Has My Tank Cycled?

[Rackie]

Hi,

Today I made some alterations to the tank in the way of replacing some of the plants. After posting pics of my tank on the members section some people have commented on some of the plants looking "non-aquatic".
I have replaced some of these plants and now introduced an Amazon Sword and a couple of others (I am not too sure of the name's)

Anyway, I have been cycling my tank for nearly two weeks now and up until today my readings have averaged as follows:

Ammonia 4.0/5.0 > After 24hrs dropped down to 1.0
Nitrite 5.0+
Nitrate 5.0
P.H 7.2

This afternoon after planting and leaving the tank to settle for a few hours I then done the tests as usual and had the following readings:

Ammonia 1.0
Nitrite 0.50
Nitrate 160+
P.H 7.2

Has the tank now cycled or are these readings as a result of the disturbance I made when replanting and moving some of the substrate?
I topped up the Ammonia to 4.0/5.0 as normal and will test again first thing in the morning.
The Ammonia levels have never dropped below 1.0?

If the tank has cycled all that is required is a large water change - 50%???
After the water change will this help to reduce the Ammonia level slightly???

One quick question: As I have a UGF, will it be okay to use a gravel syphon when changing the water or should I not disturb the gravel and only replace the water?

Sorry for all the info

 

[WILDER]

A tank cycled when ammonia is 0 and nitrite is 0.

 

[HasGills]

If the tank has cycled all that is required is a large water change - 50%???
After the water change will this help to reduce the Ammonia level slightly???

One quick question: As I have a UGF, will it be okay to use a gravel syphon when changing the water or should I not disturb the gravel and only replace the water?

I agree with Wilder.. Ive just finished cycling my first tank and it was worth the wait.. All new residents seem very content.

I dont think your far away from being fully cycled id say 3-4 days perhaps a little longer depending on the size of your tank..

Also, when you do finally get 0 Amm. , 0 Nitrite you will need to do a 80%-90% water change to get the nitrates down from 160. I used a gravel vac. to siphon the water but I made sure I didnt disturb the gravel too much..

When you start doing your weekly water changes then you can worry about cleaning the gravel.

Good luck.. I know its tough waiting but it better than having to deal with water issues with live stock involved.

 

[Tommy Gunnz]

Agreed as well, not cycled yet. You will see the ammonia level hit 0 first, and then shortly after, the nitrites will go to 0. For now, you do not need to worry about nitrate levels until the others are at 0 but you can do a water change at any time in order to get the nitrates down a bit. You can only remove nitrates in the water by doing a water change (or some plants and other inverts, clams for example, can use them as well) but I would suggest doing some smaller (15 to 25%) water changes now to get them down as well as get some practice and in the habit of doing water changes. The bacteria you are growing are not free swimming in the water, so you are not going to lose any of them through the water.

Your plants are also going to be taking out ammonia and nitrites as well, so you should not really be able to keep an ammonia level of 4.0 to 5.0 ppm for very long at all. It sounds as if you are dosing pure ammonia to your tank and so when you do your water change, try your best to accurately determine how much water you are adding back into the tank and add 5 DROPS of pure ammonia PER 10 GALLONS of water. This will give you 5 ppm of ammonia, which if your tank is close to being cycled, should not remain for very long at all. You can use a pippette or an eye dropper (can be found in the baby section of most drug stores) to accurately create a 'drop' versus a capful or something. Too much ammonia will become toxic even to your bacteria so dosing is important.

 

[Rackie]

Hi,

Sorry I forgot to mention the Tank stats:

Aquastart 500 - 65 Litres (17 Gallons)
2 x 15 Watt lights = 2.16 watts per litre
UGF with standard pump and heater
Temp @ 26c
Heavily planted with large piece of Mopani and a few rocks for decor
CO2 (Nutrafin) installed and using the supplied sachets/mixture (will change to the yeast mix advised on here once sachets run out)

I have purchased a pure bottle of Ammonia (Homebase UK) and have been adding this to the tank via an eye dropper. Been adding about 15 drops to bring it up to 4.0/5.0ppm. Have been using the Add & Wait method as explained on here!

Not done todays tests so unable to post up results.

So I would be okay doing a small water change now even though the Ammonia and Nitrite are not quite 0?
Will only change the water and try not to disturb the gravel.

Thanks for the advice.
P

 

[Tommy Gunnz]

You can certainly do water changes during a cycle and probrably should to rid the tank of dead and decaying plant matter since your tank is planted. The bacteria you are trying to grow are not going to be reduced through a water change since they are living in and on your decor and substrate, not to mention the filter media. The water change can also help with a future problem of stinky water, which is somewhat rare, but it happens (usually smells like cat pee). After the water change, just check the ammonia level and if you have to, dose more pure ammonia. I have a feeling that soon enough you will not be able to keep any ammonia level present in the tank anyways so keep that in mind and dont get frustrated in trying to do so.

Good luck and Good Job! Sounds like you really know your stuff and this will be a great tank!

 

[mark.w.jones]

Sounds like youre on track. You just need to be patient now and keep raising your ammonia to 5ppm whenever it drops to 0ppm. This is usually a daily thing. The nitrites take an age to drop to 0ppm. Dont be tempted to rush things though and keep up the ammonia solution additions. Missing just a day or two can set things back a week.

 

[Rackie]

So I did my tests yesterday (Saturday) as normal and had the following results:

Ammonia = 8.0ppm (higher than normal)
Nitrite = 5.0+
Nitrate = off the chart.
PH = 7.2

After testing today (Sunday) I had a bit of a shock :

Ammonia = 8.0 (still???)
Nitrite = 0
Nitrate = off the chart
PH = 7.2

I am using the API test kits and have read on here that there can be a bit of a discrepancy with the Nitrite readings on the card where the 0 (blue) can also be mistaken for off the chart readings (blue/green) so my Nitirite is either 0 or 5.0+++

Can you add too much Ammonia and kill off/pollute some of the good bacteria which is why my Ammonia is still so high? I added the normal dose of Ammonia as I had done previously.

 

[zoekin8yg]

first make sure you are doing the tests right, one too many drops can make a big difference. (sounds obvious or like a daft question but its easily done)