I started doing a fishless cycle on a rio 180 on 9 march, using add and wait method, dechorinated water - and some spare sponges and other media that had been lurking in my other cycled tanks. Using API master test kit
Initially all went swimmingly ( haha)
Day 1 ammonia up to 5
Day 4 ammonia starting to slowly fall
Day 5 nitrite spike started ( 0.5), and started topping ammonia up to get it to 4 each day
Day 6 nitrite up to 5
Day 7 ammonia 0, nitrite 5, nitrAte 160 pH 7.6-7.8
By Day 7 the ammonia was falling to almost ( but not quite) 0 in twelve hours. Definitely 0 at 24 hours, so adding ammonia each day.
By Day 10, the nitrite looked to be slowly, slowly falling - and if I checked it just before adding my ammonia, it was down as low as 1-2
Day 14 ( ie two days ago) nitrite was down to 2 twelve hours after adding ammonia ( although, as I was checking the 12-hours-after-ammonia tests in artificial light, I guess it is possible that I misread the nitrite and it has never really budged much from 5 at all)
today, Day 16 it's the same old same old - ammonia dropping to 0 in a bit more than 12 but rather less than 24 hours, nitrIte 2-5 ( nearer 5 this morning) but big surprise my nitrAtes are down to 5-10 ( How?? Particularly amazing as they are 20 out of the tap. And I tested my other tanks at the same time, and got my usual readings of 20-40, so I know I shook the bottle properly etc)
pH is 7-7.2
It took 7 days for the ammonia to fall to 0, so I would expect it to be about 21 days total for the nitrite to fall to 0, from what other threads say. And I'm only on Day 16. But should the nitrItes be a bit less than this by now? If anything they seem to have climbed - day 14 nitrites were closer to 2, just before adding the day's ammonia dose but today they were closer to 5. But when you're looking at colours that fall between the two colour strips, it's never going to be a perfect reading/memory
I expected the nitrates to be off the charts. I have a nitrate sponge in my filter - but heck, I didn't think they actually *did* anything significant. And there are a few plants - but they've only been in there since Day11, and I can't imagine they're *that* well established yet LOL.
So, has my cycle stalled, or is all OK and perfectly normal?
Big fat water change - or no big fat water change? ( I haven't changed any water yet)
Thank you very much for any thoughts.
ETA - water temp is 27C/81F . I've just turned the heater up a bit.
Initially all went swimmingly ( haha)
Day 1 ammonia up to 5
Day 4 ammonia starting to slowly fall
Day 5 nitrite spike started ( 0.5), and started topping ammonia up to get it to 4 each day
Day 6 nitrite up to 5
Day 7 ammonia 0, nitrite 5, nitrAte 160 pH 7.6-7.8
By Day 7 the ammonia was falling to almost ( but not quite) 0 in twelve hours. Definitely 0 at 24 hours, so adding ammonia each day.
By Day 10, the nitrite looked to be slowly, slowly falling - and if I checked it just before adding my ammonia, it was down as low as 1-2
Day 14 ( ie two days ago) nitrite was down to 2 twelve hours after adding ammonia ( although, as I was checking the 12-hours-after-ammonia tests in artificial light, I guess it is possible that I misread the nitrite and it has never really budged much from 5 at all)
today, Day 16 it's the same old same old - ammonia dropping to 0 in a bit more than 12 but rather less than 24 hours, nitrIte 2-5 ( nearer 5 this morning) but big surprise my nitrAtes are down to 5-10 ( How?? Particularly amazing as they are 20 out of the tap. And I tested my other tanks at the same time, and got my usual readings of 20-40, so I know I shook the bottle properly etc)
pH is 7-7.2
It took 7 days for the ammonia to fall to 0, so I would expect it to be about 21 days total for the nitrite to fall to 0, from what other threads say. And I'm only on Day 16. But should the nitrItes be a bit less than this by now? If anything they seem to have climbed - day 14 nitrites were closer to 2, just before adding the day's ammonia dose but today they were closer to 5. But when you're looking at colours that fall between the two colour strips, it's never going to be a perfect reading/memory
I expected the nitrates to be off the charts. I have a nitrate sponge in my filter - but heck, I didn't think they actually *did* anything significant. And there are a few plants - but they've only been in there since Day11, and I can't imagine they're *that* well established yet LOL.
So, has my cycle stalled, or is all OK and perfectly normal?
Big fat water change - or no big fat water change? ( I haven't changed any water yet)
Thank you very much for any thoughts.
ETA - water temp is 27C/81F . I've just turned the heater up a bit.
