Cycling Question / Bacteria

[WaffenSS]

Ok i am running SG @ 1.008 (using instant ocean and a refractometer) in a 29G tank with a Emperor 400 and a penguin 660 powerhead. And i am slowly increasing the SG for my GSP, Mono and Dalmation Molly. my tank has been set up for 3 weeks now. My question is i did a fishless cycle with bio-spira, but it was the freshwater kind, my Ammonia is @ from .25ppm to 0ppm, but i can't keep my nitrite down. i've done two water changes today alone, one at 25%, the other, almost 50% and have got it (NItrite) finally down to .50 ppm tonight (it's been much higher) but why is it so hard to keep the nitrite down? should i buy some bio-spira made for saltwater instead? i have been doing at least a 25% every other day for the last 1 1/2 weeks. . i decholinate, mix, bubble and heat my water in a seperate bucket a few days in advance.

Does water changes as long at the SG & temp the same as the tank hurt anything? Since i'm just trying to dillute the Nitrite levels.

 

[Imber]

When I was cycling my tank I seeded it with some freshwater bacteria and I went through the ammonia stage rather quickly, but like you it took FOREVER to get my really high nitrites down(probably 3 weeks). I can't really answer your question about the saltwater bio-spira(I almost got it just to try). I just wanted to empathize.

 

[nmonks]

Hello --

This doesn't sound so bad to me. Three weeks to cycle a filter is actually quite fast. I'd always set aside 6 weeks, at least, for the process.

To be honest, at SG 1.008 I'd imagine both freshwater and marine bacteria cultures are of limited use. That's a well-known problem with going brackish. You need brackish water bacteria, and no-one really knows if (a) the fresh or marine bacteria adapt to brackish water; or (b) there is a totally different species of bacteria that needs to replace the fresh/brackish bacteria. If the latter, then Cycle and similar products probably serve no purpose at all.

Yes, in theory removing the nitrite-rich water slows down the development of the filter bacteria. But if you are using fish to mature the filter (as I do) then you don't have much choice. While a few species are known to be nitrite tolerant (mollies, white-cheeked gobies, and halfbeaks, for example, have all worked for me) most are not. So you're doing the right thing. Just be patient.

Cheers,

Neale

but like you it took FOREVER to get my really high nitrites down(probably 3 weeks).

 

[WaffenSS]

ok after the water set for a day the nitrites were back to where they were before, around 2ppm. my puffer, mono and molly seem to be very happy, swimming normal, eating very well and active and intergetic. they always come to the glass to meet me and my puffer even eats out of my hand. So my question is: should i quite worrying about it and just let nature take it's course, or should i keep up the water changes.

Tank 29Gallons
Temp 77
Salinity 1.008 - 1.009 (SG)
PH 7.8
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 2ppm
filtration Emperor 400 bioWheel w/ undergravel filter air bubbler / penguin 660 powerhead.

 

[nmonks]

You should be doing both.

Whenever you have measurable nitrites or ammonium, it means something is wrong. So you should try and figure out why, and act accordingly.

On the other hand, the only way for a biological filter to "come on-line" is to give it time to mature, and there really isn't much you can do to speed things up. I'd measure my nitrites every two days, and carry out a 10 to 20% water change at least every two days. I'd also add an air stone or adjust the filter return to that there is plenty of oyxgen in the water, partly for the fish, but also because this will help the bacteria to grow (then need lots of oxygen).

Nitirites often don't kill fish directly, but they do stress the fish, and this makes them more liable to secondary problems like whitespot, dropsy, and so on. Don't add any more fish for a while, and definitely take care not to overfeed them.

Cheers,

Neale

So my question is: should I quit worrying about it and just let nature take its course, or should I keep up the water changes.