Is My Fishless Cycle Over?

[jamesmacc]

hey guys, started doing my fishless cycle about 27 days ago and didnt have the internet to get your help, i had a basic guide from the internet that i printed and just followed that. im now getting 0 ammonia and o nitrite after 12 hours of the tank beong dosed to 4-5ppm. the only problem is i have suffered bad ph drops and have been adding bi carb. if i dont add carb every 3 days it stalls. so is my fishless cycle not complete? i have ordered coral sand to put in the filters to help buffer it, my ph is usualy about 8 and its only during the cycle it dropped..
realy want to start ordering fish but want to see what you all think about it?
james

 

[HayzH]

what tests are you using? and what is your NitRate reading..??

 

[Liquid skills]

hey guys, started doing my fishless cycle about 27 days ago and didnt have the internet to get your help, i had a basic guide from the internet that i printed and just followed that. im now getting 0 ammonia and o nitrite after 12 hours of the tank beong dosed to 4-5ppm. the only problem is i have suffered bad ph drops and have been adding bi carb. if i dont add carb every 3 days it stalls. so is my fishless cycle not complete? i have ordered coral sand to put in the filters to help buffer it, my ph is usualy about 8 and its only during the cycle it dropped..
realy want to start ordering fish but want to see what you all think about it?
james

well if your water states are stable and arnt fluctuateing then it should be fine to start ordering fish

 

[jamesmacc]

hi guys, doing ph, ammonia, nitrite and nitrate with liquid kit. my nitrates are 80ppm. tank is perfectly stable when i keep adding the bi carb

 

[HayzH]

i think we need to establish if the readings are correct before we tell anyone to go buy fish.

 

[jamesmacc]

i followed the guide and its gone through all the stages correctly. added ammonia, then after a few days it started to drop and nitrite started showing, then after a while the nitrite started to fade and nitrate started to show. then ammonia would go to 0 in 12 hours,with no nitrite and showing 80ppm in nitrates

 

[The Taffy Apple]

hi guys, doing ph, ammonia, nitrite and nitrate with liquid kit. my nitrates are 80ppm. tank is perfectly stable when i keep adding the bi carb

Morning James.. i too suffered PH 'crashes' during both my fishless cycles, and like yourself, had to continually add bicarb of soda to 'buffer' it back up. This is due to the soft water area that i live in. I have had to add crushed coral into both my tanks AND filters to keep it at a stable 7.2 PH, which isn't a problem.
With regards to your cycle being finished, i would say you are certainly not far off, but it is always advised to carry out a full 'Qualifying Week' BEFORE you go and get your first tropical fish . Simply put, if you can prove you are reaching '0' Ammonia and '0' NitrItes within a 12 hour period after dosing then after these 7 days you are ready for a BIG water change (right down to the substrate) and your first fish...
Well done on choosing and doing a fishless cycle, maybe use this time now to research the fish you want, bearing in mind other fish's behaviour, your PH, tank size and what size filter you have.

Congratulations

Terry.

 

[HayzH]

Have you added any wood/plants in the tank?

 

[jamesmacc]

hi guys, doing ph, ammonia, nitrite and nitrate with liquid kit. my nitrates are 80ppm. tank is perfectly stable when i keep adding the bi carb

Morning James.. i too suffered PH 'crashes' during both my fishless cycles, and like yourself, had to continually add bicarb of soda to 'buffer' it back up. This is due to the soft water area that i live in. I have had to add crushed coral into both my tanks AND filters to keep it at a stable 7.2 PH, which isn't a problem.
With regards to your cycle being finished, i would say you are certainly not far off, but it is always advised to carry out a full 'Qualifying Week' BEFORE you go and get your first tropical fish . Simply put, if you can prove you are reaching '0' Ammonia and '0' NitrItes within a 12 hour period after dosing then after these 7 days you are ready for a BIG water change (right down to the substrate) and your first fish...
Well done on choosing and doing a fishless cycle, maybe use this time now to research the fish you want, bearing in mind other fish's behaviour, your PH, tank size and what size filter you have.

Congratulations

Terry.

hi terry, thankyou for the advise. im running 1 ex1200 and one eheim 2217 external pumps, going to put crushed coral in them both, my ph was 8 but after getting some advise it seems quite common for the ph to crash. i will take your advise and do 2 tests a day for the next 7 days to make sure it stays as it is and then i will order the fish, have to order them online as my nearest shop is 120 miles away and they dont sell cichlids.
thanks,
james

 

[Liquid skills]

i think we need to establish if the readings are correct before we tell anyone to go buy fish.

i wasnt telling anyone to buy their fish just stating that when the stats where stable/ normal then i could be an indicator to think about getting some

 

[jamesmacc]

well i have had the 2 zero's for about 3-4 days now, i will leave it another we while to be double sure that its not going to give me any surprises

 

[The Taffy Apple]

well i have had the 2 zero's for about 3-4 days now, i will leave it another we while to be double sure that its not going to give me any surprises

for that..! I done 12 days of extra testing, just to be sure.

Terry.

PS- Don't forget your pics for us all to see once your cycle is complete and your fish are in

 

[HayzH]

i just want to make sure OP is using a reliable test

 

[jamesmacc]

im using the api master test kit.
james

 

[HayzH]

Then you are indeed on the right track