Ammonia Dosing And Post-Cycle Stocking

[ladymaverick]

Hi guys,

Just looking for a quick clarification:

When my ammonia level in my cycle eventually drops to 0, should I be re-dosing to 2 or 4ppm?

Does the re-dosing level impact how fully I stock immediately after the cycle is finished? I'd like to go "all-in" rather than bit by bit.

Thanks in advance.

 

[Essjay]

The traditional answer is dose back up to 4ppm. But if the ammonia reading drops to zero within 24 hours, wait till 24 hours after the last dose. Keep doing this until both ammonia and nitrite fall to zero within 12 hours of a dose of ammonia, then for another 7 days to make absolutely sure (the qualifying week).
But more recently, some advice has been to dose lower amounts once the ammonia reading first drops to zero until the nitrite reading drops to zero as well, then increase the dose of ammonia up to 4ppm, wait till both are zero in 12 hours, then the qualifying week. This gives the nitrite eating bacteria chance to catch up without the level of nitrite getting too high.
Whichever you chose to do, you will be dosing 4ppm at the end of the cycle, so you can get almost all your proposed stock at once (just leave any species that need a mature tank till later)

 

[ladymaverick]

That makes perfect sense. Thanks essjay.

 

[Gvilleguy]

I agree with essjay on the ammonia advice. Especially dosing to a lower 2 - 3 ppm during nitrite phase, but back up to 4 ppm during your qualifying week.

The biggest advice I can give is trying to find fish that can handle water quality fluctuations with aplomb. During my tank's first year (after cycling), even gentle filter cleaning could cause a mini-cycle with ammonia or nitrite levels above zero. So stocking with hardier fish until your tank is more mature can save a lot of fish lives.