Help, I Think Am There....?

[london_kev]

Hey all,

Any help would be much appreciated!

So i basically have been trying to cycle my tank for weeks/months! after getting hold of a mature media (MM) i cut a piece up and wacked that into my filter, the remaing filter i left floating in my tank. I added some clean water, treated nothing else. I tested for NitrIte and got a reading of 5.0 to 2.5 (purple on the API test kit). Didnt do anything else and just left it.

I ve just come home and tested the water and it is now BLUE! Zero nitrIte! so happy ;D but, theres always a but. Shall i drop a bit of ammonia now and test in a few hours...? tank size is 25L/ 5G....? also shall i take out the floating media now as this may or may not effect the results of the nitrIte reading...?

 

[Smells a bit fishy]

I presume your fishless cycling. Just double checking.

Take the filter media out as this won't be in with your fish in. ( the one thats floating)

Then continue with your fishless cycle and get it down to 0 in 12 hours. Dose up to 4-5 ppm of ammonia.

You can leave the floating media in it, however this will give bogus readings as it won't be in there when you put fish in.

Sounds like you are very close to finishing your cycle. About a week is my guestimation till your qualifying week. Keep going soon you will have fishes

 

[eaglesaquarium]

+1.


Remove the floating media. If you can find a way to put it into your current filter, GREAT, if not then it won't really be helping you down the road anyway.



As far as the dosing with ammonia:


You should have a set dose time of day. I dose my tank at 7AM, because I am available to test again at 7PM. You are going to need to be able to dose at one time, and test it 12 hours later. So, a morning and evening routine works best. Keeping dosing every morning, and test it at 12 hours. If it doesn't hit double zero (ammonia and nitrite) then test again at 24 hours. If it hits double zero at either time, then you dose again in the morning. Keeping doing this until you get 7 consecutive days at double zeros at the 12 hour mark (that is the qualifying week SABF was referring to). Once that happens a big water change to remove the nitrates and fishies will be calling your aquarium home!

 

[london_kev]

Ah Ok great. well i can squeeze it in the filter but iam not sure if that will have a positive or negitive effect on my filter. i filled up my filter just enough so the spounges or not compressed...

 

[Smells a bit fishy]

Yeh well said eagle. You always explain in more detail than I do.

It won't do any harm in squeezing it over your media in the filter. Don't know how much good it will do but do it any way just incase.

 

[CrazyAirborne]

it never hurts to try putting it in ur filter, and if u see major water flow blockage, just take it out. if anything, leaving it in there a couple days is only going to help.

might as well try and get it in there.

my .02

 

[eaglesaquarium]

Yeh well said eagle. You always explain in more detail than I do.

It won't do any harm in squeezing it over your media in the filter. Don't know how much good it will do but do it any way just incase.

That's nothing. Have you seen the posts by waterdrop? That's a man who can get into the nitty gritty details, while still keeping it clear and understandable for a newbie like me. Is it possible to be long-winded AND concise?!

 

[Smells a bit fishy]

Yeh well said eagle. You always explain in more detail than I do.

It won't do any harm in squeezing it over your media in the filter. Don't know how much good it will do but do it any way just incase.

That's nothing. Have you seen the posts by waterdrop? That's a man who can get into the nitty gritty details, while still keeping it clear and understandable for a newbie like me. Is it possible to be long-winded AND concise?!

Haha. Yeh tell me about it. And old man as well. There are some truly great posters on here. Fluttermoth is another one.

Something to aspire to