Cycling a New Tank.

[Arrowana Boi]

Originally posted by GreenTea
bros,

after one week of tank cycling, the readings are...

nh3/nh4:1.5-3.0mg/l
no2: 1.6-3.0mg/l
no3: 25mg/l

from wat i know, ammonia is suppose to be zero b4 no2 forms... am i right to say tat?? but y isit so tat my ammonia is still high?? am i feeding too much??

and should i change water since no3 is starting to get high??

wat should i do?? pls advice..thanx!!

HI bro green tea, its not correct that nitrite will form when ammonia hits zero. Nitrite will form as long as ammonia is present cause the nitrosomonas will form once ammonia is present and break it down to form nitrite.

During cycling period , its natural that readings get high.
Jus leave everything alone, and do a 20% water change on the 2nd week.

High readings on cycling period is the reason why i would advise ppl use cheap fishes to go through the cycling period and prepare the tank for the new fishes.

[Arrowana Boi]

Originally posted by GreenTea
to add, the ph has dropped from a 8.3 to 6.5 within one week..

thanx

The drop in the pH could be due to the nh4 reaction with the free ions in the water. The kH of the water might be getting low. In future if u are afraid that such thing happen might happen again u might wanna add in coral chips to act as buffers. Aquarist is most afraid of pH swings during ammonia spikes. This happen when kH is low and ammonia suddenly spike.

[Arrowana Boi]

Originally posted by ccplim
Toay is the 15th day since i started my cycling. Just tested the water last might n here is what i get.

Water condition : slightly cloudy
Ammonia : 0
Nitrite : 0.25mg
Nitrate : did not test as i have not get the test kit
PH : have been at 7.8 for the past 1 week

Just wondering are the readings okay? I guessed my main problem now is how to bring down the PH level.

Just checked PH at 11.20am (13/7). It jump up to 7.9 again

Hi bro, the readings are fine. In fact im rather please that the ammonia's reading is 0. pH level is ok as long as it does not change by a great deal in terms of degree over a short period of time.

Have u checked the pH level of ur tap water. If its somewhere close to that of ur tank, then i would advise that u leave it alone. Aros can survive through a big range of pH level. Jus remembe to keep ur water quality good tho, as ammonia is more toxic in higher temperature and pH level.

Natural methods of pH down is the use of blackwater/ketapang leaves to soften the water and try to bring the pH down, but its really not that much difference on the pH level i guess. Usually i wouldn't recommend ketapang leaves in tank that is in the process of cycling, it will cause the ammonia level to rise due to the fact that the leaves might be rotting in the water. As for other method is the use of peat, but god noes where i can find them, and also the use of chemical but i think its not advisabla n a waste of money if u have to use it all the while jus to keep the pH level in check.

As long as pH differences is not present during introduction of the fish then everything should be alright. The inroduction of the fish should be done with the pH level of the water in the new tank of the owner and that of the fish's old tank from the LFS being as close as possible. After that, u can let the fish adapt to pH changes gradually over a period of time and i can say that the fish would be able to accept it w/o problems.

Good Luck

Originally posted by red2
bro Kwong Hui,

having troubles mesuring high values, can share wat test kits r u using ?
JBL n Tetra NO2 can not measure values beyong 1ppm.

I used Tera 5-in-1 tester. Its those that you dip into your tank water. Similar to the ones we did for urine test.

Any one knows how to improve cleaning of tank using overflow??? Currently my current set-up is not efficient enought to clean waste in tank as now the residents are 'poo-pooing more'.

Would a stronger pump help???

http://66.33.42.245/articles/startup.html


things dun go wrong with a hatchery

too bad i dun have a new system now to startup so i cannot use this method of yet!

just use some pet dog urine. i think is the cleanest and yet chemical free .

[GreenTea]

how long will it roughly take for nitrite to fall to zero??

my ammonia took abt 1 week before its zero yesterday.... but now my nitrite and nitrate are v high...

anyone's nitrite fell to zero within one week??
pls advice

Originally posted by GreenTea
how long will it roughly take for nitrite to fall to zero??

my ammonia took abt 1 week before its zero yesterday.... but now my nitrite and nitrate are v high...

anyone's nitrite fell to zero within one week??
pls advice

Nitrites will spike to higher levels than ammonia, this is because that type of nitrifying bacteria multiplies more slowly. Also, do keep the feeding constant. Ammonia inhibits the nitrite reducing bacteria. So will salt. So it is slower with nitrites. It will be at least day 30-40 from the start even with the temperature here in SG before you get the nitrites to drop sharply.

[GreenTea]

Originally posted by 2100
Nitrites will spike to higher levels than ammonia, this is because that type of nitrifying bacteria multiplies more slowly. Also, do keep the feeding constant. Ammonia inhibits the nitrite reducing bacteria. So will salt. So it is slower with nitrites. It will be at least day 30-40 from the start even with the temperature here in SG before you get the nitrites to drop sharply.

hi bro,

my nitrite peaked >33mg/l 2 days ago... today when i measured, its only 0.8mg/l

it really puzzles me?? will the nitrite level rise again?? or its a sign tat the tank will be cycled soon...

Originally posted by GreenTea
hi bro,

my nitrite peaked >33mg/l 2 days ago... today when i measured, its only 0.8mg/l

it really puzzles me?? will the nitrite level rise again?? or its a sign tat the tank will be cycled soon...

Check the nitrites tomorrow, if it's confirm < 1mg/l, then it's pretty much complete. You sure it's 33mg/l? That's pretty darn high, my test kit can't measure above 5mg/l. Must have a good amount of salt in it to combat asphixation of the fishes. Or did you diluted the test solution?