Ammonia

[JohnBull]

Another Newbie calling for help !

I am currently starting my fishless Cycling in my 180 LTR Tank. Its my first ever attempt to get this right and I am a little confused about how much Ammonia to add once the original levels start to fall. It is day 4 now since I innitially added around 9ml of pure ammonia to the tank which gave me a reading of 5ppm. The tank is still clear and the reading for AMM level is now around 4.00 ppm. My query is this :

At what point do I start to 'top up' the AMM levels, and do I simply put enough in to maintain the original 5ppm level ? The reason I ask is because there seems to be conflicting information about this process. This website basically says wait till the AMM levels drop to all but ZERO before adding. Another website suggests keeping the AMM level stable at 5ppm for as long as possible before adding the original amount you started with back into the tank on a daily basis until the NatrAte levels/good bacteria are sufficient to stablize the tank.


Have I got this right ?



John

 

[StandbySetting]

Yes, top the ammonia level back up to 5PPM.

 

[JohnBull]

Just to avoid confusion.

Do you mean top it up now,back to 5ppm, or do it when the AMM reading falls back to zero in a few more days time ?



John

 

[StandbySetting]

Top it back up to 5PPM every time you test and the reading is lower than 5PPM, so if it is now 4, dose a 1/5th of what you'd normally dose to bring it back up to 5PPM

 

[JohnBull]

That sounds clear enough.

One last question.

At what point do I stop feeding AMM ? Is it when the AMM level falls back to zero within 12 hours, despite being introduced on a daily basis to keep the level at 5ppm ?

Thanks for the info btw



John.

 

[StandbySetting]

Keep dosing until you're getting straight 0's for both Ammonia and Nitrite, after the initial spikes.

 

[JohnBull]

Thanks.


As Arnold Swarchenegger Once said...I will be back.







John

 

[KISSfn]

Another Newbie calling for help !

I am currently starting my fishless Cycling in my 180 LTR Tank. Its my first ever attempt to get this right and I am a little confused about how much Ammonia to add once the original levels start to fall. It is day 4 now since I innitially added around 9ml of pure ammonia to the tank which gave me a reading of 5ppm. The tank is still clear and the reading for AMM level is now around 4.00 ppm. My query is this :

At what point do I start to 'top up' the AMM levels, and do I simply put enough in to maintain the original 5ppm level ? The reason I ask is because there seems to be conflicting information about this process. This website basically says wait till the AMM levels drop to all but ZERO before adding. Another website suggests keeping the AMM level stable at 5ppm for as long as possible before adding the original amount you started with back into the tank on a daily basis until the NatrAte levels/good bacteria are sufficient to stablize the tank.


Have I got this right ?



John

Both methods work and are covered in the Fishless Cycling link next to my tank pic. Have a look and decide which you prefer.

 

[Miles_hot]

As Kiss says there are two methods covered in the beginners section: the "add and wait" method (one done to 4-5ppm wait till it drops before adding any more) and the "top up" method which seaks to have a constant 4-5ppm.
Personally I'm following the "Add and Wait" method with a sheet over the top as you don't have to do anything for days on end

Miles

 

[Claire121]

Another confused newbie here.....

I have done 'Add and Wait' method. My Ammonia for the last two days has dropped to 0 within 12 hours, and I have today seen my Nitrites drop 'oh so very slightly' for the first time

I have been adding 5ml in the evening to raise to 4ppm, once a day.

Now, do I add 5ml every 12 hours and test every 12 hours, thus doubling the daily amount of ammonia

or

add 5ml once a day?

or

add 2.5ml every 12 hours ?

or

Something else ?

I don't intend to heavily stock if that makes any difference.

Thanks for advice !

 

[KISSfn]

Add enough to keep ammonia reading 2-3mg/l daily.

 

[Claire121]

Thanks so much!

So I can 'add once' at say 8pm, test for Ammonia and nitrite at 8am and even if ammonia is 0 at 8am I can leave it until 8pm to top up ?

Have I understood that right ? This means that the ammonia eating bacteria go 'without' for 12 hours - yes ?

 

[KISSfn]

You have to keep your ammonia eating bacteria alive so you add every 24 hours to maintain 2-3mg/l ammonia level. You don't test at 12 hour interval until both Ammonia and Nitrite read 0, then you have a qualifying week.

If you live in the US you can purchase a seeded filter.

 

[Claire121]

Ok thanks !

(In West Sussex, UK not US)

 

[eaglesaquarium]

The information KISSfn has given you is correct. You only dose once a day (every 24 hours). There is no reason to test at 12 hours right now, as the nitrites haven't yet hit zero. He is recommending that you lower your ammonia dosage to 2-3ppm in order to give the N-bacs a chance to catch up. When the nitrite hits zero, then you are in phase three, which includes testing 12 hours after dosing. Raise your ammonia level back up to 4-5ppm at that time. Once both NH3 and NO2 are hitting zero after 12 hours for a full week, you are fully cycled!