Palmer Posted May 20, 2005 Report Share Posted May 20, 2005 For the first time I have been trying to do a fishless cycle on my 125 gallon tank and have a couple fo questions on how its going so far. I have been using household Ammonia and adding 4 mls per day. After two weeks I no longer read Ammonia levels above 0 ppm. Now its been another two weeks and I have not read Nitrite levels above 0.5-1 ppm but I am starting to get Nitrate levels between 20-40 ppm. I'm wondering why I never received a Nitrite "spike" ( I assumed I'd see something close to 5 ppm at one point. Also I have not seen yet the Nitrite levels go down to 0 ppm they seem to hold steady at 0.5-1ppm. Another point to mention is my tank is in my basement which is quite cool. Because of this I have been keeping the tank at 80 degrees F as to not burn out my heater. So I know it should take longer since usually temps of 86 degrees etc are preffered. Any feedback would be appreciated Palmer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HOSStile Posted May 20, 2005 Report Share Posted May 20, 2005 Did you add bacteria or just let nature take its course? I know when I did my 50 I got a Nitrite spike for about 3 days. The tank was fully cycled in about 10 days but I also seeded it by using a used filter out of a AC 500 in the filtration. If you think that your nitrite tester is working properly then I would say it is cycled because of the Nitrate readings you got. Harold Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Palmer Posted May 20, 2005 Author Report Share Posted May 20, 2005 (edited) Oh yeah forgot to mention I did seed it with a little bit of gravel that I hung in front of my filter intake. I havent really seen a spike of Nitrite just consistent readings of 0.5- 1 ppm. I guess if my Nitrates continue to rise and the Nitrite doesnt change I'll just do a large water change and get some fish. Thanks! Edited May 20, 2005 by Palmer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HOSStile Posted May 21, 2005 Report Share Posted May 21, 2005 Sounds good, just monitor after adding fish should be just fine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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