Urgent Cycling And Nitrite Question

[Daveptkd]

Hi all,

I have read the fishless cycling link at least 10 times, I am currently cycling a 63l tank (almost 4 weeks).

it says that when ammonia drops to 0 in 12 hours, to watch the nitrite.

currently my ammonia drops to 0 in way less that 12 hours, and both ammonia and Nitrite are zero after 24! (after i make the ammonia 4ppm).

is this tank now cycled? the link does not mention how long the nitrite should take to drop to 0?

also, once i have done my 75-90% change, how long have i got before i need to put fish in, i.e. before bacteria starts to die without an ammonia source?

many thanks

Dave

 

[Xebadir]

One: be careful doing such a large change. although this is reccomended if your tap water is impure you could have problems.

You want to get the fish in After the Nitrite reaches zero asap to maintain the bacteria colony. I think you many find that you will have to add fish slowly(2-3 at a time) as the System will struggle to cope with this influx if not fully primed. From the sound of it you have heaps of beneficial bacteria breaking down your ammonia, keep them alive with a source or add your fish. You nitrites given the tank size could take 1-2 weeks to reach zero, depending on the supply of ammonia source. The nitrates should be kept an eye on, make sure you keep them below 40 ppm.

Hope this helps, not being very good at the fishless cycle, this is just from what ive read.

 

[Daveptkd]

One: be careful doing such a large change. although this is reccomended if your tap water is impure you could have problems.

You want to get the fish in After the Nitrite reaches zero asap to maintain the bacteria colony. I think you many find that you will have to add fish slowly(2-3 at a time) as the System will struggle to cope with this influx if not fully primed. From the sound of it you have heaps of beneficial bacteria breaking down your ammonia, keep them alive with a source or add your fish. You nitrites given the tank size could take 1-2 weeks to reach zero, depending on the supply of ammonia source. The nitrates should be kept an eye on, make sure you keep them below 40 ppm.

Hope this helps, not being very good at the fishless cycle, this is just from what ive read.

Hi Xebadir,

using the fishless cycle, i will have enough bacteria to handle a full stock of fish as soon as the cycle is finished, a large water change at the end is to reduce the nitrates, which go off the scale.

but i just needed to know how long i had from water change, to stocking, literally in hours!

cheers

Dave

 

[Gav_B_UK]

I'm going probably make a silly answer...but...how long does it take you to get hungry??? If 4ppm ammonia is going within 24 hours...then they I would probably hazard a guess that it would be within 24 hours of your water change or after the ammonia has hit 0 (which ever you wait for)....may be wrong...I'm not that experienced with Freshwater tanks...currently in the middle of a cycle myself.

 

[Daveptkd]

I'm going probably make a silly answer...but...how long does it take you to get hungry??? If 4ppm ammonia is going within 24 hours...then they I would probably hazard a guess that it would be within 24 hours of your water change or after the ammonia has hit 0 (which ever you wait for)....may be wrong...I'm not that experienced with Freshwater tanks...currently in the middle of a cycle myself.

actually that makes sense.

problem i face is that my amonia goes in around 8am, 24 hours later when all levels are zero, everywhere is shut!! i need my levels to drop to zero during the day, so i can change water, clean up and buy fish!!!

i was wondering if waiting until the next day is ok? after everything is zero's the previous evening, or is the extra 13 hours or so too long?

Dave

 

[djloach]

I'm going probably make a silly answer...but...how long does it take you to get hungry??? If 4ppm ammonia is going within 24 hours...then they I would probably hazard a guess that it would be within 24 hours of your water change or after the ammonia has hit 0 (which ever you wait for)....may be wrong...I'm not that experienced with Freshwater tanks...currently in the middle of a cycle myself.

actually that makes sense.

problem i face is that my amonia goes in around 8am, 24 hours later when all levels are zero, everywhere is shut!! i need my levels to drop to zero during the day, so i can change water, clean up and buy fish!!!

i was wondering if waiting until the next day is ok? after everything is zero's the previous evening, or is the extra 13 hours or so too long?

Dave

I am no expert but I think bacteria will stay alive for quite a long time without ammonia or nitrites as most bacteria can go dormant for long periods of time. As long as they stay wet they should be fine.

I just recently did a fishless cycle and am in the process of building up my fish population. I wouldn't recommend adding all your fish at one time but you should be able to add them more rapidly than had you not done a fishless cycle. I suggest adding up to 15-20% of your total fish to start and check your ammonia and nitrite levels and if they remain at zero for several days to a week add another 15-20% of the fish you want. Keep doing this until your tank has the fish population you want.

 

[Daveptkd]

I'm going probably make a silly answer...but...how long does it take you to get hungry??? If 4ppm ammonia is going within 24 hours...then they I would probably hazard a guess that it would be within 24 hours of your water change or after the ammonia has hit 0 (which ever you wait for)....may be wrong...I'm not that experienced with Freshwater tanks...currently in the middle of a cycle myself.

actually that makes sense.

problem i face is that my amonia goes in around 8am, 24 hours later when all levels are zero, everywhere is shut!! i need my levels to drop to zero during the day, so i can change water, clean up and buy fish!!!

i was wondering if waiting until the next day is ok? after everything is zero's the previous evening, or is the extra 13 hours or so too long?

Dave

I am no expert but I think bacteria will stay alive for quite a long time without ammonia or nitrites as most bacteria can go dormant for long periods of time. As long as they stay wet they should be fine.

I just recently did a fishless cycle and am in the process of building up my fish population. I wouldn't recommend adding all your fish at one time but you should be able to add them more rapidly than had you not done a fishless cycle. I suggest adding up to 15-20% of your total fish to start and check your ammonia and nitrite levels and if they remain at zero for several days to a week add another 15-20% of the fish you want. Keep doing this until your tank has the fish population you want.

Hi,

I thought the whole point of a fishless cyle was that you could fully stock straight away and not harm fish, that's what I read anyways!

actually, if i am at 0 24hrs later, that's 8am, for after a large water change, everything WOULD be open after all! wasn't thinking straight earlier, but that should work out fine.

Dave

 

[djloach]

Hi,

I thought the whole point of a fishless cyle was that you could fully stock straight away and not harm fish, that's what I read anyways!

actually, if i am at 0 24hrs later, that's 8am, for after a large water change, everything WOULD be open after all! wasn't thinking straight earlier, but that should work out fine.

Dave

You probably could but I personally have decided to still do it in phases. I am adding them much faster than I would had I not done a fishless cycle so it was still beneficial to not doing a fishless cycle. I guess I would rather just be safe than to have an unexpected ammonia or nitrite surge killing all my fish. Besides, not harming fish is one of the main reason for doing a fishless cycle.