Migthegreek - Fishless Cycle Log

[waterdrop]

 

[Deleted member 55926]

OK, things seem to be getting back to normal now. Just waiting for the A-bacs to wake up and get rid of all the ammonia, but the nitrite has spiked again so they're working hard.

 

[Deleted member 55926]

My pH is really fighting to go down. I have been adding 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda every day just to keep it up above 7. Is this normal?

My nitrite is 5+ and ammonia 0 for the last couple of days, so is it time I bring my dosing down to, say, 3ppm again?

 

[waterdrop]

yes, maybe you're finally in a more sustained nitrite spike and 3 would be good. It normally takes about 1 teaspoon per 50L of water volume just to hold pH steady while upping the KH a little, so we often will often say (and its just throwing a rough thing out there because it really doesn't matter all that much) to do a tablespoon (equals 3 teaspoons) of baking soda per 50L of water volume.. when you want to actually raise pH.

 

[Deleted member 55926]

do a tablespoon of baking soda per 50L of water volume.. when you want to actually raise pH.

Yeah, I suppose I've just been keeping it level. I will add a bit more to get it closer to pH8. Thanks.

 

[Deleted member 55926]

 

[Deleted member 55926]

Day 37

Yawn. Very bored, very fed up, very disappointed I won't be getting any fish before Christmas. I guess it will take at least another 3 weeks. Thought I would be done by now. I have had people coming to my new flat all the time over the last 6 weeks and it sucks that all I have to show is a dirty, empty tank with nothing but some mouldy horrible bits of wood. Fishless cycling sucks. If I wasn't so determined to see it out, I would just add one or two fish and build it up now.

It's extremely frustrating that I've taken so many months now doing extensive research and dedication to getting it right, and my friend has a tank of zebra danios and neon tetras together with goldfish. The details of his setup? Cold water, straight from the tap. No dechlorinator. No heater. No filter. They are still going fine after at least 6 months in that tank, but I'll bet I have casualties within the first month.

What disappoints me most is that the mature media I put into the filter on day 1 has clearly done NOTHING, when I thought it would help speed things up.

 

[timbotoo]

Keep going matey! - there are a few behind you and watching (day 23 here - no movement yet)

Fishless cycle saves lives - I've done my share of killing in a previous fish-keeping life...

Rgds

Timbo

 

[JustFrozen]

From reading the various fishless cycle log threads here for the past few months, it seems to me that it's pretty standard for a cycle to take a couple months or more. Of course that's usually without mature media, and I understand your frustration with that and the length of the cycle in general.

At least you're seeing activity. It's a lot more boring when you get the same stat for over a month, as it is in my case. I've not had any indication that anything is improving for about 5 weeks now, and I started over 60 days ago. It seems like your nitrite is getting processed and if the level manages to stay low then you may only be a few weeks away. I'm frustrated too, and I think it's very much a common thing for those of us who go through this seemingly endless process. Perhaps we should just put it in perspective. Some cases, including a recent one, have gone past 4 months. Also a good thing to think about is not all the time your waiting through to get the fish in there, but how much time the fish will be in there once it's ready. This will be a small blip off the horizon one day, and will be well worth it when you're done.

 

[Deleted member 55926]

Thanks for the support. I guess I was just having a bad day and had to vent in order to persist.

I have a question though... I'm not going to be here on Saturday to dose the tank, so should I add a double dose on Friday? I dose in the morning, so should I add 7ppm on Friday morning, and then I'll be able to get back to dosing on Sunday morning. Or is that unwise? I am planning to up the dosage to 4ppm after the weekend.

 

[OldMan47]

I would not go over about 5 or 6 ppm on a fast moving tank like yours. Not over 5 ever on one that is not close to being ready for ammonia. The bacteria will develop somewhat the first day and just stagnate the second day. You really won't lose much by missing a day. If you are concerned about it, you could add a small amount of fish food or a prawn to the tank so that it could decay and provide some ammonia while you are not there to do it. Don't forget to get it back out once you return, these things can smell terrible in a fairly short time.

 

[Deleted member 55926]

Hi guys. Been about a month since my last update, but I am pleased to say that my cycle is finished.

It probably would have been done about 2 weeks ago at least, but I went to and from my flat to my parents house a lot over the Christmas/New Year period, and my dosing was extremely random as a consequence. This effectively messed up my cycle, as well as the fact that I had so much white fluff growing on the wood that the filter got clogged up and stopped working properly. After a good clean-out of the thick brown sludge inside, it kick-started my cycle again and over the last week my tank has gone from not clearing 2.5ppm to clearing 5ppm in 12 hrs.

So now I need to ask... what do I do now? How large a water change should I do, and are there any factors that determine the percentage? Or is it just some people do 75%, others do 90%? I also need to get plants and plant them. Shall I plant them when the water is out, then fill the tank back up and get the filter started on clearing the dust and stuff? I was then going to get fish in a couple of days, so that by then the tank will have been clearing 5ppm comfortably for a few days.

 

[waterdrop]

No mig (or I'm misunderstanding)... its important that you plan out and make the big switchover from fishless cycling to running the tank with fish all happen within the same day or perhaps the next day. The idea is that the tank gets drained (via a gravel clean as usual) down to the substrate and then when you refill you DON'T put in ammonia. Instead, you acclimate all the bags of your first introduction of fish from your stocking plan. Note that sometimes the planning of all this is very dependent on when your LFS gets your fish in and has them ready. You want the first stocking to be large, to make good use of all that fishless cycling work.

You of course don't want any ammonia or baking soda in there when the fish go in.

Planting when the water is at about 75% level can sometimes be helpful but otherwise most do it when the tank is full.

~~waterdrop~~

 

[Deleted member 55926]

Yeah, sorry, I think you may have misunderstood - I know not to add ammonia any more once the tank is stocked. Also, on second thought, having the tank full will probably be more helpful when planting, to keep the leaves floating, right?

This is my plan:

1. Fishless cycle complete.
2. Keep dosing for a couple more days to ensure cycling is steady, while planning what to buy.
3. Buy plants.
4. 75% water change.
5. Plant and scape the tank.
6. Refill tank and allow to clear.
7. Buy fish the next day and stock.

Wait, but if the LFS doesn't have my fish, what do I do? Do I plant anyway? Can you continue to dose while plants are in the tank, until I get fish?

 

[waterdrop]

Yeah, now you're getting it, that's the rub, you kind of have to have a magic point where the stores have good lots of the fish you want! The plants will be fine, they will even absorb a bit of the ammonia.

~~waterdrop~~