Help me with my ammonia levels

[Tofu Brady]

I put in dr tims one and only and fed it a shrimp and did as it said on their web site and my ammonia levels arnt droping my salitnity and alk and ph are good but my amonia is around 0.2 ppm and it isnt really droping is there a possibility that the bacteria died? Ive cycled it for around 2 weeks now help plz my local shops says its probably going to be cycled soon and i can add fish but i was thinking to let the amonia drop more but isn't really should i just wait and see

 

[Spare time]

Did you remove the shrimp? Shrimp method produces a lot of ammonia and can make the cycle take awhile. Do you know how high the ammonia got? Any clue what nitrite is at?

 

[brandon429]

Link broken, post tank pic pls we need to see the tank not just the kit readings. We can’t just have the description we need to see the pics you are using

 

[iMi]

I suspect the shrimp is decaying and producing exponentially more ammonia. It takes time for the bacteria population to expand. Remove the shrimp or wait longer. That's what I would do.

 

[Crashjack]

Definitely remove the shrimp if it is still there. Also if you can get Biospira, you can add that. I've heard mixed results with Dr. Tim's. I've started several quarantine tanks with Biospira with good results (repeatedly achieving 6 day cycles adding drops of ammonia).

 

[Jekyl]

Agree with removing the shrimp. What test kit are you using? Have your lfs test for ammonia too? Lot of bad reviews about *some* test kit brands

 

[brandon429]

Can you use a smartphone to take a pic of your reading and the tank, that link is broken above, so far we have nothing to work with

 

[Tofu Brady]

Link broken, post tank pic pls we need to see the tank not just the kit readings. We can’t just have the description we need to see the pics you are using

Sorry didnt know

 

[brandon429]

How to unstick any seemingly stuck cycle

non digital ammonia test kit readings (api, Red Sea, nyos, seachem badges) make you think you aren’t cycled when indeed you are if you owned a $200 expensive seneye meter, you’d never be doubting your cycle status. since .01% of the reefing population owns these, we need a way to help the...

www.reef2reef.com

you are done due to timing met, days underwater met. Do a large water change and can begin. Check that thread out above takes only ten mins to read through and it covers what’s happening. Your bac are ready, not dead yay

as mentioned above remove shrimp, do large water change, ready and twenty other reefs above did the same thing and are reefing now.

 

[Tofu Brady]

Ok i already removed the shrimp i removed the big chunks like 4 days ago and i just removed the small chunks

 

[brandon429]

Finish the rest up and it'll work really well

Don't forget: 80- 90% of any fish added without quarantine and fallow to a new dry rock setup are dead to disease within 5-8 mos, source, current fish disease forum any post. A better start: corals and clean up crew to enjoy during fallow


Fish disease forum has fallow description as link at top. 30 mins read self directed in fish disease forum, any post, will show you how fish disease works when preps are skipped. Ammonia cycling is not the fish killer, the hobby has mis- aimed the cannon and the real culprit is getting away.

Fish Disease Treatment and Diagnosis

A forum for discussing treatment and diagnosing saltwater reef fish.

www.reef2reef.com

Feed lightly as you slowly add animals, if you see uneaten food or waste be vacuuming it up quickly, nothing stays in tank to rot is first gardening habit.

 

[Crashjack]

How long has the Ammonia Alert Badge been in the water? That color does not show the "all clear" (<.02).

 

[Garf]

How long has the Ammonia Alert Badge been in the water? That color does not show the "all clear" (<.02).

These badges are odd. If you shine a light through it (from the back) it may look yellowish.

 

[Crashjack]

Also, is there a sump? I ask because I think you should have more rock to handle filtration (JMO). Though that rock looks fairly porous (good for growing bacteria), there isn't much of it. Rock isn't as efficient at growing bacteria as other medias due to the lack of surface area. Also, the bacteria you are trying to grow needs oxygen, and I don't see much flow in the video, and it all appears to be at the surface. The rock needs some flow for oxygen. I ask about a sump because that would give you a spot to put more rock or some other filter media.

 

[Screwgunner]

+ 1 biospira

 

[Crashjack]

These badges are odd. If you shine a light through it (from the back) it may look yellowish.

Yea, I've used them for a few years, mainly with QTs. They should definitely have a yellow tint (might not exactly match the color on the badge), and this one looks gray. It might take several hours to get a proper reading, which is why I asked how long it has been in there. I'm also assuming it is a fairly new badge. They are only reliable for 6 months or so.

 

[Screwgunner]

I put both in my tank but I cured my live rock for 30 days.

 

[Tofu Brady]

How long has the Ammonia Alert Badge been in the water? That color does not show the "all clear" (<.02).

A bit under 2 weeks

 

[Tofu Brady]

Yea, I've used them for a few years, mainly with QTs. They should definitely have a yellow tint (might not exactly match the color on the badge), and this one looks gray. It might take several hours to get a proper reading, which is why I asked how long it has been in there. I'm also assuming it is a fairly new badge. They are only reliable for 6 months or so.

Another question what types of inverts are good for a tank my size and how often do i do water changes keep in mind im like 14 and i have school and the hobbie is expensive so what is the maximum amount of time i can wait to do a water change

 

[Tofu Brady]

Also, is there a sump? I ask because I think you should have more rock to handle filtration (JMO). Though that rock looks fairly porous (good for growing bacteria), there isn't much of it. Rock isn't as efficient at growing bacteria as other medias due to the lack of surface area. Also, the bacteria you are trying to grow needs oxygen, and I don't see much flow in the video, and it all appears to be at the surface. The rock needs some flow for oxygen. I ask about a sump because that would give you a spot to put more rock or some other filter media.

There is large island rock on the other side around the size of that part of the hardscape its very porous