Gelt's Fishless Cycle Log

[Owen386]

Don`t Think There`s Any Need To Mess With Your PH, looks like your cycle is going good and she be finished soon!


-Owen

 

[Gelt]

cheers Owen, anyone think i should re-dose Ammonia yet? my thinking is that if @ 1700 hrs yesterday it was 1 ppm and 24 hrs later its now 0.25, surely in 12 hrs time (at 0500 hrs) there will be no ammonia left to feed the bacteria?

Thoughts?

G

 

[KittyKat]

Owen is right about it being better to not mess with pH, even during cycling, once cycle has actually started.

It's fine if ammonia is at 0 ppm for some time, it won't harm the bacteria in 12-24 hours. Once ammonia is dropping in 12 hours from 4 ppm to 0 ppm, some people prefer to dose about 3-4 ppm at 12 hours intervals, but I have not seen enough evidence to say that it is either good or bad.

 

[Gelt]

Cheers for the advice Kat , always welcome

Day 11 - Saw first Ammonia zero today...re-dosed, everything stable N02&3 to be tested in a few days.

 

[Gelt]

Day 12 - Good signs on Ammonia dropping by half again after re-dose in 24 hrs, No3 seems to have dropped to 20 ppm in 48 hours...strange or is this normal?, No2 off chart again instant purple.

PH stable
Temp at 28.5C and rising at time of test.
305 external operating normally, no flow restriction
- topped up .5 litre declorinated water due to evaporation this morning .

Comments welcome

 

[BIG BAD BARRY]

Looking good.

Looks like your in the nitrite 'spike' stage. When your ammonia is oppm next, halve your dosing to 2ppm until you get to the next stage. Then when nitrite finally comes down to 0ppm, you can increase your dosing back up to 4ppm.

I would not worry about the nitrate at this stage. The nitrate test is less reliable when the nitrites are so high.

 

[Gelt]

Looking good.

Looks like your in the nitrite 'spike' stage. When your ammonia is oppm next, halve your dosing to 2ppm until you get to the next stage. Then when nitrite finally comes down to 0ppm, you can increase your dosing back up to 4ppm.

I would not worry about the nitrate at this stage. The nitrate test is less reliable when the nitrites are so high.

whats the rationale about halving the ammonia, is it to give the N-bacs maximum growth ?

 

[BIG BAD BARRY]

I think it gives the N Bacs a chance to catch up as more more nitrite is produced as the cycle goes on. It prevents a greater build of nitric acid and depending on the buffering capacity (alkalinity) of your water i believe delays a possible ph crash.

In sure waterdrop can explain it properly!

 

[waterdrop]

I think it gives the N Bacs a chance to catch up as more more nitrite is produced as the cycle goes on. It prevents a greater build of nitric acid and depending on the buffering capacity (alkalinity) of your water i believe delays a possible ph crash.

In sure waterdrop can explain it properly!

No, BBB explained it very well there! WD

 

[Gelt]

Day 13 - Processing Ammonia pretty quick within 24 hrs, now in the nitrite spike phase - waiting for it to come down to zero! therefore halving Ammonia dose to 2ppm for duration of Nitrite phase

Day 14 - Ammonia down to 0.25 ppm, next dose at 0 ppm @ 2 ppm probably in 24hrs to encourage N-bacs to fall and get converting to N03!


Hopefully not a long wait ....

G

 

[Gelt]

Day 15 - No2 remains off chart high , instant deep purple, Ammonia processing nicely would expext to see No2 drop in about 4-6 days .

Ph steady , Temp steady 28.7 C today.

G

 

[Ragtagcurtis]

Glad to see you progressing like myself. Hopefully we will both be adding our fish sometime in May
Decided to go for a species only Neolamprologus brichardi tank myself, well I'm 90% sure thats what I'm going to do. Cant wait to see pics or your setup once up and running.

 

[BIG BAD BARRY]

Day 15 - No2 remains off chart high , instant deep purple, Ammonia processing nicely would expext to see No2 drop in about 4-6 days .

Ph steady , Temp steady 28.7 C today.

G

Good stuff

 

[Gelt]

Glad to see you progressing like myself. Hopefully we will both be adding our fish sometime in May
Decided to go for a species only Neolamprologus brichardi tank myself, well I'm 90% sure thats what I'm going to do. Cant wait to see pics or your setup once up and running.

sweet sounds a good idea with those Fairy cichlid , no experience of them myself but great looking , how many you planning? high pH required too i think?

 

[Gelt]

Day 16 - Ammonia contiues to process well within 24 hrs, N02 still off chart high.

Topped up tank water with 1 ltr declorinated tap water due to evaporation (as i have not got round to cutting one lid section for a snug fit with my pipework from the Fluval 305)

apart from that nothing to report. long to see purple turn to blue!