Need Help On Tank Cycle Bacteria Not Growing.

[xion0374]

Ok so I've setup my 55gal tank.  Filled it with tap water.  Use Stress coat to clear to prep the water.
 
I tested the water with API test kit.  ph = water, am = ammonia, nit = nitrite, nat = nitrate
 
Temp sitting at 80degree
plenty air filtration
only using a 50gallon filter atm ( gonna get a second 50gallon filter) hang on back
 
June 06, 2013 initial startup water
ph - 7.6
am - 1.0
nit - 0.0
nat - 0.0
 
added 3mil of pure ammonia to tank
 
ph 7.6
am - 4ppm
nit - 0.0
nat - 0.0
 
added 8fl oz of Stress Zyme into tank  (was told by petco employee this liquid stuff does not work)
added .3oz (8g) Biozyme the whole package into tank (was told by petco employee that this works but hasn't personelly used it)
water was very cloudy (could not see through the tank from end to end)
 
June 7, 2013 AM
ph 7.6
am - 4.0ppm
nit - 0.0
nat - 0.0
 
water still very cloudy
 
June 7, 2013 PM
ph - 7.2
am - 4ppm
nit - 0.0ppm
nat - 0.0ppm
 
water is cloudy
 
June 8, 2013 AM
ph - 6.8
am - 4.0ppm
nit - 0.0ppm
nat - 0.0ppm
 
water is cloudy
 
June 8, 2013 PM
ph - 6.8
am - 4ppm
nit - 0.0ppm
nat - 0.0ppm
 
water is somewhat cloudy
 
My concern is that its been 3 days now and not signs of any bacterial growth, the ammonia is still @ 4ppm and with 0 nit, or nat at all.  Getting frustrated atm and running out of ideas on how to grow the dam bacteria.
 
I bought a used dirty old filter from the lps and that didnt help either.
 
Running out of option on how to grow these dam things.  If anyone has had any success growing these dam bacteria please help.  I never had this issue in the past and never experince any kind of fish loss in the past.
 
So please help.
 
Thanks.

 

[Blondielovesfish]

The ammonia bacteria normally takes about 1 week give or take some days. You will see a difference soon and up until then you just have to be patient. 
If you know someone with a mature tank, you can take some of their filter media (up to 1/4 - 1/3 is safe) and that will speed up your cycle quite a lot. 
The cloudy water is normal in new set ups, its most likely a bacteria bloom. You can either wait it out or do several 50% water changes. Make sure to replace the ammonia taken out. IMO 2ppm of ammonia is a better amount to add instead of 4ppm. 

 

[xion0374]

The cloudy water was due to the usage of the whole biozyme package.  But before I even use the biozyme, I use half of the stress zyme, no cloudy water.  Then I added the biozyme and the water was very cloudy.  I also bought an old filter sponge from an mature tank at my lps and it didnt work or at least Idk if it work or not.  I been stressing on it.

 

[Shaddex]

Using old media, or an old filter, will only help you if the media has been kept wet and also fed with ammonia.
I would suggest you continue with your water checking every day, and as Blondie stated, it can take a while before you start seeing a change in your water paramiters.
With no "Old" Media, it will take 4 weeks+ to cycle a tank from my experience, and I would drop your ammonia "Feeding" to 2ppm.
 
Ive never had success with "Bac's in a bottle" and always gone with the Fishless Cycle or seeding from my other tanks.   Bare with it, and your readings will start to show the cycle starting.

 

[Mamashack]

 to TFF, xion!
Don't stress! Patience is the name of this game. The cloudiness will pass and approximately a week after starting the process you will begin to see a drop in the ammonia levels and a slight increase in nitrItes as the ammonia bacs start to develop and then it's another waiting game for the nitrIte bacs to start converting it to nitrAtes. You can expect the whole process to take 6-8 weeks without the mature media that Blondie mentioned. If you can get some that will kick-start the whole process. Shop bought "starter" kits tend not to work so don't expect any quick fixes from those. Always use the water conditioners to remove chlorine from the tap water as that will stall the process by killing off the bacteria you want to promote.
Save your money and stop testing until 1 week after adding the ammonia. I agree with Blondie it might be a good idea to do a 50% water change to reduce the ammonia level from 4ppm to 2ppm as this is the accepted level to raise it to at present.
Good luck and let us know how you get on!

 

[xion0374]

Update June 9, 2013
tested @ 10 am
ph - drop to 6.0 this morning
am - 4.0ppm
nit - 0.0ppm
nat - 0.0ppm
 
water is slightly cloudy.
 
Still no sign of bacterial growth, will test again tonight.

 

[Essjay]

If your pH has dropped to 6, that won't be helping. These bacteria like a high pH. Do you have anything like bogwoood in the tank that may be causing the pH to drop? If you do, I would remove it for the duration of the cycle and do a water change to get the pH back up again.
It is also possible that you have very low KH in your water. That is a measure of the amount of carbonate which buffers the pH. You can increase the KH and pH during a fishless cycle by adding bicarbonate of soda (baking soda). Though low KH usually causes problems with pH when there is a lot of nitrite and/or nitrite in the water.
 
As the others have said, it's only been a few days yet. Earlier this year I did my first ever fishless cycle. I've had fish since the mid 1990s - I actually had fish before I had a tank thanks to teenaged sons and the dart stall at the fair so I had no choice but a fish-in cycle. Since then I've used media from an established fislter when starting a new tank. So I decided it was time to do a fishless cycle without using any mature media to see what it's like. My ammonia did nothing for 11 days, dropped on the 12th and was zero on the 13th. My nitrite dropped to zero on the 34th day. Though I did use just 1ppm ammonia, raising to 2ppm after nitrite dropped to zero as I was only stocking 1 male betta in a 25 litre tank.

 

[xion0374]

Update June 9, 2013 PM
 
PH - 6.0
AM - 4.0ppm
Nit - 0.0ppm
Nat - 0.0ppm
 
slightly cloudy
 
Still no sign of bacteria growth.
 
Has anyone gotten any result using Biozyme (its a powder in a very small yellow container) I've read on petco feedback that that stuff work but its not working.  I should at least see some sign of nitrite building by day 4 to 7, but none yet.
 
If i add baking soda to the tank, do i have to remove it later before I put the fish in.  Does the baking soda do any harm to the fish at all if I left it in there.  And how much baking soda do i need to add to raise the ph, if that is that baking soda help raises ph lvl.
 
And can anyone recommend any bacteria product beside liquid that have been known to work for them.  Any thing suggest goes a long way thanks.

 

[snazy]

PH - 6.0
 

 
Please read essjay's post again.
At a ph of 6 the filter bacteria gets inhibited and there's almost no nitrification going on. You need this sorted for the cycle to start.
 
There's no bacterial product that will help regardless of the scenario. They just don't contain the correct type of bacteria and the few that do, aren't stored/shipped correctly to keep the stuff alive.

 

[xion0374]

I know I just added 2 teaspoons of baking powder to the 55g tank.  I dont know how much baking powder I need to add to increase the lvl of ph.  But thanks for telling me that bacteria need a high lvl of ph to grow.  Also do i need to remove the baking soda before adding fish.

 

[snazy]

Yes, before adding fish do a large water change and don't add baking soda anymore. I am not sure how much baking soda is needed, but I think it can only raise the Ph so much regardless of the amount, so I wouldn't worry too much. Just keep the ph stable.
If you can find someone that can give you a piece of old mature filter media/sponges, that's the best bacterial source you can have to jump start the cycle.
 
Also, considering your Ph dropped, then you may have a very low Kh and it's a good idea to invest in a Kh test. If it's lower than 3-4 dKh, then you may need to use crushed coral in the filter to keep the Kh up. Otherwise a Ph drop like that when you've got fish in the tank can kill them, and kill the bacteria too.

 

[xion0374]

so if my ph lvl is 6, would it alraedy kill any bacteria thats trying to grow.

 

[snazy]

so if my ph lvl is 6, would it alraedy kill any bacteria thats trying to grow.

 
The proper word is "inhibit", not kill completely. Which means it will just work at very low temps, so it will appear that the cycle has stalled.
You need your Ph above 7 during cycling to grow a healthy colony of bacs in the fastest possible way.

 

[xion0374]

Ph of 7 or higher and a temp of at least 80 degree correct to get the bacteria growing faster

 

[the_lock_man]

 

PH - 6.0
 

 
Please read essjay's post again.
At a ph of 6 the filter bacteria gets inhibited and there's almost no nitrification going on. You need this sorted for the cycle to start.
 
There's no bacterial product that will help regardless of the scenario. They just don't contain the correct type of bacteria and the few that do, aren't stored/shipped correctly to keep the stuff alive.
 

 
There is a product which you can get called Dr Tim's. This, when used correctly, does help with cycling, so I am told.  I've never used it since I am in the UK, and Dr Tim seems to think that only people in the US have problems cycling their tanks.
 

 

so if my ph lvl is 6, would it alraedy kill any bacteria thats trying to grow.

 
The proper word is "inhibit", not kill completely. Which means it will just work at very low temps, so it will appear that the cycle has stalled.
You need your Ph above 7 during cycling to grow a healthy colony of bacs in the fastest possible way.
 

 
The optimum pH for growing bacteria is 8.2-8.4. Add the bicarb little by little, and keep testing until you get to that level.
 
Once your cycle is established, you do a large water change (as close to 100% as you can get) and this basically resets your water parameters to what you will naturally have.