Need Advice Please!

[abih2005]

Hi all, since 2nd May I've been putting in 1ml of ammonia at 6:30 every morning, at the 12 hour mark the readings for nitrites have so far been 0.00 and ammonia - 0.50.

Just tested the water now and had a dark green result which makes no sense at all!

My light arrived today, no idea had to attach it, got it on recommendations from here - it's a 9v waterhome light?

I've taken the filter out and squeezed it out in tank water, hoepfully that will give the cycle a boost since its not been changed in at least 6 weeks?

HELP!!

 

[Twinklecaz]

What was dark green? Ammonia or Nitrite?

How big is your tank?

 

[abih2005]

Ammonia - 4ppm plus definitely.

Tank is 54l and yes I'm dosing correctly as I've triple checked it on the calculator on here. Am getting really frustrated cos the input of advice I first got on here has completely tailed off and I'm so confused, I need help with the lamp and I nee dot know what the hell to do with the ammonia, keep adding? New filter!??!

 

[waterdrop]

Hi Abi, I think it may be a good thing that you gently squeezed out your sponge in tank water as I believe I remember that you had fish in there before but took them back to P@H and started a fishless cycle. The filter could have been clogged from all those weeks with the fish. It will take a few days possibly for the filter to settle down after being cleaned like that, so the readings may be a bit wacky for a while. Have you ever used a gravel-cleaning siphon on the gravel since you've had the tank?

As far as ammonia goes, it sounds like you're doing ok (at least as far as I can tell.) Its a good habit to try and have roughly the same hour of the 24-hour day when you add ammonia (you add ammonia only if it went down to zero ppm within the previous 24 hours, or very near to zero ppm.) So it sounds like 6:30am is your "add-hour" and that's good. It allows you to do 12 hour tests at 6:30pm.

~~waterdrop~~

 

[abih2005]

Hi thanks for the reply, no I have not used my siphon since I started the cycle, read that you shouldn't disturb the substrate cos of the bacteria colonising etc? Should I do so and replace some water too?

Please could anyone advise on the light?

 

[Twinklecaz]

Well you've got the best person for cycle help there ^. As for your light I'm just trying to think who's good with things like that. If you've had no help by the time I get in I'll ask my Dad, he's good with things like that and he'll have an idea.

I know the cycle is frustrating, I'm in quite a long one too. My Ammonia didn't even go back to 0 for 24 days. But we'll all get there

 

[abih2005]

Do I need to clean my gravel?? What about water changes? Anybody out there??

 

[OldMan47]

If you have ammonia at well over 4 ppm, do a water change to get it back down. You only need to add ammonia when your reading comes in at about zero, not every day. If you were testing daily with a liquid type test kit, I have no idea how a 0.5 ppm suddenly started showing over 4 ppm. It should have happened gradually over time, as your dosing raised it repeatedly. If you were intentionally adding enough ammonia each day to get about 5 ppm, your present concentration may require several very large water changes to get back down to less than 5 ppm.

 

[abih2005]

Since I changed the water and added dechlorinated fresh water - I dosed the tank to 4ppm at 8AM yesterday, its taken it just shy of 24 to get ammonia and nitrites to 0pm.

 

[waterdrop]

That sounds good. Lets see if it can repeat this accomplishment for several days in a row.

~~waterdrop~~

 

[abih2005]

Added 2ml ammonia this morning, now have a double negative on ammonnia and nitrites Back on track I hope!!

 

[PDSimon]

Your cycle has gone much quicker than mine, you're lucky

 

[waterdrop]

I don't think she was doing a fishless cycle from scratch Si, I think she had fish before and was probably almost cycled at the point that she switched to a fishless cycle. (that's assuming I'm remembering it right, lol) WD

 

[abih2005]

Twelves hours on, ammonia 2ppm and nitrites 0.50ppm... confused. It goes ok then it stalls??? Bah

 

[waterdrop]

I thought you were only getting zeros at close to 24 hours, not 12 hours. Had you been getting your zeros at 12 hours after ammonia was dosed?

The bacteria are living things and they live in a complex environment. What they do on a given day can jump around. Its only when you look at a longer trend of numbers (several days or a week perhaps) that you get a better picture of where things are headed. So don't get too upset by the jumping around.

~~waterdrop~~