Will this be fine?

[TrevorL]

So I’ve been cycling my tank for 2 weeks now. There’s bacteria growing on the dry rock and everything looks good. I tested my water today and here are the results.
ph-8.0
Ammonia-.25ppm
Nitrite-0ppm
Nitrate-40ppm
Now I know that the nitrite level is good and the ammonia is almost good but what’s up with my nitrate? Is this normal?

 

[Spare time]

Yes the nitrate is high because the ammmonia was converted to nitrite and then nitrate. A big water change before fish will fix this. What test kit are you using and how long has the ammonia been 0.25?

 

[TrevorL]

Yes the nitrate is high because the ammmonia was converted to nitrite and then nitrate. A big water change before fish will fix this. What test kit are you using and how long has the ammonia been 0.25?

I’m using the api test kit for right now but I will be getting a better one soon. How big of a water change would you say to do for this?

 

[Crashnt24]

Well it depends on what's feasible for you to do... I would shoot for a 50% change. That way you can get those nitrates down to 20ppm, which is still high but acceptable for starting out with a few fish. I would then plan on weekly 15-20% changes until you can get those nitrates down to the 5-10ppm range.

 

[Spare time]

I’m using the api test kit for right now but I will be getting a better one soon. How big of a water change would you say to do for this?

Just get nitrates between 5 and 15 so it's not 0 but not super high that its hard to get back down. Don't worry about getting another ammonia test. If it stalls at 0.25 then its probably 0