Cycle Questions?

[Katch]

Just during the cycle. When cycling you add more ammonia than a normal fish load. As a result more nitrite is produced and in turn nitrate.

Nitrates build up causing bioacidification. In hard water areas this means your pH slowly drops. In softwater areas this drop is significantly quicker.

Once cycled its best not to mess around buffering and select fish that suit your local water. So look for fish that are comfortable in soft water and avoid hard water species. Keepers down here that want to keep hard water fish need to closely monitor their water and treat each water change with chemicals to keep it in the right range. The same is true of keepers from hard water areas that keep softwater species. They need to use specially filtered (RO) water in their tanks. As a beginner, much better to work with what you have.

You also need to be proactive in your tank maintainence. If you leave the tank for a long time it will become very acidic. If you then do a large water change it shocks the fish often killing them. So weekly 50% WCs are desirable and weekly gravel vacs.

so going back to the cycle....do u think this drop in ph was the reason for going haywire or the fact i was adding amm every 12 hrs not 24 hrs??

The 2 are connected very closely.

As long as you've done a large WC, buffered up to pH 7.8 and got your heater turned up to 29 degrees, everything will start moving along nicely again.

How long have you been cycling?

EDIT

Just seen your logs. Just over 2 weeks with Nitrites showing up at 14 days. This is text book cycling and exactly what we expect to see.

You are now in the 2nd phase where Nitrite will go off the chart and Nitrates will build. It is going to take another 2-3 weeks to move into phase 3; sometimes longer.

Be patient and keep at it. Dose the tank to 3-4ppm ammonia every 24 hours and wait for the nitrite spike to end. Soon the test will turn dark purple the moment the drops hit the bottom of the tube. Just test pH and Nitrite each day and add your 3-4ppm ammonia.

If pH crashes - large WC.

As soon as the Nirtites start to drop - and you'll really be able to tell when they do - you'll be well on the way.

 

[HayzH]

Just during the cycle. When cycling you add more ammonia than a normal fish load. As a result more nitrite is produced and in turn nitrate.

Nitrates build up causing bioacidification. In hard water areas this means your pH slowly drops. In softwater areas this drop is significantly quicker.

Once cycled its best not to mess around buffering and select fish that suit your local water. So look for fish that are comfortable in soft water and avoid hard water species. Keepers down here that want to keep hard water fish need to closely monitor their water and treat each water change with chemicals to keep it in the right range. The same is true of keepers from hard water areas that keep softwater species. They need to use specially filtered (RO) water in their tanks. As a beginner, much better to work with what you have.

You also need to be proactive in your tank maintainence. If you leave the tank for a long time it will become very acidic. If you then do a large water change it shocks the fish often killing them. So weekly 50% WCs are desirable and weekly gravel vacs.

so going back to the cycle....do u think this drop in ph was the reason for going haywire or the fact i was adding amm every 12 hrs not 24 hrs??

The 2 are connected very closely.

As long as you've done a large WC, buffered up to pH 7.8 and got your heater turned up to 29 degrees, everything will start moving along nicely again.

How long have you been cycling?

EDIT

Just seen your logs. Just over 2 weeks with Nitrites showing up at 14 days. This is text book cycling and exactly what we expect to see.

You are now in the 2nd phase where Nitrite will go off the chart and Nitrates will build. It is going to take another 2-3 weeks to move into phase 3; sometimes longer.

Be patient and keep at it. Dose the tank to 3-4ppm ammonia every 24 hours and wait for the nitrite spike to end. Soon the test will turn dark purple the moment the drops hit the bottom of the tube. Just test pH and Nitrite each day and add your 3-4ppm ammonia.

If pH crashes - large WC.

As soon as the Nirtites start to drop - and you'll really be able to tell when they do - you'll be well on the way.

it does this already.

 

[Katch]

it does this already.

Be prepared to see that test result a lot over the next few weeks. Keep at it and then one day the nitrites will almost vanish overnight.

 

[HayzH]

it does this already.

Be prepared to see that test result a lot over the next few weeks. Keep at it and then one day the nitrites will almost vanish overnight.

thanks Katch x

 

[BigbruiserAl]

Dosing 4ppm ammonia in phase 2 is counter productive IMO, Its doing 4 ppm in 12 hours which means the bacteria is there we just need to feed it now. Dosing 4ppm in phase 2 will just make the phase to longer then needed if we go by 1ppm amm to 2.7 nit

 

[HayzH]

Dosing 4ppm ammonia in phase 2 is counter productive IMO, Its doing 4 ppm in 12 hours which means the bacteria is there we just need to feed it now. Dosing 4ppm in phase 2 will just make the phase to longer then needed if we go by 1ppm amm to 2.7 nit

ok ..so dose (24hrly) to 2ppm ammonia..check PH, nitrates every 12 hrs? am i right?

 

[Overload]

Dosing 4ppm ammonia in phase 2 is counter productive IMO, Its doing 4 ppm in 12 hours which means the bacteria is there we just need to feed it now. Dosing 4ppm in phase 2 will just make the phase to longer then needed if we go by 1ppm amm to 2.7 nit

ok ..so dose (24hrly) to 2ppm ammonia..check PH, nitrates every 12 hrs? am i right?

I check every 24 hours make sure its clearing the ammonia and nitrites in 24 hours, when it is up the dose slowly till it clears 4-5ppm in 24 hours then start 12 hour testing

 

[BigbruiserAl]

Dosing 4ppm ammonia in phase 2 is counter productive IMO, Its doing 4 ppm in 12 hours which means the bacteria is there we just need to feed it now. Dosing 4ppm in phase 2 will just make the phase to longer then needed if we go by 1ppm amm to 2.7 nit

ok ..so dose (24hrly) to 2ppm ammonia..check PH, nitrates every 12 hrs? am i right?

Yep spot on dose ONCE every 24hrs and test 12hrs later. By dosing 4ppm of ammonia in phase 2 your putting near 11ppm Nirite back into the water which is pointless IMO. i did read that once the bacteria is formed they only need approx 1ppm of ammonia to be fit and well(which will reflect a stocked tank) so adding 2ppm in phase 2 will be fine

 

[HayzH]

Dosing 4ppm ammonia in phase 2 is counter productive IMO, Its doing 4 ppm in 12 hours which means the bacteria is there we just need to feed it now. Dosing 4ppm in phase 2 will just make the phase to longer then needed if we go by 1ppm amm to 2.7 nit

ok ..so dose (24hrly) to 2ppm ammonia..check PH, nitrates every 12 hrs? am i right?

Yep spot on dose ONCE every 24hrs and test 12hrs later. By dosing 4ppm of ammonia in phase 2 your putting near 11ppm Nirite back into the water which is pointless IMO. i did read that once the bacteria is formed they only need approx 1ppm of ammonia to be fit and well(which will reflect a stocked tank) so adding 2ppm in phase 2 will be fine

thanx again BBA x

 

[CezzaXV]

Just wanted to show my appreciation for this thread. It's helped me a lot. The pinned guide it good as a starter but the details were somewhat lost on me til I saw this thread.

 

[HayzH]

Just wanted to show my appreciation for this thread. It's helped me a lot. The pinned guide it good as a starter but the details were somewhat lost on me til I saw this thread.

tis good huh....i have learnt sooooo much in the last 3 weeks....wish i'd known them 5 weeks ago...but nevermind ...

 

[Overload]

Just wanted to show my appreciation for this thread. It's helped me a lot. The pinned guide it good as a starter but the details were somewhat lost on me til I saw this thread.

tis good huh....i have learnt sooooo much in the last 3 weeks....wish i'd known them 5 weeks ago...but nevermind ...

As the old saying goes, "Life is a learning experience, you stop learning when you die!"

 

[HayzH]

Just wanted to show my appreciation for this thread. It's helped me a lot. The pinned guide it good as a starter but the details were somewhat lost on me til I saw this thread.

tis good huh....i have learnt sooooo much in the last 3 weeks....wish i'd known them 5 weeks ago...but nevermind ...

As the old saying goes, "Life is a learning experience, you stop learning when you die!"

wish all LFS's had a training course on this site!!! they would sell alot more livestock im sure.

 

[Overload]

That or we all go for a hostile takeover of the LFS industry!

 

[HayzH]

That or we all go for a hostile takeover of the LFS industry!

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