New here sorta...need advice

[SaulCHS]

So i'm a loooonnngggtime lurker and have been trying to put together a tank for around 12 years but life just kept getting in the way. However, in all those years of not reefing i was reading and taking notes. We'll the time has finally come and the wheels are actually in motion now.

So I initially planned to drill a 40g breeder with 20g long sump but scrapped that idea for a simpler setup. The possibility of an overflow when not home crept into my head as well. So I went with a drop in Fiji aio kit in the 40g breeder. I ordered about 40 pounds of pukani back in day as well. I also have 12 pounds of premium nano (treasure chest) coming from TBS in early April.

So i've been soaking that pukani in a brute for the last 2 months in rodi saltwater with a couple of old Koralia 3s and a heater. Trying to rid the pukani of some of the phosphate i've read about and its currently testing low. I've done a couple 100% water changes in that timeframe.

I started cycling it in the brute last week with Fritz TS 900 and Fritz Fishless fuel. Ammonia reading 24hrs after adding bac and dosing fuel was 1.0ppm. I'm assuming i hit 2.0ppm initially (followed directions on the bottle) and ammonia was already being consumed by bac in those initial 24 hrs. After 48hrs, ammonia was reading 0 but nitrites have been around 3.0ppm since the initial dosing and are still at that level today...5 days after initial dosing.

Now I'm not in any rush with this bc this tank won't be setup for another few weeks but do I just wait out the nitrites until they hit zero and dose fishless fuel again? How long does it take for nitrite consuming bac to appear and catch up? Or do I need to do a partial water change?

Thank you all for the forthcoming answers and happy to be finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel!

 

[tbrown]

@Reefer Matt just did a great write-up on fishless cycling and how he's currently handling it in his recently setup 20 gallon.

Quick question: did you only dose Ammonia one time or do you add it a little bit daily?

 

[tbrown]

Here's his thread:

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/how-i-cycle-a-new-tank-with-dry-rock-the-easy-way.1152027/

 

[SaulCHS]

@Reefer Matt just did a great write-up on fishless cycling and how he's currently handling it in his recently setup 20 gallon.

Quick question: did you only dose Ammonia one time or do you add it a little bit daily?

Just dosed that 1 time when Bottled bac was added. I've read a couple of articles stating you need to wait until both ammonia and nitrite are 0 before dosing ammonia again.

I'll check out that thread.

 

[SaulCHS]

Ammonia has been holding steady at 0 and nitrites dropped to .5 to 1.0ppm as of Saturday night so I dosed another 2.0ppm of fishless fuel.
Sunday afternoon Ammonia was 1.0ppm and nitrites were back up to 5.0ppm.
As of this morning ammonia is back to 0ppm and nitrites dropped to 2.0ppm.

I measured nitrates previously and it was very high at160ppm but i've also read these API kits can show nitrates super high if you have nitrites.

I believe my rock to be cycled, what say ye?

 

[tbrown]

I'd say you're definitely getting close if you're not there. Ammonia and nitrites are dropping off which means you're nitrifying!

 

[SaulCHS]

Alright I believe I'm cycled. 0ppm ammonia, 0ppm Nitrites and 40ppm nitrates.

This rock won't go into a tank until next weekend. Should I feed it with some more ammonia? I won't be using the fishless fuel again anytime soon...hate to waste it.

 

[PharmrJohn]

Alright I believe I'm cycled. 0ppm ammonia, 0ppm Nitrites and 40ppm nitrates.

This rock won't go into a tank until next weekend. Should I feed it with some more ammonia? I won't be using the fishless fuel again anytime soon...hate to waste it.

Is this your first day of 2ppm to zero over 24 hours with ammonia? If so, go a few more days to make sure. I would want to see the ammonia cycle to zero for 4 days straight before considering the ecosystem cycled.

 

[SaulCHS]

Is this your first day of 2ppm to zero over 24 hours with ammonia? If so, go a few more days to make sure. I would want to see the ammonia cycle to zero for 4 days straight before considering the ecosystem cycled.

No this is week 2.5. This is my 2nd time hitting 0 ammonia and i've already dosed ammonia twice. However, this is my 1st time hitting absolute 0 nitrites. The 2nd ammonia dosing came after I hit 1.0ppm nitrites.

 

[PharmrJohn]

No this is week 2.5. This is my 2nd time hitting 0 ammonia and i've already dosed ammonia twice. However, this is my 1st time hitting absolute 0 nitrites. The 2nd ammonia dosing came after I hit 1.0ppm nitrites.

Gotcha. But don't worry about nitrites. All ya really need to do is measure ammonia and nitrates. In a freshwater system, nitrites are important. But not so much in saltwater.

 

[Ryanliyikun]

You’re on the right track—this is totally normal. Ammonia processing first and nitrites lagging behind is expected. Just let it ride; nitrite-oxidizing bacteria take a bit longer to establish. No need for a water change—once nitrites drop to zero, dose ammonia again and make sure it can clear both ammonia and nitrite within 24 hrs.