Cycling tank 4 1/2 weeks in

[Rodan]

Hi I'm wondering if everything looks ok with my cycle. Ammonia is .5,nitrite .25, nitrate between 5-10. My ammonia never spiked but I'm seeing nitrites and nitrates is this a normal process?

 

[KrisReef]

API test kits (?) often don't read zero in a cycled tank. Did you add bottle bac? IF yes then it should be/is cycled after 4 weeks.

Yes, normal process. :)

 

[Rodan]

API test kits (?) often don't read zero in a cycled tank. Did you add bottle bac? IF yes then it should be/is cycled after 4 weeks.

Yes, normal process. :)

Hi thanks for the response so you think its cycled? Its just I never ammonia or nitrite do a real spike so im super confused maybe u could shed some light.

 

[KrisReef]

The colonization of bacteria that eat ammonia takes time. The addition of bottle bac gives the colonization effort a huge boost with numbers of bacteria to develop the slime coat on the rock surfaces that eats the ammonia. There's a guy on here @brandon429 who has written a lot about this topic, bacteria + time = cycled tank, without fail. If you start with live rock time to add fish is reduced, perhaps to zero if you have enough live rock. Dry rock requires time to grow but it's fairly quick.

The API is the other part of equation. Those Ammonia tests are nortorious for false high readings in tanks with zero ammonia and cycled. 4 weeks is plenty of time, at 4.5 you are ready to add fish, slowly is best.

 

[Rodan]

The colonization of bacteria that eat ammonia takes time. The addition of bottle bac gives the colonization effort a huge boost with numbers of bacteria to develop the slime coat on the rock surfaces that eats the ammonia. There's a guy on here @brandon429 who has written a lot about this topic, bacteria + time = cycled tank, without fail. If you start with live rock time to add fish is reduced, perhaps to zero if you have enough live rock. Dry rock requires time to grow but it's fairly quick.

The API is the other part of equation. Those Ammonia tests are nortorious for false high readings in tanks with zero ammonia and cycled. 4 weeks is plenty of time, at 4.5 you are ready to add fish, slowly is best.

The fish I'm adding is a frogfish and they are pretty weak to that stuff. So I just dont want him to die when I put him in. But yes I have tons of life rock and I added bacteria. So you are probably right about it being cycled I see a lot about the tests being inaccurate.

 

[KrisReef]

cool! Just don't go crazy feeding the frog 3 damsels a day, but maybe one a week and give the tank some time to handle a huge bioload before you add more hungry livestock that you have to feed.

 

[brandon429]

You had a very very clear answer set here


https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/ammonia-not-spiking-during-cycle.952817/

 

[brandon429]

Your issue is that you're about to skip all disease preps

 

[nereefpat]

Are the damsels still in the tank?