Will My Tank Actually Cycle....

[AngelOfDeath]

I added some crushed up fish food, as well as some cycling solution that contained nitrite, then i added some 'stress zyme bio filtration booster' and have left it for a couple of days

when i tested nitriate was around 4ppm, so i added some more, and i presume its around 7ppm now

Its kept at 80F

I am wanderin if it will even cycle as this is the first time i have done it

 

[Bristlenose]

I added some crushed up fish food, as well as some cycling solution that contained nitrite, then i added some 'stress zyme bio filtration booster' and have left it for a couple of days

when i tested nitriate was around 4ppm, so i added some more, and i presume its around 7ppm now

Its kept at 80F

I am wanderin if it will even cycle as this is the first time i have done it

I am sure it will do, it just takes time, i left mine for two weeks before adding my first fish.
Some people add one or two very durable fish to help it cycle, but they may become stressed and die!

 

[nicnak]

im on my 3rd week of cycling but things are progressing.... you just need to be patient

 

[AngelOfDeath]

I added some crushed up fish food, as well as some cycling solution that contained nitrite, then i added some 'stress zyme bio filtration booster' and have left it for a couple of days

when i tested nitriate was around 4ppm, so i added some more, and i presume its around 7ppm now

Its kept at 80F

I am wanderin if it will even cycle as this is the first time i have done it

I am sure it will do, it just takes time, i left mine for two weeks before adding my first fish.
Some people add one or two very durable fish to help it cycle, but they may become stressed and die!

I am confused though, as I dont see where the good bacteria would develop from, I know i added the bio booster, but its been suggested by almost everyone on this forum that they actually do very little

 

[OldMan47]

The bacteria are to be found almost anywhere. The numbers are so low that we don't notice them and they are not present in large enough numbers to do you any good. The fish food you are adding has to rot through the action of bacteria to even produce the ammonia. You never question where bacteria come from to cause food to rot but I would guess that you have never sen a location where it doesn't happen. What you are trying to do is get them to multiply into a large colony to suit your purposes. In our case, the purpose is to convert ammonia to nitrite and nitrite to nitrate. Since we don't have bacteria to remove the nitrate, we remove it by changing some of the water. The nitrate is much less toxic to the fish than either ammonia or nitrite si its a good hing the bacteria exist. The reason people suggest things like using gravel or a filter from another aquarium is that it gives you a much larger initial colony that you only need to breed a little to get things going.

 

[rdd1952]

Your tank will cycle with fish food as an ammonia source but it will probably take longer as the food must first be broken down to create ammonia. Im not certain what the cycling solution is that contains nitrite. I've never heard of such a thing. And as you mentiioned, the concensus is that Stress Zyme does little to help with the process. Even their tech data makes no claims of it containing any nitrifying bacteria but only says that the bacteria it does contain "keep conditions in the aquarium right for the development of the biological filter by consuming harmful organic pollutants. This speeds the development of the biological filter in newly set up aquariums." (from their tech sheet). I'm not quite certain how that would speed the process though.

 

[AngelOfDeath]

The bacteria are to be found almost anywhere. The numbers are so low that we don't notice them and they are not present in large enough numbers to do you any good. The fish food you are adding has to rot through the action of bacteria to even produce the ammonia. You never question where bacteria come from to cause food to rot but I would guess that you have never sen a location where it doesn't happen. What you are trying to do is get them to multiply into a large colony to suit your purposes. In our case, the purpose is to convert ammonia to nitrite and nitrite to nitrate. Since we don't have bacteria to remove the nitrate, we remove it by changing some of the water. The nitrate is much less toxic to the fish than either ammonia or nitrite si its a good hing the bacteria exist. The reason people suggest things like using gravel or a filter from another aquarium is that it gives you a much larger initial colony that you only need to breed a little to get things going.

thanks a lot, it makes sense now, i did a test and my nitrite is 5ppm, which i read that it will stay at for a while during the cycling process?

Your tank will cycle with fish food as an ammonia source but it will probably take longer as the food must first be broken down to create ammonia. Im not certain what the cycling solution is that contains nitrite. I've never heard of such a thing. And as you mentiioned, the concensus is that Stress Zyme does little to help with the process. Even their tech data makes no claims of it containing any nitrifying bacteria but only says that the bacteria it does contain "keep conditions in the aquarium right for the development of the biological filter by consuming harmful organic pollutants. This speeds the development of the biological filter in newly set up aquariums." (from their tech sheet). I'm not quite certain how that would speed the process though.

hmmm, i added this chemical that my lfs gave me, and the nitrite went to 5ppm, ammonia is low, and it was new water, so it wouldnt have had time to be changed from ammonia into nitrite, so it deffo came from the bottle

so you think i shouldnt bother with stress zyme bio booster and such?

also, my PH is 6.8

What is the lowest ph that will stunt my cycle? and how do i higher/lower is without going out and buying the chemicals to do so

 

[OldMan47]

To bring your pH back in line quickly and easily, do a large partial water change using dechlorinated water. That will bring it back close to the tap water pH. It will require you to add back some ammonia to keep things moving but even the smallest bottle of ammonia is plenty to cycle several tanks and still have a supply for cleaning windows.