Another Api Question

[phoenixgsd]

i have a filter in a bucket doing a fishless cycle, to start the ammonia went down to almost 0, so topped up back to about 3.0ppm it went down again so topped up again soon after i had nitrites of 0.25ppm and since then ammonia has stayed at 2.0ppm but i am completly confused about the nitrite reading, for the past few days it reading not any colour on the chart, it turns almost staight to light sky blue and stays there, what does this mean?

 

[mattyeatsmatts]

Whats the ph?
My Nitrites stopped processing after I hit 6 ph. Had to add some bi-carb to raise it

 

[Aqua Tom]

i have a filter in a bucket doing a fishless cycle, to start the ammonia went down to almost 0, so topped up back to about 3.0ppm it went down again so topped up again soon after i had nitrites of 0.25ppm and since then ammonia has stayed at 2.0ppm but i am completly confused about the nitrite reading, for the past few days it reading not any colour on the chart, it turns almost staight to light sky blue and stays there, what does this mean?

It means that your Ammonia eating bacteria are not yet producing sufficiant nitrite to show up on the test, the first show you had could of been a dodgy test. What should happen is one day your Nitrites will go from zero to so high te test cant read them (will turn purple as soon as the drops hit the water in the tube). Then its just a waiting game.

Tom

 

[phoenixgsd]

It means that your Ammonia eating bacteria are not yet producing sufficiant nitrite to show up on the test, the first show you had could of been a dodgy test. What should happen is one day your Nitrites will go from zero to so high te test cant read them (will turn purple as soon as the drops hit the water in the tube). Then its just a waiting game.

Tom

surely if the Ammonia eating bacteria is not yet producing sufficiant nitrite to show up on the test, then it would show as the duck egg blue for 0ppm ?

 

[Aqua Tom]

It means that your Ammonia eating bacteria are not yet producing sufficiant nitrite to show up on the test, the first show you had could of been a dodgy test. What should happen is one day your Nitrites will go from zero to so high te test cant read them (will turn purple as soon as the drops hit the water in the tube). Then its just a waiting game.

Tom

surely if the Ammonia eating bacteria is not yet producing sufficiant nitrite to show up on the test, then it would show as the duck egg blue for 0ppm ?

Sorry i thought your "light sky blue" was zero. Ok my mistake.


Tom

 

[phoenixgsd]

sorry i should have been clearer, it is the colour of the sky, not any colour on the chart, hence my confusion, any idea what it means?

 

[Prime Ordeal]

If you've had three doses of ammonia reduced to zero then the nitrite will be off the chart. I can't explain the particular colour you're getting but it's undoubdtedly a consequence of the high level of nitrite.

If you want to get a rough idea of the nitrIte level take a reading of nitrAte on your source water, then take a nitrAte reading on your tank, subtract the water reading from the tank reading and that's a rough idea of your tank nitrIte level. I would guess it'll be around the 15ppm mark.

Or, of course, just dilute your sample down and take a nitrite reading on that.

 

[phoenixgsd]

If you've had three doses of ammonia reduced to zero then the nitrite will be off the chart. I can't explain the particular colour you're getting but it's undoubdtedly a consequence of the high level of nitrite.
Or, of course, just dilute your sample down and take a nitrite reading on that.

dilute it with plain dechlorinated water, yes?

 

[Prime Ordeal]

If you've had three doses of ammonia reduced to zero then the nitrite will be off the chart. I can't explain the particular colour you're getting but it's undoubdtedly a consequence of the high level of nitrite.
Or, of course, just dilute your sample down and take a nitrite reading on that.

dilute it with plain dechlorinated water, yes?

Dilute with any source of nitrite free water. So if you test your source water and it's zero nitrite then you can use that, it doesn't need to be dechlorinated. Otherwise get some distilled water.

If you don't have a source of nitrIte free water just test the tank water with the nitrAte test kit as explained earlier.

 

[OldMan47]

An almost instant change to a color not really on the chart is characteristic of a nitrite reading way outside the range of your test kit. Just mark it down as >5 ppm and move on. You are in the nitrite spike part of the cycle. There is not much point trying to use a ratio to measure the spike, it will pass.