Nitrites Creeping Up In Fish-in Cycle

[Winterlily]

Just dunno if this is to be expected, that this is just how it goes? My ammonia finally dropped to nearly undetectable, and nitrite started to rise. Okay, good, this is what I expected, great, halfway through, as I understand the cycle process anyhow. But, when it goes high enough (.25 or higher) to prompt me to do a water change, it goes back down to 0, but creeps right back up relatively quickly. This afternoon, for example, it was at about .50 around 12:30 PM. I did a decent size water change (50% or so), it was 0 afterward. By 3:30 PM, it was back at .50 or perhaps a bit more - that purple color in the liquid API test is SO hard to figure out where on the test card it's falling. I did a bigger water change, again.

Is this normal? For it to rise up so quickly after a water change I mean?

If so, how on earth do I keep up with it? I'd have to be changing water every 3 hours at this rate? And, if it is normal, how long does this generally last?

Boy oh boy.

And if it's NOT normal, what am I doing wrong so I can correct it?!

Thanks!
PS... I have just one Betta in the tank, which is a 3 gallon Eclipse. (I know it's too small - it's temporary.)

 

[mattlee]

Just dunno if this is to be expected, that this is just how it goes? My ammonia finally dropped to nearly undetectable, and nitrite started to rise. Okay, good, this is what I expected, great, halfway through, as I understand the cycle process anyhow. But, when it goes high enough (.25 or higher) to prompt me to do a water change, it goes back down to 0, but creeps right back up relatively quickly. This afternoon, for example, it was at about .50 around 12:30 PM. I did a decent size water change (50% or so), it was 0 afterward. By 3:30 PM, it was back at .50 or perhaps a bit more - that purple color in the liquid API test is SO hard to figure out where on the test card it's falling. I did a bigger water change, again.

Is this normal? For it to rise up so quickly after a water change I mean?

If so, how on earth do I keep up with it? I'd have to be changing water every 3 hours at this rate? And, if it is normal, how long does this generally last?

Boy oh boy.

And if it's NOT normal, what am I doing wrong so I can correct it?!

Thanks!
PS... I have just one Betta in the tank, which is a 3 gallon Eclipse. (I know it's too small - it's temporary.)

Hi, i have just been through a fish in experience myself as i was told crap info from my local aquatic shop. i had 2 dwarf gouramis and 5 neons in the tank and when i went back to buy more fish i had a water test and the nitrite level was 5ppm. my neons went all mad and dropped off one by one so i came on here and got some advice quick..... i carried out a 50% water change and the level dropped to 1ppm, then did a 80% change and got a 0 reading. i was told that a higher % change would be more effective and less time consuming and it worked for me. it has been 4 days now and still have 0 readings so i have added 2 more fish. it went up to 0.25ppm so i did a 30% change today and everything is back to 0 again...... i am no expert infact far from it as this is my first tank but as i said it worked for me so im just passing it on to you. good luck with it, Matt.

 

[Winterlily]

Thanks for the reply, Matt! Sounds like you may be further along in your cycle than I am maybe? My nitrites only started to rise a day or 2 ago. Congrats on keeping them at 0!

It's ever higher this evening, too. As I said in the first post here, the water changes - even big ones - bring the nitrites to 0, but within hours they are right back up. I did that 80% change at 3:30 PM today (after a .50 result), it brought it to 0, and just five hours later at 8:30 PM tonight, it was 1.0!

I just need to know from you guys if it's normal how fast that rebounds right back up. Scary!

 

[waterdrop]

Both of you are just experiencing the reason why we all try so hard on here to encourage people to do fishless cycles. Its extremely hard work to do a fish-in cycle and the difficulty gets worse and worse as the fish load gets higher.

Winterlily, its not hard to understand what you are experiencing if you think about the fact that the two species of bacteria you are trying to grow will come into production at different times. For a while its easier because you don't have very many ammonia processing bacteria and so not that many nitrites are produced. Then, the ammonia processors finally get to be a big population (remember, that can seem to happen overnight because they keep -doubling- which means they get big, then suddenly the get "real big.") This means they finally are processing lots of ammonia and pumping out lots and lots of nitrite(NO2) for which there are still very few nitrite processing bacteria to help you out. So yes, you reach this stage where nitrites seem to get "out of control" and this is about the hardest stage of fish-in cycling bacause it can take those multiple daily water changes that are so hard to be around for! Take heart though, this too shall pass!

~~waterdrop~~

 

[Winterlily]

Thanks waterdrop! You always make me feel a bit better.

I really do know it'll pass ... I'm just worried about the fish. Hope he can hang on until it does pass. Right now, I'm changing something like 80% of the water very nearly every 2-3 hours or so. Very soon after a change, it shoots right back up. The fluctuations cannot possibly be good for him, nor can the 8ish hours overnight of sitting in 1.0 nitrite water. I hope it doesn't go much higher - this is bad enough. Poor little guy. Never again will I do a fish-in cycle. #$%^&* fish store telling me Stability was the way to go. Right sure uh-huh. Grrr!

Anyhow! Thank you, as always!

 

[Winterlily]

Just an update: I seem to be (I think??) nearly through this cycle! Yesterday morning, nitrite was at 1.0 or a hair above. I did, as usual, a huge water change - something like 90% - as I have been doing all along when levels were high, as you know. Now, for the past week, whenever I'd re-test, even just an hour or 2 later, it'd be right back up at 1.0 or a bit above. Well, yesterday mid-morning, I re-tested, and it was still high (still purple, but not as reddish-purple - now more blue tinged - coming down), but I dared not hope. Changed a bunch of water, but not quite as much this time - about 75%. 2-3 hours later I tested again, it was .50. Hu!! I changed water - about 60%. Couple hours later, same thing, .50, and another 50% water change. By early evening it was .25 MAYBE (that sort of clear darker blue? No purple at all) - I think the reading is actually somewhere between 0 and .25, which is where it was this morning, too. Both times he got a small water change of about 25%. Once I'm sure in my mind that it is indeed under .25 I'll quit the changes as I know he doesn't really need them unless it's .25 or above.

NitrAtes are still only about 7, which is where they've been for over a week. These should be rising, no?

Ammonia is still a very clear 0.

Seem like this is nearly over?? Or do I wait for the other shoe to drop and nitrites to shoot up again?

If it's nearly over, I got WAY lucky I think. The ammonia part of the cycle was the "norm" of about 2 weeks long, but the nitrite part was just a week. I hope you all aren't going to say that I should expect another big spike......

 

[waterdrop]

Yes, you may be getting past the worst part of the nitrite being high. Don't forget its hard to tell when you're also doiing water changes as the dilution from the water change. Its easy to think of water changes as just diluting what's there but its more complicated than that because it lowers the feeding, which results in a changed pattern of "output graph" if you will. This in turn means your snapshot of info you get when you do a test is not simply reading a nice slow refined hump in a graph like your brain is thinking.

But anyway, I agree, I think you'll be having to change less water now probably, but stay vigilant!

~~waterdrop~~

 

[Winterlily]

It's back to purple now. Bluey-purple, like that .25 reading color - but maybe a tad more purple. Bummer, 'cause it wasn't at ALL purple most of yesterday nor this morning - just darker blue. Weird, no? The good thing is, at least it's not flying right back up to 1.0 - it's going back up after a water change, but not nearly as high.

One good thing, though: For the first time since I've had him, I came home to bubble nests today! He can't be TOO unhappy I guess!

Vigilant. Yes, absolutely. You betcha! It'll be a while before I relax about testing!