Help Please

[LionessN3cubs]

HELP PLEASE!

last 2 days I've had nitrite and nitrate...now I have almost NO nitrites..nitrates only increased a tiny bit. Ammonia processed this afternoon down to .5 as usual....what does this mean?!?


Im worried because the tank temp dropped to 80 last night ...and then I had to top off the tank today (dechlorinated water) because it was getting too low on the heater line. Does this mean the whole bacterial system is going to die off now?

 

[Colin_T]

Sounds like the filters finished cycling.

When ammonia is added to the water the bacteria eat it and convert it to nitrite. More bacteria convert the nitrite into nitrate. It takes about 4 weeks for a newly set up tank to go through this process of development.
The first week or so you have a high ammonia reading. Then as the first lot of good bacteria develop in the filter, they break down all the ammonia and it suddenly drops. But now you get a nitrite reading. The nitrite stays high for a week or two before enough bacteria develop to get rid of that. Now the tank is cycled.

Nitrate test kits will often read nitrite as well. Therefore if you have a nitrite reading the nitrate test kit will pick that up as nitrates.

Some ammonia test kits read 0.5 as there lowest reading. They don't actually go down to 0.0

 

[LionessN3cubs]

Sounds like the filters finished cycling.

When ammonia is added to the water the bacteria eat it and convert it to nitrite. More bacteria convert the nitrite into nitrate. It takes about 4 weeks for a newly set up tank to go through this process of development.
The first week or so you have a high ammonia reading. Then as the first lot of good bacteria develop in the filter, they break down all the ammonia and it suddenly drops. But now you get a nitrite reading. The nitrite stays high for a week or two before enough bacteria develop to get rid of that. Now the tank is cycled.

Nitrate test kits will often read nitrite as well. Therefore if you have a nitrite reading the nitrate test kit will pick that up as nitrates.

Some ammonia test kits read 0.5 as there lowest reading. They don't actually go down to 0.0

I so hope the filter isn't done cycling yet! Because I had overdosed when I started out, I'm very ammonia shy now. I've only been putting it up to best guess 3ppm (and prolly a little lower sometimes) I have been slowly working my way up to a higher dose of ammonia. I guess Im basically doing the add daily method since the day it started to cycle I only had 2 ppm of ammonia in the tank on advice from another member because I'd added mature media. I did have some nitrite this morning when I tested....we'll see what this afternoon brings

 

[waterdrop]

Yes, your signs are good, good good! Both ammonia and nitrite are now getting processed! You are getting much closer to your goal of being able to put in 4ppm of ammonia and have the filter process both the ammonia and the nitrite down to zero within 10 to 12 hours. You're almost there, sounds like to me!

 

[OldMan47]

If you have consistently kept it near 2 ppm and it is dropping to near zero with no nitrites remaining you have arrived. The only thing to be aware of is that you can't stock heavily because you have developed enough bacteria to process 2 ppm per day instead of 4 ppm per day. If you truly have nothing by the next day except nitrates and the nitrates are below 20 ppm its time to make sure your fish shopping list is in order. Take it a little easy at first with the fish and you will do fine. Once your new fish are settled in and readings are still good, you could probably increase fish loading at the rate of 10 to 20% per week with no minicycles at all.