Cycling help!

britnicole1724

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So Monday 10/4 I got my tank up and running and added Dr Tims One and Only
10/4 8:00 Pm Dr Tims One and Only added with Ammonia chloride
10/5 6:45 am nitrites .4ppm Ammonia 1.2 ppm nitrates 0
10/5 6:45 pm nitrites 0 ppm ammonia .3 ppm nitrates 3 ppm
10/6 12:15 pm Nitrites 0 ppm ammonia 2 ppm (did NOT dose ammonia) Nitrates 3 ppm

180.5 Reef Waterbox
Sand is CaribSea pink
Arag Alive Sand
Reef Saver rock
Marine Pure Biofilter ball (one whole box in sump)

why is our ammonia high again??? We didn’t dose any more than what we put in Monday?? ZERO livestock. No corals fish or anything.
 
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britnicole1724

britnicole1724

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My guess would be that ammonia might have been trapped in the sand and then entered the water column over time?
Didn’t realize that was possible. We added the sand before ammonia so I figured it would cycle with the power head and pump
 

brandon429

why did you put a reef in that
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If you just wait two weeks as is, change the water for new your cycle will be done and adhered to rocks. That’s a cycling trick that will help you, no need for action now, wait two weeks.
 
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britnicole1724

britnicole1724

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If you just wait two weeks as is, change the water for new your cycle will be done and adhered to rocks. That’s a cycling trick that will help you, no need for action now, wait two weeks.
Dr Tims is supposed to cycle in 9 days. Don’t wanna wait 2 weeks if I don’t have to especially being I spent money on it lol
 

brandon429

why did you put a reef in that
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the reason your ammonia looks bad is the test kit, not really the ammonia

Study this same example


9 days is ok. I add the extra time just as a padding, agreed nine is ok. Do the change on day nine


dont add unprepared fish theyll die of disease not long after, use fallow and quarantine
 
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britnicole1724

britnicole1724

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the reason your ammonia looks bad is the test kit, not really the ammonia

Study this same example


9 days is ok. I add the extra time just as a padding, agreed nine is ok. Do the change on day nine


dont add unprepared fish theyll die of disease not long after, use fallow and quarantine
I mean I used the Red Sea test kit. I don’t see how it could be bad??
 

attiland

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So Monday 10/4 I got my tank up and running and added Dr Tims One and Only
10/4 8:00 Pm Dr Tims One and Only added with Ammonia chloride
10/5 6:45 am nitrites .4ppm Ammonia 1.2 ppm nitrates 0
10/5 6:45 pm nitrites 0 ppm ammonia .3 ppm nitrates 3 ppm
10/6 12:15 pm Nitrites 0 ppm ammonia 2 ppm (did NOT dose ammonia) Nitrates 3 ppm

180.5 Reef Waterbox
Sand is CaribSea pink
Arag Alive Sand
Reef Saver rock
Marine Pure Biofilter ball (one whole box in sump)

why is our ammonia high again??? We didn’t dose any more than what we put in Monday?? ZERO livestock. No corals fish or anything.
Stuff on your rocks / sand may decay. I wouldn’t worry. Also wouldn’t dose an more ammonia. Since nitrate shows up you know you have nitrifying bacteria in work. Wait couple of days. Do a water change and you are good to go.
not sure what test kit you are using but if it is API I wouldn’t trust it
 

brandon429

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The plan is set, Red Sea performed poorly here for pages as well, you’re missing tan conversion above we need only nh3 reported

you aren’t on digital is why you can’t measure ammonia clearly but after the water change it won’t matter


the real levels are ten times less than stated when tan converted per directions
 
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britnicole1724

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Stuff on your rocks / sand may decay. I wouldn’t worry. Also wouldn’t dose an more ammonia. Since nitrate shows up you know you have nitrifying bacteria in work. Wait couple of days. Do a water change and you are good to go.
not sure what test kit you are using but if it is API I wouldn’t trust it
Not API. Using Red Sea.
Wait 2-3 days do a water change and all should be fine? Ideally didn’t want to wait months before we can put our clowns into the big tank but I know I’ve gotta be patient haha
 
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britnicole1724

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The plan is set, Red Sea performed poorly here for pages as well, you’re missing tan conversion above we need only nh3 reported

you aren’t on digital is why you can’t measure ammonia clearly but after the water change it won’t matter


the real levels are ten times less than stated when tan converted per directions
I don’t think having a digital test kit makes that much of a difference. You are the first person I’ve seen suggest digital. I have Hanna instruments but not the ammonia.
 

brandon429

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I’m showing you examples where non digital kits caused false alarm

and where nh4 was reported vs 10x lower nh3. Non digital test kits have a long lag time to report clearance we can see from the examples compared to digital

your real ammonia level is about .04-.004 nh3, that’s common for Dr Tims after a few days and is safe zone, not danger zone.

agreed you don’t need digital we can sub in number of days underwater instead.

revert to the known timeframe agreed to nine days



I’ve tracked lots of Dr Tims cycles on seneye you’ll be fine after the big change. I have a twenty page thread on ten day starts, yours will pass if you are using rocks and sand in the setup for the bacteria to adhere to.

nobody’s fish were burned in our ten day starts, we measured digitally


The reason new cycling rules exist is to make up for the problems that non digital kits are causing. And to revert focus onto disease preps, that’s where the real losses occur, never during a cycle.
 
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britnicole1724

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I’m showing you examples where non digital kits caused false alarm

and where nh4 was reported vs 10x lower nh3. Non digital test kits have a long lag time to report clearance we can see from the examples compared to digital


agreed you don’t need digital we can sub in number of days underwater instead.

revert to the known timeframe agreed to nine days



I’ve tracked lots of Dr Tims cycles on seneye you’ll be fine after the big change. I have a twenty page thread on ten day starts, yours will pass if you are using rocks and sand in the setup for the bacteria to adhere to.
Yeah we are using sand rock and bio filter in the sump as well.
Is Seneye accurate? I’ve been eyeballing them but I’ve seen loads of bad reviews so that’s the only reason I haven’t pulled the trigger. The PAR meter sounds so nice
 

brandon429

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Folks say the par and the ph isn’t accurate sorry it’s only the nh3 that shines but you don’t need it for that either, at day nine or ten we already know how nh3 will trend among the rocks after the big water change


seneye isn’t required it’s just a handy verification step used in other tanks but still applies to your setup, we all share the same timing. It’s why the ammonia line drop on a cycling chart says day ten even across different sites. the only times people doubt that date is when they’re using non digital kits, they mislead.
 

attiland

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Not API. Using Red Sea.
Wait 2-3 days do a water change and all should be fine? Ideally didn’t want to wait months before we can put our clowns into the big tank but I know I’ve gotta be patient haha
I think you are fine for a pair of clowns than every 2 weeks you can add more up till you tank capacity.
have fun.
 
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britnicole1724

britnicole1724

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Folks say the par and the ph isn’t accurate sorry it’s only the nh3 that shines but you don’t need it for that either, at day nine or ten we already know how nh3 will trend among the rocks after the big water change


seneye isn’t required it’s just a handy verification step used in other tanks but still applies to your setup, we all share the same timing. It’s why the ammonia line drop on a cycling chart says day ten even across different sites. the only times people doubt that date is when they’re using non digital kits, they mislead.
I’m not sure if I should dose more ammonia or not if it’s not accurate. I don’t want beneficial bacteria to die .-. Suppose I test again when I get home.
 
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britnicole1724

britnicole1724

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I think you are fine for a pair of clowns than every 2 weeks you can add more up till you tank capacity.
have fun.
Yeah we plan on quarantining everything so ideally we get the clowns in ASAP that way we can start quarantine on our next fish/corals
 

brandon429

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no they wont die, :) its ok to customize as you see fit, most will. have fun w those tests they'll keep you guessing a while. When ready to reef the plan will work, these bacteria carry fish on day one, no wait. Without burning, they carry fish immediately


you added more ammonia than the system would see from eight fish is why tests can’t handle, certainly don’t add more

-cycling bac cannot be starved once fed and set in among the rocks is the reason. We’ve tested three year no feed systems to arrive at that…people do extreme starvation testing on cycles, they can’t starve in a home in an open topped reef.
 
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