I've been trying to cycle a tank from Jellyfish Art (first saltwater tank I've had) for 6 weeks but I'm not having much luck. I'm using brine shrimp and have some "bacteria in a bottle" that came with the kit. I've got my ammonia levels only to about .25ppm and I've had my Nitrites up to 1ppm but haven't seen much movement in Nitrates. These numbers seem pretty low so am I still at square one? Should I abandon the instructions that came with the kit and start following the instructions from this site instead? Thanks!
Trouble Moving Past Nitrite Stage
- Thread starter FPT
- Start date
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Most color changing kits have a hard time reading smaller amounts of Ammonia, Nitrite, and Nitrate.
In normal cycling Ammonia is brought up to 2.0ppm at this level it is easy to see the colors and the transitions.
Missing a lot of information that would be helpful.
Brand of test kit used.
Water volume.
Amount and type of Substraight for the bacteria to grow.
Chances are your tank is cycled. Well it should be after six weeks but I will have to say BUT! maybe not.
The bacteria included may have not been good to start with.
You could purchase some ammonia, add a few drops test, add a few drops, test again until you get the level up to 1.0 or at least a reading you can noticeably see. From that point if the tank was cycled the ammonia will most likely be gone within 24 hours. You may never see a Nitrite spike as this can happen quickly but the Nitrate should noticeably rise.
Some advice for you though and you wont want to hear it but I feel you need to know.
Despite the hype and advertising of these tanks on how easy they are, it is simply not true.
Jelly fish and sea horse tanks are super cool, but these are the hardest tanks even for the MOST experienced to be successful with.
IF this is your first Saltwater tank as you say then I would go a different route for now and put the Jellyfish tank on hold until you gain some experience and understanding.
My goal here is to see that you have a positive expieriance in your new saltwater world.
In normal cycling Ammonia is brought up to 2.0ppm at this level it is easy to see the colors and the transitions.
Missing a lot of information that would be helpful.
Brand of test kit used.
Water volume.
Amount and type of Substraight for the bacteria to grow.
Chances are your tank is cycled. Well it should be after six weeks but I will have to say BUT! maybe not.
The bacteria included may have not been good to start with.
You could purchase some ammonia, add a few drops test, add a few drops, test again until you get the level up to 1.0 or at least a reading you can noticeably see. From that point if the tank was cycled the ammonia will most likely be gone within 24 hours. You may never see a Nitrite spike as this can happen quickly but the Nitrate should noticeably rise.
Some advice for you though and you wont want to hear it but I feel you need to know.
Despite the hype and advertising of these tanks on how easy they are, it is simply not true.
Jelly fish and sea horse tanks are super cool, but these are the hardest tanks even for the MOST experienced to be successful with.
IF this is your first Saltwater tank as you say then I would go a different route for now and put the Jellyfish tank on hold until you gain some experience and understanding.
My goal here is to see that you have a positive expieriance in your new saltwater world.
Thanks K7BMG
Tank size: 5 gallons
Test kit brand: API (from what I've read on here it's not highly thought of)
Bacteria bottle is labeled JellyBio Maintain (there was a starter bottle as well that was used when I first set the tank up)
I think I'll try the ammonia drop test (my plan was to add some raw shrimp, and more brine shrimp), and see if ammonia spikes but the drops may work better). Even though I have an empty tank still I'm still finding enjoyment in the process.
Tank size: 5 gallons
Test kit brand: API (from what I've read on here it's not highly thought of)
Bacteria bottle is labeled JellyBio Maintain (there was a starter bottle as well that was used when I first set the tank up)
I think I'll try the ammonia drop test (my plan was to add some raw shrimp, and more brine shrimp), and see if ammonia spikes but the drops may work better). Even though I have an empty tank still I'm still finding enjoyment in the process.
Yes good idea.
The drops will be better as they instantly raise ammonia as a shrimp, food, or other things need time to break down to create ammonia.
Just make sure you get the right ammonia product.
Have you ever had an aquarium before?
Do some research here on R2R about Jellyfish keeping.
Your part of the group now so use it to the full extent.
The API tests are more than adequate for your current needs of cycling.
The drops will be better as they instantly raise ammonia as a shrimp, food, or other things need time to break down to create ammonia.
Just make sure you get the right ammonia product.
Have you ever had an aquarium before?
Do some research here on R2R about Jellyfish keeping.
Your part of the group now so use it to the full extent.
The API tests are more than adequate for your current needs of cycling.
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