Few Questions About Cycling

[KezJona]

I am currently going through my fishless cycle, please see my signature for the handy link, but I have loads of questions that I am so confused by so if any members could do their best at answering them I would greatly be appreciated.

1) I am on day 5 of my cycle and my readings seem to be more advanced than that of others around the same timeframe I am in, why is this? I don't have any mature media.

2) When you hit the nitrite spike (where using API's kit, the colour turns purple immediately) do you need to do a water change when the fishless cycle guide doesn't say anything about it?

3) My nitrite reading is over the chart reading, but I haven't hit my spike yet, so do I keep adding Ammonia?

4) I am currently on my first ammonia dose, and my nitrite is off the chart, is that normaal?

I just keep reading other peoples logs and mine results seem different to theirs, and then when I read what members post as advice compared to the guide its different so I am very confused on what to do I do have two aeration devices running so could this be making my cycle go quicker than others?

 

[fluttermoth]

Some people just seem to be lucky and have more bacterial spores in the air, or maybe in your water already.

You don't need to do a water change because of the nitrites, but if your nitrate is also off the chart, then that can stall a cycle, so you might want to do a water change and then redose the ammonia.

Many fishless cycles are 'odd'; just stick with it until you get your double zeros, and try not to compare yours to other people's too much

 

[Tizer]

you need to get your nitrites and nitrates right first of all nitrate doesnt go purple with that kit, it goes yellow-orange-red

my advice is to forget nitrAte for the time being, so with that out of mind, all you have to worry about Ammonia and NitrIte

Every cycle is different, a small ammount of ammonia when processed can make more NitrIte than you might expect.

Anyway, you can also put NitrIte out of your mind for a while too.

Keep your ammonia at 4ppm and keep testing every 24 hours, when you see your Ammonia start moving/lowering more quickly in the 24 hour period, then start testing NitrIte as well.

Its all quite confusing to begin with, just take a step backwards and understand that you dont have to do all the tests at the beginning.

 

[KezJona]

Sorry for the trite and trate mix-up, have read these words so many times today they have lost all meaning

Thanks for the advice guys, I will keep doing as I have been and not think about it too much, just don't want anything to happen which could have been prevented. I just keep reading about the cycle stalling because of so many parameters and think "oh god, hope this doesn't happen to me!"