We should use the collective power of the chem forum to prove or deny the possibility of sustained .25 ammonia in reefing

[brandon429]

@Malcontent hey can you post the tank shot the reading came from / couple details such as bottle bac brand used, how many days underwater to that reading etc

what we like to do is compare repeating variables for time, inoculation, feeding common surface area activated from the tank pics along with test kit reports -curious if your tank is new or established for the .25

what most cycle threads do is review posted test results with no context from the tank and it’s surface area, additions and wait as compared to a cycle chart. seeking big picture input, the tie in

 

[IslandLifeReef]

I have to be honest I've never had trouble getting zero on an API ammonia test kit when cycling a tank. Generally that's what I would use because I'm probably never going to test again for it after cycling is finished. The only seemingly stuck cycles I've had were with Nitrite not wanting to go away.

I agree with only testing for ammonia during the cycle, that is why I didn’t even bother with testing for it. What I did was get the RedSea NO2/NO3 test kit. Once the NO2 reached 0ppm, I checked total NO3. If that number matched what I calculated the ammonia should convert to approximately, I dosed ammonia again and repeated. If it matched again, I was cycled.

 

[brandon429]

no harm at all using that way. ammonia has had plenty of time to clear when nitrite clears, double time in fact per charts. that method will be very reliable starts by day twenty ish for sure. some systems and testing setups take even longer to clear nitrite so no harm in waiting if so, that's 4x ammonia clearance time. zero fish will ever die due to lack of cycling with that approach, its 100% safe.

Malcontent's cliffhanger still in effect I noticed/ is the sample listed not from a reef tank?

the entire thread has been about the context surrounding the reading, things living vs dying...water clear vs clouding etc. smell too

 

[brandon429]

@Malcontent

are you going to post the tank shot, or just the .25 reading from a drinking glass of water set to .25






ive never been passively aggressed with a hach picture before but I’m liking it so far, it’s neat to see the reading even with context withheld.


it sure would be fun to call a hach meter wrong or right, just like we do with seneye occasionally and api / red sea by the minute.

Need pic of the reef though, you can see that’s our real referee.