Is my cycle borked?

[cba191]

I just started my cycle on wednesday and i have weird numbers today.

Ammonia 1.5
Nitrite 5.0
Nitrate 20.2

Am i doing something wrong?

 

[exnisstech]

I do not test ammonia or nitrite when I cycle a tank. When I see nitrates I assume ammonia is being processed and slowly move forward. Many will disagree but I've never had a problem doing it that way. And I've never scratched my head wondering why my cycle is stalled, which doesn't really happen. JMO

 

[Fish Fan]

Your numbers seem perfectly reasonable to me, what about them is concerning you?

 

[cba191]

Its just that 3 days and that much nitrate?

 

[cba191]

I was just looking at this from fishlab.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

The nitrate is almost certainly a false reading with nitrite present. A little nitrite reads falsely as a lot of nitrate with many kits.

 

[cba191]

The nitrate is almost certainly a false reading with nitrite present. A little nitrite reads falsely as a lot of nitrate with many kits.

The nitrate is the only one i used a hanna for. Ammonia is salifert and nitrite is api

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

The nitrate is the only one i used a hanna for. Ammonia is salifert and nitrite is api

Assume the nitrate is inaccurate when there is substantial nitrite.

 

[cba191]

Just ran nitrate again and got 19.9. Re doing nitrite again

 

[cba191]

Nitrite tests are dumb. But i think it was closer to 2.

I mean, really?

 

[cba191]

1. 2. And 5. Are basically the same thing

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

No point in testing and retesting when nitrite is present. By the design of the kit, nitrite interferes by a fixed amount.

Only think to test, IMO, is the ammonia decline.

 

[cba191]

If my ammonia is down to .5, do i add more ammonia stuff?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

If my ammonia is down to .5, do i add more ammonia stuff?

No. It is done or close to it. If it went from 1.5 to 0.5 ppm in a day, then I’d wait another day or two and then slowly begin to add fish.

 

[cba191]

Its only been 4 days

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Its only been 4 days

If ammonia declines from the initial dose to 0.5 ppm or less, it is cycled.

It’s fine to add another dose up to 2 ppm total to confirm it, but that is just insurance against a kit problem.

But always start slow.

 

[cba191]

I don't know what is going on. I started cycling last Wednesday. Yesterday, I added ammonium chloride to get it back up to 1.5 because it had fallen to .25. Today i tested it and it's back down to .25. But it's only been 6 days. And my nitrates maxed out my hanna at a blinking 75

That probably made no sense.

 

[56longroof]

I don't even test until the uglies have subsided. But that's using real live rock and sand.

 

[Fish Fan]

I don't know what is going on. I started cycling last Wednesday. Yesterday, I added ammonium chloride to get it back up to 1.5 because it had fallen to .25. Today i tested it and it's back down to .25. But it's only been 6 days. And my nitrates maxed out my hanna at a blinking 75

That probably made no sense.

A cycle as fast as a week isn't unheard of. How did you start this tank, did you use any real, wet live rock or a bottle of bacteria?

 

[cba191]

A cycle as fast as a week isn't unheard of. How did you start this tank, did you use any real, wet live rock or a bottle of bacteria?

I used caribsea live sand, caribsea live rock, and dr. tims

I haven't turned on the lights to avoid the uglies.