Ammonia Readings

[chrisjj]

hi ,i started a fishless cycle 11 days ago , i added ammonia to 4ppm and 11 days later it is still at 4ppm.
how long does it normaly take for it to start droping ?
thanks chris.

 

[ZoddyZod]

several weeks.....hold tight!

 

[Alm0stAwesome]

Increase your temp to 30c if you haven't already, that's meant to help Be patient, you'll see movement before you know it!

 

[Nettley]

I had to leave mine for 3weeks

 

[chrisjj]

thanks for the replys, looks like i will just have to wait abit longer.

 

[chrisjj]

hi guys, i need some more advice, i checked my water today and the ammonia has droped to 1.0ppm and the nitrite is off the scale, normally that is a good thing but heres the problem.
i go on holiday for a week tomorrow so im not back till next friday,

do i leave it as it is and hope there is enough ammonia in there to keep my new bacteria happy for a week or do i dose some more ammonia to bring it back to 4ppm tonight ?

thanks chris.

 

[Alm0stAwesome]

I would put it up to 3ppm before you go.

 

[TwoTankAmin]

Nitrite off the scale is never a good thing, in fact it is a bad thing. Do a water change to get it down under 5 ppm. Future ammonia doses should be at about 1/3-1/2 of your original dose. Nitrite comes from ammonia dosing, dose too much ammonia and you get way to much nitrite and you stall or even undo some of the cycle.