Cycle Process - Next steps?

[pdiehm]

My 120 that I just dosed up to 2ppm ammonia just tested for 0ppm ammonia today. Nitrites are around 1ppm.

This is where I get confused. Some say, dose ammonia back up to 1ppm. Others say do not dose ammonia again until nitrites are at 0.

So....do I dose ammonia each time it drops to 0? Or do I not dose and wait for nitrites to hit 0?

 

[glb]

My 120 that I just dosed up to 2ppm ammonia just tested for 0ppm ammonia today. Nitrites are around 1ppm.

This is where I get confused. Some say, dose ammonia back up to 1ppm. Others say do not dose ammonia again until nitrites are at 0.

So....do I dose ammonia each time it drops to 0? Or do I not dose and wait for nitrites to hit 0?

You want to keep dosing ammonia daily to 'feed' the cycle. The bacteria that convert ammonia to nitrite then nitrate need a continuous supply to feed on, and that is the ammonia. I'd keep dosing until your ammonia and nitrites are both zero. You should have only nitrates left in your tank if the cycle is finished. If the nitrates are high, which they usually are after a cycle, you can do a water change (10-20%) to bring it down without affecting the biofilter that's been established. Remember though that the bacteria still need ammonia to survive. You could even dose some ammonia up until the day before you add livestock in my opinion. Just make sure you have no ammonia or nitrites at all before you add anything. Hope this helps.

 

[glb]

Also, nitrates should be about 5-10ppm, lower if you plan to keep SPS corals in the future. I'd wait on corals until you've added fish and they've done fine.

 

[Tahoe61]

So how old is the tank?
What did you use, as in cured rock, bacteria products?
I would not dose ammonia again until nitrites are zero. The fact that you went from dosing ammonia to no detectable ammonia and detectable nitrites means your system is almost efficient at completing the nitrogen cycle.
There are so many variables that play into this, for instance how soon did you test.......I would not worry too much about small details as long as you have not put livestock in the tank already.

 

[pdiehm]

I have 75 lb of dry Pukani rock. No bacteria products. Dosed 2ppm of ammonia on Friday, no testing til today.

pH of 8.4 (thereabouts...color card hard to read).

Tank has only been set up and filled last thursday.

 

[pdiehm]

No plan to add any corals except hard to kill ones...and that's not happening anytime soon

 

[glb]

No plan to add any corals except hard to kill ones...and that's not happening anytime soon

Good idea. I stayed with fish for a while until I got used to all the testing and I knew the tank was stable.

 

[pdiehm]

Nitrites are sky high still in the QT cycle. They just got sky high in my display cycle.

I have be told not to dose ammonia until nitrites are 0. I have been told to keep dosing ammonia...

I literally am not sure what to do.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

I'd add more ammonia now, if you want to use multiple doses to cycle it.

 

[pdiehm]

I'd add more ammonia now, if you want to use multiple doses to cycle it.

Not sure what you meant by if I want to use multiple doses to cycle it. If I do nothing it will cycle right? Once nitrites and ammonia are zero, I dose 2ppm and if 0 in 24 hours then I am truly cycled.

Right or am I over simplifying?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

If the ammonia disappeared once, it is cycled to some extent. Adding more may confirm it and cycle it to a larger amount of ammonia processing.

Depending on what you add and how fast, you may not need to do more than you already have, but it won't hurt to hit it with ammonia again.

 

[pdiehm]

i drooped some leftover FW pellets in this morning. just waiting for nitrites to fall, which are quite high (only been a few days since i started the cycle). being patient with dry rock curin is different than being patient with a tank. the rock is out of sight, out of mind. the tank is staring me right in the face.