Recycling My Tank

[MHunt]

Fair enough, you didn't say you'd tried putting fish into the tank. Good luck with the tank this time.

 

[powerdyne6]

Fair enough, you didn't say you'd tried putting fish into the tank. Good luck with the tank this time.

is the brown algae good??
or how can I tell what it is

 

[Majjie]

It's not good but it's quite common I believe - during fishless cycling. It'll probably clear up when the tank settles down.

 

[powerdyne6]

It's not good but it's quite common I believe - during fishless cycling. It'll probably clear up when the tank settles down.

sorry to keep this thread going
but would a 25 percent water change benefit me in anyway to help speed this up, it seems to have stalled a little bit, a have been testing ammonia everyday and it is coming down, but is still about 7.5ppm, the color in the test tube gets a little lighter everyday, but it is barely noticeable
the nitrite in the past 2 days has risen from 0 to about .10ppm and the nitrate has risen from about 0 to about 7.5 to 10ppm
the ph is at about 7.4, and the temp is running steady at 85 F
say if I were to do a water change , not sucking the gravel, just taking out some water would that reduce the amount of good bacteria in the tank or would it help in reducing the amount of ammonia, what would the nitrites do if I did a water change???

any help would be appreciated

 

[Majjie]

I'd be tempted to leave things as they are - as long as the nitrite and nitrate continue to rise. Don't worry too much about the ammonia - it's bound to reduce slowly from such a high level. Although you do need to keep checking it - just in case it all gets gobbled up.

I would only do a water change once the nitrate levels go up above 100 - 150 ppm.

Changing 100% of the water wouldn't affect the numbers of bacteria much (they stick to solid surfaces) - but you need the nitrite levels to build up - to encourage the nitrite eating bacteria.

 

[powerdyne6]

I'd be tempted to leave things as they are - as long as the nitrite and nitrate continue to rise. Don't worry too much about the ammonia - it's bound to reduce slowly from such a high level. Although you do need to keep checking it - just in case it all gets gobbled up.

I would only do a water change once the nitrate levels go up above 100 - 150 ppm.

Changing 100% of the water wouldn't affect the numbers of bacteria much (they stick to solid surfaces) - but you need the nitrite levels to build up - to encourage the nitrite eating bacteria.

thanks for the help

 

[powerdyne6]

I'd be tempted to leave things as they are - as long as the nitrite and nitrate continue to rise. Don't worry too much about the ammonia - it's bound to reduce slowly from such a high level. Although you do need to keep checking it - just in case it all gets gobbled up.

I would only do a water change once the nitrate levels go up above 100 - 150 ppm.

Changing 100% of the water wouldn't affect the numbers of bacteria much (they stick to solid surfaces) - but you need the nitrite levels to build up - to encourage the nitrite eating bacteria.

thanks for the help

here are my updated stats, I did it in a table form so it is easier to read, I put that stress zyme in once just to see what it does, didn't do much, so I have not added anymore

Aquarium Water Stats 38 Gallon, Airstone and Light on 18 Hours


Day Additions PH Level Ammonia Nitrite Nitrate

1 2.2 Ounces Ammonia
2 2.2 Ounces Ammonia -- 5.0ppm 0.00ppm --
3 2.2 Ounces Ammonia -- 5.0ppm 0.00ppm --
4 2.0 Ounces Ammonia -- 5.0ppm 0.00ppm --
5 1.8 Ounces Ammonia,
API Stress Zyme -- 5.0ppm 0.00ppm --
6 1.5 Ounces Ammonia -- 6.0ppm 0.00ppm --
7 1.5 Ounces Ammonia -- 7.5+ppm 0.00ppm --
8 1.5 Ounces Ammonia -- 7.5+ppm 0.00ppm --
9 0 Ounces Ammonia -- 7.5+ppm 0.00ppm --
10 0 Ounces Ammonia -- 7.5+ppm 0.05ppm --
11 0 Ounces Ammonia 7.4 7.5+ppm 0.10ppm 7.0ppm
12 0 Ounces Ammonia 7.4 7.5+ppm 0.10ppm 7.0ppm
13 0 Ounces Ammonia -- 7.5+ppm 0.10ppm 10ppm
14
15

so far it is looking good, except for high ammonia reading but I am currently not adding anymore right now

 

[Majjie]

Yep - looks good to me. Just have to be patient now - and keep testing. As long as the nitrate is going up then something's happening

 

[powerdyne6]

Yep - looks good to me. Just have to be patient now - and keep testing. As long as the nitrate is going up then something's happening

alright so here is the update, after a few more days my ammonia is at about 2.0ppm, nitrite is at about .15 and my nitrate is at about 10 to 15 ppm

right now I haven't put any ammonia in for about 5 days cause I wanted it to drop abit, but now it has, so my question is: what should I do now, add some more ammonia cause I don't want it to get down to 0 right
basically I want to keep adding some ammonia so it doesn't get to 0 right, but I am going to add a little less everyday than I did in the first place

thanks Mike

 

[Majjie]

Personally, I'd let it drop to 0 - as long as you're around to check it fairly frequently (it should be at 0 for less than 12 hours). As soon as it is 0 then add enough ammonia to bring it back up to around 3.5 ppm or so - it should all disappear in 24 hours. Then just add this same amount every day - whilst you wait for the nitrite to peak and disappear.

 

[powerdyne6]

Personally, I'd let it drop to 0 - as long as you're around to check it fairly frequently (it should be at 0 for less than 12 hours). As soon as it is 0 then add enough ammonia to bring it back up to around 3.5 ppm or so - it should all disappear in 24 hours. Then just add this same amount every day - whilst you wait for the nitrite to peak and disappear.

well here is the update
day additions PH Ammonia Nitrite Nitrate
14 0 Ounces Ammonia -- 6.5ppm 0.10ppm 10ppm
15 0 Ounces Ammonia 7.1 5.0ppm 0.10ppm 10ppm
16 0 Ounces Ammonia -- 4.0ppm 0.10ppm 10ppm
17 0 Ounces Ammonia -- 4.0ppm 0.10ppm 10ppm
18 0 Ounces Ammonia 7 2.5ppm 0.05ppm 15ppm

over the past few days the ammonia has been dropping which is good, but over the past 2 days the nitrite has dropped a little, is that normal??
I wasn't really expecting that
is there anything else I should be looking at??

Thanks Mike

 

[Majjie]

No it's not usual - but then your cycling isn't quite usual anyway. I'd still just wait and see what happens.
The nitrate is going up - so things may be going ok.

 

[powerdyne6]

No it's not usual - but then your cycling isn't quite usual anyway. I'd still just wait and see what happens.
The nitrate is going up - so things may be going ok.

The nitrite reading has dropped to almost 0.00ppm but the nitrates has risen to about 20ppm from 15ppm last night
the ammonia is at about 2.5ppm still which is fine
what can I do in the next few days??, what is happening to the nitrite level?? is it normal for it to drop like this in this situation??

I am a newbie, so any help would be appreciated

thanks mike

 

[Majjie]

I think if I was you I would now do a big water change and add some more ammonia (only up to about 3-3.5 ppm or so) - see what happens.

The nitrite could be disappearing because the bacteria are using it - especially as the nitrate is going up.
What is more worrying is that the ammonia seems to have stuck. Your filter when cycled should be capable of removing 2.5 ppm of ammonia overnight. What's the level you get if you test your tap water?

 

[powerdyne6]

I think if I was you I would now do a big water change and add some more ammonia (only up to about 3-3.5 ppm or so) - see what happens.

The nitrite could be disappearing because the bacteria are using it - especially as the nitrate is going up.
What is more worrying is that the ammonia seems to have stuck. Your filter when cycled should be capable of removing 2.5 ppm of ammonia overnight. What's the level you get if you test your tap water?

well the ammonia has been dropping everyday over the past 5 days, it has gone from 7.5+ to its current state of 2.5ppm, in the next 2 or 3 days it should drop to 0
it was probably much higher than 7.5, my test kit only goes to that level
what percentage of a water change should I do??