Stalled sterile cycle using Fritz Turbo Start

[Bobby daniels]

Sorry for the long post. I'm looking for some advice, I am completely stumped. I've cycled dozens of tanks over the years using Fritz Turbo Start and fishless. About 6 weeks ago I started a new 75g frag system doing it the exact same method I have in the past. Completely sterile system, rock cleaned with muriatic acid, baking soda to neutralize, rinse and dried...a week later, a bleach bath for a week, overdosed prime to neutralize the bleach, rinsed and dried in the sun for 2 weeks.
Threw about 80lbs of rock in the sump, added water, 4oz of Turbo Start and brought the ammonia up to 2.0. In the past I've had tanks cycle as quickly as 3 days, and a long as a week doing it this way. One week after I started it, it still a a tiny bit of ammonia and nitrites around 2.5.
Added a second bottle of Turbo Start to boost the nitrifying bacteria count up and push it along. Waited a few days and tested again. Test results were NO² at 1.4 or so and 0 NH³. Looks like we're getting somewhere. Took a sample of water to a LFS thinking maybe my test we're bad and they got the same results.
After advice from the LFS and a few friends in the local community, I decided to wait a week and test again.... same results 1.4 and 0. So following others advice I dosed ammonia up to 1.0, and over night they dropped to 0. Added a dose of Biodigest, added some Polyplab Lab Rock boosters and they're bacteria booster. We're at about 3 weeks since originally starting this tank.
Week 4, test EXACTLY the same, 1.4 and 0. Decided to try a 50% water change, tested an hr later, the same. Added a few drops of ammonia to get it up, 24hrs later ammonia is gone and NO²at 1.4.
The beginning of week 5, same results, added ANOTHER bottle of Turbo Start. Tested today... the beginning of week 6.... and NO² around 1.4, maybe a but lower, and ammonia at 0. During all this time I have tested for NO³ although you can't get good results and thence been steady around 40.
I'm completely lost in this. Any advice OTHER than you should have used live rock instead of sterilized rock? Pic is of the system

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Nitrite is not important. Ignore it. Traces of ammonia are also ok, and may be test error anyway.

Since ammonia readily drops, its cycles adequately and you are good to go. :)

 

[Bobby daniels]

Nitrite is not important. Ignore it. Traces of ammonia are also ok, and may be test error anyway.

Since ammonia readily drops, its cycles adequately and you are good to go. :)

That was my thought, BUT setting a I've never had it happen like this I've been at a loss....

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

That was my thought, BUT setting a I've never had it happen like this I've been at a loss....

In any case, I’d just move on. :)

 

[Dan_P]

Sorry for the long post. I'm looking for some advice, I am completely stumped. I've cycled dozens of tanks over the years using Fritz Turbo Start and fishless. About 6 weeks ago I started a new 75g frag system doing it the exact same method I have in the past. Completely sterile system, rock cleaned with muriatic acid, baking soda to neutralize, rinse and dried...a week later, a bleach bath for a week, overdosed prime to neutralize the bleach, rinsed and dried in the sun for 2 weeks.
Threw about 80lbs of rock in the sump, added water, 4oz of Turbo Start and brought the ammonia up to 2.0. In the past I've had tanks cycle as quickly as 3 days, and a long as a week doing it this way. One week after I started it, it still a a tiny bit of ammonia and nitrites around 2.5.
Added a second bottle of Turbo Start to boost the nitrifying bacteria count up and push it along. Waited a few days and tested again. Test results were NO² at 1.4 or so and 0 NH³. Looks like we're getting somewhere. Took a sample of water to a LFS thinking maybe my test we're bad and they got the same results.
After advice from the LFS and a few friends in the local community, I decided to wait a week and test again.... same results 1.4 and 0. So following others advice I dosed ammonia up to 1.0, and over night they dropped to 0. Added a dose of Biodigest, added some Polyplab Lab Rock boosters and they're bacteria booster. We're at about 3 weeks since originally starting this tank.
Week 4, test EXACTLY the same, 1.4 and 0. Decided to try a 50% water change, tested an hr later, the same. Added a few drops of ammonia to get it up, 24hrs later ammonia is gone and NO²at 1.4.
The beginning of week 5, same results, added ANOTHER bottle of Turbo Start. Tested today... the beginning of week 6.... and NO² around 1.4, maybe a but lower, and ammonia at 0. During all this time I have tested for NO³ although you can't get good results and thence been steady around 40.
I'm completely lost in this. Any advice OTHER than you should have used live rock instead of sterilized rock? Pic is of the system

Sounds like the nitrite test is “broken”. Unusual to have the same concentration week after week. Clearly ammonia is being removed effectively.

 

[Gnemo]

Is it possible you have a good colony of nitrifying bacteria but insufficient nitrafying bacteria? So there is plenty of nitrifying bacteria to consume the ammonia overnight, but the nitrafying bacteria are low because of not enough nitrite being produced to grow the population? This would follow to just ignore it, and once you add another source of ammonia (fish pee/poop) your nitrifying bacteria will grow along with the ammonia source and nitrafying bacteria will naturally balance with the input. Just a thought, not an expert. I understand this goes against your past experience.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Is it possible you have a good colony of nitrifying bacteria but insufficient nitrafying bacteria? So there is plenty of nitrifying bacteria to consume the ammonia overnight, but the nitrafying bacteria are low because of not enough nitrite being produced to grow the population? This would follow to just ignore it, and once you add another source of ammonia (fish pee/poop) your nitrifying bacteria will grow along with the ammonia source and nitrafying bacteria will naturally balance with the input. Just a thought, not an expert. I understand this goes against your past experience.

Yes, that often happens during cycling but not later, and generally isn’t a concern.