Tank not cycling?

[rooneyj889]

Hi all,

I just got my 75 gallon fish only tank last weekend and put 2 clowns and 2 damsels in it on tuesday to do a fish only cycle. I have been religiously checking for ammonia nitrites and nitrates but it keeps reading 0 ppm for ammonia and nitrites and very low (between 1-5 ppm) for nitrates. I used caribsea agra alive for sand and life rock for the rocks as well as dosing once a day with seachem stability. Is this something to be worried about or will the ammonia start to appear and kick off the nitrogen cycle soon? Thanks!

 

[brandon429]

you did a fish in cycle which is common nowadays. The dilution and the bottle bac are keeping things fine, in about ten days time submerged the system is cycled. It doesn’t matter what your test kits read it will cycle, they may or may not indicate the correct levels they’re only hobby testers, not accurate. if the tank showed ammonia everyone would pounce for fish harm, but the fish act normal regardless of what that tester says. Feed lightly, can’t let food rot occur

wait for ten to twelve days time as you are adding bac and the cycle will be in place no matter what the tests say. To read a cycle correctly it takes a different way of using the testers than just single point readings, or a seneye will work, but your bottle bac has already been tested by others, it’s how we know the timeframe. See this thread before adding more fish:

EMERGENCY - Ich

I have been seeingwhite spots on my six line wrasse. It is ich. Along with the wrasse I have two clownfish. I just ordered some garlic and selcon for feeding. What should I do, can the fish naturally fight it off with garlic and selcon or do I need to do a treatment. Or quarantine and do a...

www.reef2reef.com

 

[rooneyj889]

you did a fish in cycle which is common nowadays. The dilution and the bottle bac are keeping things fine, in about ten days time submerged the system is cycled.

So then even if I don't ever detect ammonia or nitrite because of the bottled bac and the live sand and rock, the tank should be cycled as long as i'm picking up nitrate?

 

[mrsaltwatertank]

So then even if I don't ever detect ammonia or nitrite because of the bottled bac and the live sand and rock, the tank should be cycled as long as i'm picking up nitrate?

Not seeing Ammonia or nitrite is common w/bacteria in a bottle cycling. If you see nitrates, that means the nitrogen cycle is happening.

 

[gabrieltackitt]

So then even if I don't ever detect ammonia or nitrite because of the bottled bac and the live sand and rock, the tank should be cycled as long as i'm picking up nitrate?

Yep! The presence and rise in nitrate is proof that the nitrogen cycle is working. Assuming you aren’t adding any nitrate elsewhere, which you shouldn’t be.

 

[brandon429]

And even if you didn’t detect nitrate, we collect zero nitrate still cycled threads, your bottle bac has already been tested for deposition times by dr reef

can’t miss the cycle here / water and inoculant and feed and time, set in ten. agreed nitrate is a handy confirming presence, sometimes in 75 g it’s hard to detect any.

your post not stating cloudy water or dying fish was also a reflection of your current levels/ bottle bac ability