Slow Cycling 120 Gallon with Raw Shrimp and MB7

[JordanM]

I know cycling is nothing you can rush but it seems that my cycle is going really slow. Mainly with producing ammonia.

I am adding 25mL MB7 daily.

Day 1 added shrimp Ammonia: 0.003mg/L ph:8.0
Day 2 Ammonia:0.005 ph:7.95
Day 3 Ammonia:0.007 ph:7.79
Day 4 Ammonia:0.012 ph:7.84

I know the ammonia is slowly rising but from what ive been reading people are usually around the 3-4ppm range in a few days. Maybe the MB7 is combating some of this and the ammonia is being turned directly into Nitrite and trate? Ph was dropping for awhile and now seems to be going back up as well.

I am monitoring these levels with the seneye.

I am away from home this weekend so maybe the levels will rise a little more since im not able to add the MB7. Im contemplating buying ammonia from the store and spiking it to get the levels up and see how it reacts or should i just let the shrimp go and see how it does?

 

[mfinn]

Not sure what MB7 is.
Last time I cycled some rock I used Dr. Tims One and Only and Ammonium Chloride solution
The 180 lbs of dry rock was cycled in about a week and a half.

 

[JordanM]

Its Microbacter 7 bacteria in a bottle pretty much:
https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/micr...XybRFSB0M8BsPT4D-Izap5CWoI1zm4qhoCKLAQAvD_BwE

Also looks like the levels have been climbing today as it is now at 0.016mg/L, but im really wondering if this is because i am not home to dose the MB7 this weekend and if i had would the ammonia been converted into nitrite immediately.

 

[JordanM]

After getting back home yesterday I dosed the MB7 and noticed a drop in the ammonia from .022 to .020 for a couple hours before it rose back up to .022. I also noticed a ph drop again. From this observation, I am guessing the bacteria in MB7 are doing a pretty good job converting the ammonia directly into nitrite and nitrate and this is why i am not seeing a spike in my ammonia. The shrimp is now going on 7 days in the tank and is covered in white hair. What should my plan of action be now? Measure nitrite and nitrate and see if these levels are high to determine if the ammonia is being directly converted into these forms? Should i also buy some pure ammonia and spike my levels up to 4ppm or just let the shrimp do its work? At this rate it does not look like im ever going to get even to 0.5ppm.

 

[Lasse]

Take out the shrimp - directly. Otherwise you will have problems for a month or two.

Do not do anything more - just wait. No light.

Sincerely Lasse

 

[JordanM]

Take out the shrimp - directly. Otherwise you will have problems for a month or two.

Do not do anything more - just wait. No light.

Sincerely Lasse

Thanks. So how do I keep the cycle going without the shrimp? Just ghost feeding? Ill measure my nitrite and trates tonight and see how they are. I have some hermits and a pajama cardinal I could put in the tank if everything seems normal. I find it hard to believe that the MB7 is working so well that the ammonia is being consumed as fast as it is being produced from the shrimp. Its been exactly 7 days since i added the shrimp and started cycling the tank. Ammonia is at 0.024 today. Still not increasing hardly at all.

 

[Susan Edwards]

My first tank, I used a shrimp but only for 2-3 days--when it turned nasty I removed it. Second tank, the 125, I used the bottled ammonia--dr tims I think. It was specifically for aquariums, not the stuff at the hardware stores. I also used biospira and used the entire bottle as directed. I've not used what you are using so I don't know anything about it or how it works.

Looking back at my log, it took a good 8 days to get to zero ammonia and nitrites and that was with redosing the ammonia to spike it back up and let it come down. I also still had some biodigest so used 1 vial of that, and after the main cycle, for some reason, I show I used stability and prime. Maybe as a preventative as I had 2 fish needing to go into the tank so I could use the rocks in the 37 gal for the sump and frag tank I also set up.

It's a process, and each tank is different. I'd remove the shrimp and just let it do its thing. You could also add a bottle of bio spira to further build your bacteria and maybe do so a bit faster. So how about a pic of the tank. And you should start a build thread and share your journey with us other reefers. Reading other builds you can also follow the process/progress of others in the same boat or maybe, same ocean as you <g>.

 

[Lasse]

Dubble post


Sincerely Lasse

 

[Lasse]

No ghost feeding - just keep your hands away from your aquarium. Just let it be for a week or two. The process has what it needs. You have chose the most difficult way of cycling. Now it's only to wait.

To speed it up - add nitrification bacteria every day

Sincerely Lasse

 

[Susan Edwards]

Oh, I wouldn't worry about ph at this point either. That will stabilize on its own eventually. If you have a sump, and run a fuge with lights on at night, opposite cycle, that should do you fine.

 

[JordanM]

Ok, thanks! Ill see how fast the ammonia drops after removing the shrimp. Ill get a picture tonight and post it. I currently have a 5 gallon that is doing pretty good but did not want to take any starter from it as there are some small tube worms and some bubble algae that i dont want to start this tank out with right away. Maybe i could take some water from after the filter and introduce some of that water to boost the diversity in bacteria. I can also steal some copepods from this tank as ive heard they live in some pretty high ammonia levels.

 

[Susan Edwards]

no need on the copepods yet. No reason to do so as there is nothing in your new tank for them to eat. Not sure any water from the 5 gal will do much. Just wait it out or add some bio spira. Can just use what you've got. Just will take a bit longer. Ignore your tank for the next week or so. Can't really rush the process.

 

[sundog101]

A whole shrimp should provide more than enough ammonia. (I would think the levels would be much higher). I’d watch the levels for the next few days to see if it starts to come down.

 

[JordanM]

Ok, i removed the shrimp yesterday at 0.026PPM. And kicked on the powerheads to blow away any decaying material out of the tank. This morning the ammonia is at 0.024ppm. Also tested the nitrite yesterday with the Hanna ULR and got 24ppb N-NO2 which converts to 78.96ppb nitrite.

Here are some pictures of the tank.

 

[Susan Edwards]

Nice!

 

[JordanM]

Thanks! When my ammonia and nitrite get back down to zero what should I do? Water change and add fish?

 

[mfinn]

If it were me, I'd go fish shopping. Buy my first fish.

 

[Tahoe61]

If it were me, I'd go fish shopping. Buy my first fish.

And quarantine it. Why risk introducing a pathogen to a perfect system that is not yet cycled.

 

[mfinn]

And quarantine it. Why risk introducing a pathogen to a perfect system that is not yet cycled.

Yes, of course. My bad.

 

[Lasse]

Do not trust the ammonia measurement - they often show to high values when you have zero or very low readings. If you want to have some digital references that the cycle is done - trust the NO2 measurements. When they are very low - around - < 0.02 as ppm NO2 or zero - its done. Be aware that your meter possible measure NO2-N in parts per billion. Multiply the result with around 3.3 and divide with 1000 to get ppm NO2 (nitrite - whole molecule). As long as you have NO2 in the system - do not measure NO3 - you will get false readings (to high).

Sincerely Lasse