Congused with Tank Cycling

[Ryderrr]

Hi All,

Bought my tank set up on Tuesday (2nd of January) and scaped, placed sand and filled with saltwater from my LFS, one thing I didn't buy at the time was a test kit and bacteria.

Following day I bought some bacteria (Fritz 9) and added it to the tank without any Ammonia source (stupidly)

The following day I added a couple pinches of fish food (was this too late for the bacteria?)

Regrettably I didn't take any readings for parameters before adding any of this as I didn't have a test kit at the time (bought the wrong kit so had to return)

Friday (5th January) I finally got round to testing and Ammonia is reading as 4ppm, nitrites 0, and nitrates 0. Is this normal and am I just getting ahead of myself or am I missing something?

For reference I have a 63L tank, filled with dry rock and dry sand.

Thanks for any help provided

 

[TX_REEF]

You have nothing to worry about, just keep testing. Cycle takes at least a couple weeks generally, you should see nitrites and nitrates rising soon as ammonia falls. Welcome!

 

[Lavey29]

I agree with above. You can add some more nitrifying bacteria to help the process along. Basically you want to dose some ammonia and 24 hours later it should read 0 and you should see measurable nitrates. Do not worry about testing nitrites. They are irrelevant in salt tanks.

 

[Ryderrr]

Thanks guys,

I had meant to add that I have been testing with the api kit which I've read can be misleading. I also have an ammonia alert in the tank which isn't corresponding with the test kit? Is this normal?

 

[Lavey29]

Thanks guys,

I had meant to add that I have been testing with the api kit which I've read can be misleading. I also have an ammonia alert in the tank which isn't corresponding with the test kit? Is this normal?

I don't think the ammonia alert or API are very accurate just ball park estimate. Do you have nitrate production?

 

[Ryderrr]

I don't think the ammonia alert or API are very accurate just ball park estimate. Do you have nitrate production?

It's so hard to tell with these kits, maybe you can give a second opinion? I know it's hard in photos but these were the results this evening

I have just noticed my pH isn't matching up from the kit or the seachem tablet either?

 

[TX_REEF]

Nitrate and nitrite look fine. Ammonia is elevated. The seachem badge you have for ph is for freshwater so is not accurate. Oh accordingly to the API test looks fine around 8.

 

[Ryderrr]

Nitrate and nitrite look fine. Ammonia is elevated. The seachem badge you have for ph is for freshwater so is not accurate. Oh accordingly to the API test looks fine around 8.

Do you think bacteria is working then? Leave it a week and test again to check levels or stick to daily?

 

[Lavey29]

Do you think bacteria is working then? Leave it a week and test again to check levels or stick to daily?

Add some more nitrifying bacteria so you get ammonia down to 0. Then dose ammonia again and see if 24 hours later you get 0 again. Then you know the tank is cycling fine and ready for first fish. You have nitrates production now but not enough bacteria yet to zero out the ammonia. You will be fine in a few more days.

 

[Uncle99]

Fritz 9 is bacteria but also ammonia source.
API is next to useless for ammonia.
Sand rock water salt flow heat and bacteria 2-3 days and add first fish.
You were cycled on the 6th ish.

 

[Ryderrr]

Add some more nitrifying bacteria so you get ammonia down to 0. Then dose ammonia again and see if 24 hours later you get 0 again. Then you know the tank is cycling fine and ready for first fish. You have nitrates production now but not enough bacteria yet to zero out the ammonia. You will be fine in a few more days.

Thanks I'll try this today

 

[Ryderrr]

Fritz 9 is bacteria but also ammonia source.
API is next to useless for ammonia.
Sand rock water salt flow heat and bacteria 2-3 days and add first fish.
You were cycled on the 6th ish.

Sorry for not understanding but how am I already cycled?

 

[Lavey29]

Sorry for not understanding but how am I already cycled?

Because your tests show nitrate production which is the end product of cycling, however I think you should add bacteria as quoted above then dose some ammonia to reinforce the cycling process.

 

[PotatoPig]

Fritz 9 is bacteria but also ammonia source.

I was wondering how on earth they managed to get that much ammonia from a few fish flakes!

 

[PotatoPig]

Sorry for not understanding but how am I already cycled?

The only way you’re able to have nitrates in there is if the bacteria is converting ammonia into nitrites and then nitrates. The existence of nitrates shows the two main parts of your cycle are working. The final stage - nitrates into nitrogen gas, is very slow and doesn’t happen to any meaningful extent in most aquariums.

Note that this isn’t a mature tank, just that the biological filtration is in pace to stop your fish from poisoning themselves. You’ll also want to either water change or wait a few days for the ammonia to come down before you add fish.

In terms of wider microbiome- pretty much all fish, inverts and corals you add will bring in different strains of cycling bacteria and biodiversity - you don’t need to go adding another bottle of different bacteria to build out biodiversity.

 

[brandon429]

how is something that rapidly eliminates ammonia going to be a source of ammonia

 

[brandon429]

this thread is the same thing as the searchable "I have 8 ppm ammonia" threads

everyone tried to find the source of the ammonia blast, meaning they accept the test kit unchallenged.

whatever api wants to read ranges day to day. simply moving about rocks in a tank can cause that green reading above, even though moving rocks doesn't release ammonia (any seneye owner knows)

nobody is sure why api does what it does. chemists in the chem forum have no trouble wielding it, but the masses can't get consistent results across posts and nobody knows why

the baseline is any seneye owner's digital logs for nh3

look how stable they remain, how tightly controlled, in all reef tanks after day ten.

now try and find api ammonia threads to read, most are way beyond day ten still reporting that high range

but it never occurs on seneye, see the difference in truth per meter>

this is a simple misread thread like all the rest. on day ten, do a large water change and add back one capful of fritz 9 then it's ready. cycling isn't your issue, about to skip all disease preps is the real hidden risk that can still be corrected

on day ten of stewing here, if you do a large water change and add back one capful of fritz nine, and cease testing for those three params above / don't report any more testing/ your tank will carry whatever fish you want to add if they're acclimated correctly vs incorrectly acclimated.

if you continue to test past day ten's water change + one capful then expect total doubt which takes you away from disease study and into hypervigilant cycling, which was already concluded by day ten and needed no more planning.

read the disease forum for acclimation ways + disease control ways so that your very first fish added don't infect your whole tank. that's what the commoners do.


by converting your tank into a testless cycle, you instantly fix the cycle.


I was about to write up a post on testless cycling...want to be the first work example here>

we could fix your cycle by doing it testless and time-based instead, live time, then use it as the first work example in the writeup.

 

[brandon429]

also take both badges out of the tank, you will never need them

those params are fine without measure: we're controlling other parameters so that those remain self controlled by rule.
those badges serve as doubt causers. those params don't need to be measured, eliminate them from the doubt chain.

aim all chain work at reading the disease forum on how to acclimate fish, plus fallow and quarantine preps

if they're skipped in 8 mos you'll be posting in that forum for retro assist

by day ten, you have enough bacteria on all surfaces to handle a basic cycle

you're changing water to eliminate cycling algae water, it's not due to elevated ammonia concerns. it's for a clean start, you're about to shine bright lighting over white rocks/reflective/you want the algae loading as low as possible so you're not fighting algae all the time.

the water change is for a clean start, and the capful is mere insurance / your cycle will be complete with no testing needed or helpful. > this is new cycling science, which is time-based and seneye-referenced. The direct fix for a confusing cycle is to convert it into a testless, time-based cycle.

any reader can audit the claim: search out seneye posts about ammonia behavior in reefing

how many of those seneye posts show ammonia not ready by day ten


none of them = this is where the ten day timing rule comes from. we don't have to test something that's already charted on a common cycling chart + reinforced by every seneye measure taken in reefing. you just do a large water change to export all possible variables, and every tank's surface area retains it's original cycling bac and we're putting clean water over cycled surfaces. it's easy to testless cycle, for anyone.

 

[Uncle99]

how is something that rapidly eliminates ammonia going to be a source of ammonia

My understanding was that some of the bottled bacteria dies (or is dead) but is organic, and will breakdown like everything into ammonia, a source of food for the same (or other) bacteria’s.

So adding other organic is fine, but not absolutely required to get a cycle started.

Is that not correct?

 

[Uncle99]

Sorry for not understanding but how am I already cycled?

Sand , saltwater, a bottle of bacteria, and 2-3 days.
You’ve done that. Your cycled. No need to test further.

No sorry, gone are the days of long cycling.