Need help understanding cycle

djulian645 · Oct 17, 2015

Hello all!

I have just started my 55 gal fowlr tank and was doing some tests and wanted to know if things are going smooth. It's been two weeks and I just started showing signs of ammonia, reading at around .25 and nitrite and nitrate are both reading zero. Is this normal? Any help is appreciated!

TD13 · Oct 17, 2015

Beneficial bacteria will break ammonia into nitrite, so you should at some point have a spike in nitrites. Then ammonia will drop, then nitrites. You can add things to your tank as long as your amm, and nitrate are 0, and nitrates between 0-5. Red Sea makes a reef maturing product to speed things along a bit. I know there's other stuff that doesn't it as well, that's just the one that comes to mind. IF you are using API nitrate test, MAKE SURE to shake bottle 2 for a minimum of 30 seconds. It has zinc oxide in it and it separates and sinks out of the solution. If you have used it and did not shake it, you have changed the composition of the solution and it is no good. Get a new nitrate test.

djulian645 · Oct 17, 2015

Awesome! Thank you very much. Is this where I should be at two weeks also? It's seem the ammonia has just started to rise

TD13 · Oct 17, 2015

No sweat ask if you need anything else!

djulian645 · Oct 17, 2015

Thanks! So this where I should be at two weeks? Ammonia seems to be just starting to build up

TD13 · Oct 17, 2015

All tanks are different. Depends, if you used live rock- how much die off is there, how much anaerobic bacteria is present. There is no set time frame, except when you're tests say it's ok. Usually 2-6 weeks, but it all depends on the specifics of that tank.

Lenny_S · Oct 17, 2015

djulian645 said:
Thanks! So this where I should be at two weeks? Ammonia seems to be just starting to build up

If you used uncurred live rock or some other food source to start the cycle, then just starting to detect ammonia at 2 weeks is typical. It takes about that long for the decay to produce ammonia.