Where am I in the cycle?

[TEX]

your done? but i dont undestand why your nitrate are low did you water change

No, no water change at that point. May have been mis-read/mis-tested at that point, but now I'm reading between 25-50ppm nitrate

 

[Perthegallon]

No, no water change at that point. May have been mis-read/mis-tested at that point, but now I'm reading between 25-50ppm nitrate

oh then do a water change and add fish slowely

 

[JoshO]

I find the ammonia kit reads really low or really high on the exact same test depending on the way the light is diffused through it.
With the nitrate kit, if you read through the side rather than top down and divide the result by 10 then you get the same result but may find it easier to read (it's hidden in the instructions somewhere)

 

[TEX]

For giggles, I tested ammonia again, this time comparing with an API test kit. What’s funny is salifert test definitely went down today, while API is reading off the charts. Not going to pay too much mind to it since I’m doing a big water change anyway.

 

[4tanks]

For giggles, I tested ammonia again, this time comparing with an API test kit. What’s funny is salifert test definitely went down today, while API is reading off the charts. Not going to pay too much mind to it since I’m doing a big water change anyway.

[/QUOTE
Wow that's a great advert for the reliability of test kits

 

[brandon429]

Wow that is a shocking disparity, that’s actually very helpful to see, it helps pinpoint why some people perceive stuck cycles


did you ever dose prime

prime water conditioner is a known false positive for api ammonia and nitrite

 

[TEX]

Seriously, so wild!

@brandon429 no, the only thing that's touched my tank is bottle bac! Thankful I didn't go with the API to start with. Earlier in the day it seriously measured at 8ppm and I couldn't believe it. I waited about 12 hours to retest because there was no way.

 

[brandon429]

Non seneye ammonia testing nearly destroyed this hobby’s entire view on cycle bac. Non seneye ammonia testing has brought LFS and cycle bac sellers hundreds of thousands of dollars in extra unneeded sales.

 

[brandon429]

Case in point
I haven’t found a deft/subtle/ easy way to get buy in from people that ammonia can’t ever hover in reefing.

it either runs in the thousandths ppm safe zone (ammonia is not zero in reefs) or it wipes out the whole tank overnite. No middle ground.

if the tester says a reading and someone challenges it- trouble ensues. This is what non seneye testing has done to this hobby. I’m literally angry at api.

PLEASE HELP! Ammonia, nitrites and clownfish

Hey everyone, new to all of this, has my tank going for a bit now and when my ammonia spiked (1.0) the LFS tested it numerous times and when everything settled back down to zero they said it would be okay to add 2 clowns and 2 hermit crabs, however now the ammonia spiked again up to 2.0, it's...

www.reef2reef.com

 

[TEX]

Case in point
I haven’t found a deft/subtle/ easy way to get buy in from people that ammonia can’t ever hover in reefing.

it either runs in the thousandths ppm safe zone (ammonia is not zero in reefs) or it wipes out the whole tank overnite. No middle ground.

if the tester says a reading and someone challenges it- trouble ensues. This is what non seneye testing has done to this hobby. I’m literally angry at api.

PLEASE HELP! Ammonia, nitrites and clownfish

Hey everyone, new to all of this, has my tank going for a bit now and when my ammonia spiked (1.0) the LFS tested it numerous times and when everything settled back down to zero they said it would be okay to add 2 clowns and 2 hermit crabs, however now the ammonia spiked again up to 2.0, it's...

www.reef2reef.com

Definitely a learning experience for me. I’m glad I bought the extra kit for that reason alone. And I’m glad you chimed in and gave me the OK to get things started in my tank. I would’ve been patient either way, but who knows how long I would’ve needlessly waiting chasing zero ammonia on kits that might not even be accurate.

 

[brandon429]

your statement reminds me that we do ammonia tracing not to be mean in posts but to define something, anything in this hobby that can be certain

what bacteria permit and don’t permit regulate how you are allowed to clean and guide your upcoming reef, that’s our boundaries, we can’t do what kills bacteria. False belief on the other hand about bac weakness removes from you care options that can save your reef. We need truth in something for reefing



We were having a boundaries discussion in that example thread. By tracing ammonia accurately from the start, we are free vs bound right when your invasion crossroads shows up in late may heh.


admit that’s the big mystique in reefing: whats opinion vs what’s reliable? what things vary tank to tank and what things can not vary?

ammonia control does not vary when rocks and sand are present. It might vary in quarantine tanks, where surface area lacks, but ammonia control doesn’t vary in reefing tank to tank our best testers have revealed.

 

[brandon429]

Look how shocking your results are above: if you meet me online using the api then what I type is lunacy

salifert= not crazy can befriend.

titration testing affects how humans make friends or not lol is that both telling and funny


even with salifert, those have stuck cycle threads and have been wrong on hovering ammonia in the tenths, but not to the degree api does


at no time in display tank reefing is free ammonia sustained in the tenths or hundredths ppm

even if four dead large tangs are wedged in rocks rotting, on seneye that will show motion leading to a peak, a trough back down, and never any stall. ammonia is completely totally active and in motion at all times either to safe zone or total doom and a crashed tank. Ammonia doesn’t reach zero in a reef with respiring organisms, so those testers above should not be expected to report zero that would be a misread.

 

[TEX]

Look how shocking your results are above: if you meet me online using the api then what I type is lunacy

salifert= not crazy can befriend.

titration testing affects how humans make friends or not lol is that both telling and funny


even with salifert, those have stuck cycle threads and have been wrong on hovering ammonia in the tenths, but not to the degree api does


at no time in display tank reefing is free ammonia sustained in the tenths or hundredths ppm

even if four dead large tangs are wedged in rocks rotting, on seneye that will show motion leading to a peak, a trough back down, and never any stall. ammonia is completely totally active and in motion at all times either to safe zone or total doom and a crashed tank. Ammonia doesn’t reach zero in a reef with respiring organisms, so those testers above should not be expected to report zero that would be a misread.

I’m so glad you came into this thread, because this has all been super eye opening for me, even beyond ammonia testing/cycling. You bring up such a good point, and one that I can recognize even with minimal time in the hobby: that there’s this balancing act of fact and opinion, and that there’s constant living motion in an aquarium.

And I love the point you make about ammonia never being absolutely zero. I never thought of it that way, and yet it’s such a “duh” thing. I think of it now almost like measuring CO2 in a bedroom and freaking out because breathing just CO2, and then trying everything to eliminate every ounce of it, when in reality it’s fine because it’s a part of the balance (I know that’s not a perfect example).

I really appreciate all of your help and insight, and I think you’ve elevated my thinking from a very early stage in the hobby, and I’m grateful for that.

Doing a big water change today and adding my first fish tomorrow. Will report back then

 

[brandon429]

I appreciate your dialog and quick relating to that recent test compare that was really helpful timing to link back for us. It helps to open up care options for other systems, really challenged ones, to know these test kits dont rule with an iron fist

 

[TEX]

Added this little guy last night. He’s been out and about ever since, and likes to hang out on the side of the tank I sit next to on my desk—no complaints there! He seems just slightly skittish still, but he definitely doesn’t hide or show any negative signs that I can tell

 

[brandon429]

he will be very happy in there, plenty of room for sure