Weird Cycle - Need Advice

[nickkohrn]

I started my cycle about a month ago. My ammonia was up, but now it's 0. Then my nitrites were up, but now it's close to 0.2. My nitrates were off the charts, but have been at 0 for a couple of days now.

 

Could it be that my nitrite test is a little off? Everything has been high and came back down. The only thing that I can't get to 0 is nitrites, but everything else looks good.

 

Any ideas on what may be causing it? I'm stumped.

[nickkohrn]

I don't really want to buy a second test kit to see what it reads, so maybe take a water sample to a LFS?

 

I know that doing a water change during a cycle can stall it, but since it's been a month and everything is at 0, except for nitrites, would it be appropriate to do a large water change and test again?

[teenyreef]

It's hard to say without more information. What did you start with, dry rock, cured, uncured? How did you do the cycle? Sometimes it takes more than four weeks to finish a cycle, and zero Ammonia and nitrates with some Nitrites is not unusual right near the end of the cycle.

[Tuffryu]

Sounds to me like it's complete. The .2 is on the high end of normal seawater, but still safe for inverts and marine fish. If you're using an API kit, you should do multiple tests.

[nickkohrn]

 

It's hard to say without more information. What did you start with, dry rock, cured, uncured? How did you do the cycle? Sometimes it takes more than four weeks to finish a cycle, and zero Ammonia and nitrates with some Nitrites is not unusual right near the end of the cycle.

I started with uncured, dry rock, but switched to Walt Smith's Reed Rock a week later. I started using Red Sea's Reef Mature Pro kit, but I wasn't able to consistently stay up on dosing due to other situations, so I stopped using that. I let the cycle run its course since there was ammonia in the tank from that kit.

 

All readings were pretty high, but within the last week they started declining. I was surprised to see my nitrates go from ~160 (crazy high from the Red Sea kit) to 0 within a week. However, the only reading that is not 0 is nitrites. I was just surprised since nitrates are reading 0.

 

I guess I never paid attention to nitrites that closely during previous cycles after I had seen that nitrates were at 0. I'll give it a couple more days and see where it's at then.

 

Thanks, teeny! I appreciate your help!

 

 

 

Sounds to me like it's complete. The .2 is on the high end of normal seawater, but still safe for inverts and marine fish. If you're using an API kit, you should do multiple tests.

Yep, I surely am using an API kit. I'll likely switch to Salifert when this kit is used up.

 

I was debating on trying a few inverts (snails) since the 0.2 is still on the safer side, but I am thankful for the reassurance.

[teenyreef]

I think you're almost done, then. I've always used API for tests I rarely do like Nitrites. It always read zero Nitrites when the cycle was completely done.

[nickkohrn]

I think you're almost done, then. I've always used API for tests I rarely do like Nitrites. It always read zero Nitrites when the cycle was completely done.

Good to hear! I guess maybe I'm getting impatient! I can't wait to get something in there, but I'll wait it out a few more days to make certain. I'm definitely re-learning the patience this hobby requires after my decade-long hiatus. It's crazy to realize how much I have forgotten since my last system.

[Tuffryu]

I think you're almost done, then. I've always used API for tests I rarely do like Nitrites. It always read zero Nitrites when the cycle was completely done.

 

Come to think of it, I don't think I ever tested Nitrite on my tank either. lol

I personally question the API kit because my Phosphate and Nitrate levels are always low to none. I think the highest my phos reading was .15 with regular feeding almost everyday and I've never ran a skimmer.

Nitrate is always at 0 - .5 and that just seems wrong. Anyways, good luck with the tank.

[brandon429]

http://reef2reef.com/threads/new-tank-cycling-tank-bacteria-and-cocktail-shrimp-live-rock-no-shrimp.214618/

 

if that thread doesn't cover all your cycling timing and details, ill edit any portion of it to do so. we think that thread can be posted to cover every form of tank cycling we do in one shot, lemme know if it falls short on yours

 

the direct key term ties into your thread:

-the start date is measured the same on all tanks

-you can skip cycling on a large portion of rocks we choose to use (group B )

-never test for nitrite, send the kit up on an faa-registered weather balloon to 10,000 feet or better and don't set return coordinates

-cycles follow the exact same course if we aren't using meds, the only things humans do is change the timeline to completion, and we still know how to measure the completion date.

-can't use api for any portion, we have recourses in the thread if api was all that's avail.

[squamptonbc]

Thanks for posting the link, interesting read. Seeing that nice live rock makes me wish for the old days, around my parts in Canada, dry or very dead "live" rock is all we can get, hard to come across anything nice, especially rock from the ocean.

 

 

 

 

http://reef2reef.com/threads/new-tank-cycling-tank-bacteria-and-cocktail-shrimp-live-rock-no-shrimp.214618/

if that thread doesn't cover all your cycling timing and details, ill edit any portion of it to do so. we think that thread can be posted to cover every form of tank cycling we do in one shot, lemme know if it falls short on yours

the direct key term ties into your thread:
-the start date is measured the same on all tanks
-you can skip cycling on a large portion of rocks we choose to use (group B )
-never test for nitrite, send the kit up on an faa-registered weather balloon to 10,000 feet or better and don't set return coordinates
-cycles follow the exact same course if we aren't using meds, the only things humans do is change the timeline to completion, and we still know how to measure the completion date.
-can't use api for any portion, we have recourses in the thread if api was all that's avail.