will want to wait for ammonia to be zero. If you are starting to read nitrates that's a good thing, that means ammonia is being broken down.

Thanks for the response. I agree with the ammonia call, how long does this usually take? It is only 0.25ppm of ammonia to break down. Also, am I to do a water change after the cycle?

RobZilla04 · 12/14/2016, 06:24 AM

Did you already go through the huge algae blooms?

scooter31707 · 12/14/2016, 07:48 AM

Are you reading any Nirites? I bet the 0.25ppm ammonia is coming from a API test kit. They show a false reading of 0.25ppm for ammonia. So you may be cycled. The best way to know is to get pure ammonia, dosing the tank to 2-3ppm and if the tank is cycled it should convert to nirates within 24 hours.

Fbrondum · 12/20/2016, 02:12 AM

If you bought wet rock you could indeed be almost there. I had the same type of cycle. All wet live rock never got an ammonia spike never saw nitrite spike only got to about 5ppm nitrate after feeding the tank through week 4 because I wasn't sure. Had my LFS test my water before adding anything and this is my tank now 2 months in. In a few days I'd be willing to bet you will see some diatoms if you haven't already.

.

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12/13/2016, 08:14 PM	#1
feedl0rd Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2016 Location: Australia Posts: 11	3 weeks into cycle, showing nitrates, am I nearly there?? Hi guys, Last week I posted here because I was having trouble with ammonia levels being incredibly low so I took your advice and added fish food daily. I started to get an ammonia reading (0.25ppm) but it never spiked too high. I added a bunch of food so I didn't want to add more (I can still see all the little shrimp food on the bottom of the tank). I never noticed a spike in nitrites or ammonia but I am now getting nitrates. A week later and I am still getting a small ammonia reading (0.25ppm) with 0 Nitrites and 10-20ppm nitrates. I have been dosing Seachem stability since the start, it is a 40Gal tank with about 20kg of live rock. I am also using a skimmer and seachem matrix in my sump. My question is, am I nearly there? Am I just to wait until the nitrite and ammonia are consistently 0? Thank you for any help, its greatly appreciated.

12/13/2016, 08:25 PM	#2
mal7887 Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Tampa Posts: 643	You will want to wait for ammonia to be zero. If you are starting to read nitrates that's a good thing, that means ammonia is being broken down. __________________ Matt Don't pee on my leg and tell me it's raining. Current Tank Info: 190

12/14/2016, 06:24 AM	#4
RobZilla04 Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2016 Location: St. Augustine, FL Posts: 1,857	Did you already go through the huge algae blooms? __________________ 90g Mixed Reef

12/14/2016, 07:48 AM	#5
scooter31707 Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2015 Location: Virginia Posts: 4,971	Are you reading any Nirites? I bet the 0.25ppm ammonia is coming from a API test kit. They show a false reading of 0.25ppm for ammonia. So you may be cycled. The best way to know is to get pure ammonia, dosing the tank to 2-3ppm and if the tank is cycled it should convert to nirates within 24 hours.

12/20/2016, 02:12 AM	#6
Fbrondum Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2015 Posts: 67	If you bought wet rock you could indeed be almost there. I had the same type of cycle. All wet live rock never got an ammonia spike never saw nitrite spike only got to about 5ppm nitrate after feeding the tank through week 4 because I wasn't sure. Had my LFS test my water before adding anything and this is my tank now 2 months in. In a few days I'd be willing to bet you will see some diatoms if you haven't already. . Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk