Help With The Fishless Cycle

[weejie]

Hi To Everyone

I am completely new to fishkeeping and would be very grateful if you could help me.Bought a 64l tank and accessories to set up a tropical tank.After searching through forums decided to try the fishless cycle instead of torturing the poor fishes.Had the tank for over a month now,at first ammonia was to high so did a water change 2 weeks ago to bring the ammonia down.The readings are now ammonia 2ppm,nitrite 0ppm and ph is 7.6.Readings have been consistant for 2weeks and haven`t changed.Could you please help me and tell me how to get the next step of the cycle started.Sorry for long post.

thank you

weejie

 

[sjolliff]

Hi To Everyone

I am completely new to fishkeeping and would be very grateful if you could help me.Bought a 64l tank and accessories to set up a tropical tank.After searching through forums decided to try the fishless cycle instead of torturing the poor fishes.Had the tank for over a month now,at first ammonia was to high so did a water change 2 weeks ago to bring the ammonia down.The readings are now ammonia 2ppm,nitrite 0ppm and ph is 7.6.Readings have been consistant for 2weeks and haven`t changed.Could you please help me and tell me how to get the next step of the cycle started.Sorry for long post.

thank you

weejie

Have a read of this, helped me loads
http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showtopic=113861

 

[OldMan47]

Welcome to the forum Weejie.
If you first added ammonia 2 weeks ago and have not seen nitrites yet, you are at the very beginning of the cycle process. The next step is to see the ammonia start processing into nitrites. Do you have any real plants in your tank?

 

[weejie]

Hi OldMan47

Thanks for the welcome.Added ammonia 4 weeks ago but the readings shot up to 8ppm,was advised this could stall the cycle so did a water change which brought it back down to 2ppm.That was 2 weeks ago and thought the nitrite cycle would have started by now.Only have plastic plants just now as the only pet shop where we live was having problems with snails overrunning peoples tanks.

weejie

 

[OldMan47]

You should probably count your cycle as only 2 weeks because at 8 ppm the wrong bacteria will develop. The bad part is that those wrong bacteria will move ammonia but when the levels start to drop, they will die off. The reason we don't go over about 5 ppm is because at that level the same bacteria will develop that work OK at very low levels like we want to end up with in our tanks. You are at a point where we usually expect the first ammonia that was added to start dropping to near zero. With no plants the ammonia that has gone has probably shown the very beginnings of a bacterial colony developing but it is not a big colony yet.

 

[weejie]

I assume it`s just a case of keep taking the readings and it should sort itself out then, just takes time.

 

[OldMan47]

That first drop you are looking for can take anywhere from a week to about 3 weeks. It seldom takes much longer but ti can.

 

[waterdrop]

Agree with oldman's comments. You seem to be in that early stage before ammonia has made its first full drop to zero and its being a bit slow. Be sure to measure your pH every few days and post up to the members if it seems to be heading to the low six's.

~~waterdrop~~

 

[weejie]

Will do thanks for your replies,will wait until Tuesday and take readings.
Thanks Again

Weejie

 

[weejie]

Hi Again
Readings never altered after 1st time so 2weeks ago i emptied the tank and cleaned it out.Got ammonia from homebase as they got it back in stock so started again.After 3 days the ammonia dropped to under 2ppm so added 1ml of ammonia which took it back up to 4ppm.That was week and a half ago but the readings have never altered since.
ammonia 4ppm
nitrite 0
ph 7.6
Any advise on what to do next would be very much appreciated

thanks

weejie

 

[waterdrop]

Well your pH of 7.6 is pretty good for fishless cycling, so that shouldn't be a problem. Are you keeping your tank temperature at 29C/84F? How about your tap water hardness, do you know if your water source is "very soft" or "very hard" in terms of mineral content?

We may have to examine all the media types in your filter, what exactly do you have in there? Is your aquarium substrate a normal one from the local fish shop? Perhaps gravel or play sand? Any coral or shells or unusual decorations in the tank? Are you getting good water movement from your filter, with surface disturbance?

~~waterdrop~~

 

[LardyDad]

Hello, looks like you have bought the same tank as me, the whole fishless cycle thing and testing is a bit daunting at first especially when they talk about ppm and nitrite etc. But once you start doing it and testing everthing gets easier. The hardest part is waiting. Stick in and things should get better.
Good luck from one novice to another

 

[weejie]

Hi Guys

Thanks for the replies.We will get there in the end.First the water hardness,KH=71(4droplets),GH=125(7droplets).The filter is an INTERPET internal PF2 with the carbon filter removed.Still has the plain white filter.It has gravel on the base which was bought from PAH and thoroughly washed,all ornaments and plastic plants were bought from PAH and thoroughly washed as well.They are your normal plants and ornaments nothing special about them.There is no problem with the water movement.The heater is set to 25C.Have you finished your cycle LardyDad and if so how long did it take you.

Thanks for your help guys

weejie