Been fishless cylcling a new tank using clean off household ammonia for a round 5 weeks.
Using API test kit
Temp 30 degrees c
dosed to 3 ppm and then re dosed back to 3 ppm every time ammonia dropped to .25 ppm.
First 3 weeks everything went fine, had ammonia dropping to 0 fine in 24 hrs had nitrites spike and then drop to 0 and high (over 100) nitrates.
So thinking I was just about there with this cycle I did a huge 90% PWC and redosed ammonia to 3 ppm
For the past week I have added 1ppm daily to feed bacteria and my readings have been a constant
Ammonia/Ammoniun 1 ppm
Nitrites 0 ppm
Nitrates 10 + ppm
My tap water reads 0 ammonia, 0 nitrates
As my Nitrates are again rising then my cycle must be working to a certain extent and I thought it had just slowed to get rid of the remaining ammonia until I read about low PH and ammonium.
Now My tap water PH is currently around 6 - 6.4 max, so could that 1 ppm ammonia reading I'm getting actually be harmless ammonium and not ammonia at all ?
After afew days the tank PH sits at a steady 6 ppm, which it does in my other established tanks without a problem
Not sure where to go from here ?
Do I add coral or something to raise PH while it cycles
Do I redose any more ammonia or wait and see if that 1ppm ever drops
Do I just presume it's only an ammonium reading and take it as 0 ammonia
If my cycle had stalled or crashed then how is it still keeping nitrites at 0 and yet increasing nitrates
Basically does anybody have experience with soft acidic water and ammonium readings
Using API test kit
Temp 30 degrees c
dosed to 3 ppm and then re dosed back to 3 ppm every time ammonia dropped to .25 ppm.
First 3 weeks everything went fine, had ammonia dropping to 0 fine in 24 hrs had nitrites spike and then drop to 0 and high (over 100) nitrates.
So thinking I was just about there with this cycle I did a huge 90% PWC and redosed ammonia to 3 ppm
For the past week I have added 1ppm daily to feed bacteria and my readings have been a constant
Ammonia/Ammoniun 1 ppm
Nitrites 0 ppm
Nitrates 10 + ppm
My tap water reads 0 ammonia, 0 nitrates
As my Nitrates are again rising then my cycle must be working to a certain extent and I thought it had just slowed to get rid of the remaining ammonia until I read about low PH and ammonium.
Now My tap water PH is currently around 6 - 6.4 max, so could that 1 ppm ammonia reading I'm getting actually be harmless ammonium and not ammonia at all ?
After afew days the tank PH sits at a steady 6 ppm, which it does in my other established tanks without a problem
Not sure where to go from here ?
Do I add coral or something to raise PH while it cycles
Do I redose any more ammonia or wait and see if that 1ppm ever drops
Do I just presume it's only an ammonium reading and take it as 0 ammonia
If my cycle had stalled or crashed then how is it still keeping nitrites at 0 and yet increasing nitrates
Basically does anybody have experience with soft acidic water and ammonium readings