Cycling readings: Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrate help

[dlaunde]

Hey all,

 

A week into my 10 gallon nano reef aquarium. I purchased 9lbs of precured LR from my LFS along with 10lbs of Caribsea AgriSand Fiji Pink. Running a 425 Powerhead, Aqueon QuietFlow HOB (filter floss and carbon only), 50w heater, and Current USA Orbit Marine LED lighting.

 

Based on the description of my LR (very pink, some green patches, biological material sloughing off/fluttering in the current off of the rock) I was told my LR was already established and ready to slowly take on a load. So today I picked up a Peppermint Shrimp, 6 snails (3 bumblebee and 3 astrea), and 3 soft coral frags (a mushroom, a leather, and a zoanthid). While acclimating them all I decided to take a full set of readings. Here are my findings:

 

Phosphate: API test kit reads 0ppm, so definitely under 0.25 (debating on getting a lower threshold test)

Alkalinity: 10-11 dkh

Calcium: ~400ppm

pH: 8.2

Ammonia: 1.0ppm

Nitrite: higher than 5ppm but lower than 50ppm...from reading about the API Nitrite test my color was darker than the highest color on the card (5ppm) and stayed dark purple without ever reverting back to blue (which happens above 50ppm)

Nitrate: 5-10ppm

 

So what do my Ammonia, Nitrite, and Nitrate numbers indicate is going on in my tank? The biological filter is obviously working...but the presence of Nitrite indicates the "breaking in" cycle is not fully finished since the amount of bacteria present isn't sufficient enough to quickly convert Nitrite to Nitrate, right? Or is it the presence of Ammonia that is the bigger indicator my bio bac isn't sufficient enough? Or did I just test at the "right time" to catch the cycle in action?

 

Is this the point where I do daily 10% water changes to help keep the levels low as the cycle finishes/bio bac increases? Not planning on adding any more corals or fish until it is 100% stable but don't want the live stock I just added to suffer...but unfortunately have no other tanks to keep them in. I should have tested before I went to my LFS so I take all the blame. Just want to make sure I do the right steps to help see the cycle to the end and keep everything as happy as I can.

 

Thanks!

[brandon429]

The bac need no help your rock is ready.

 

The 1 ppm test ammonia is suspect reading...it would kill everything, smell, and be cloudy.

 

 

This whole thread is about your experience

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

 

The bacteria move from tank to tank and do not die, or need boosting after you move them. Post pics we can review

 

 

In that thread, we talk about focusing only on ammonia for a reason ( for cycling..,measuring calcium and alk is fine)

 

Once you get a high quality ammonia test kit that w reinforce some of the measures we can already tell about your tank only off descriptions

 

1.0 true ammonia is tank lethal and will smell

In that thread we like to show how visual clues on the live rock are more reliable to cycle, when using known cured rock with verified coralline and other depositions

 

 

You should simply do a large water change matching temp and salinity, that's all required to match. Then continue reefing

 

Get ready to receive polar opposite advice lol but welcome to cycling interpretations. At least our example is 4 pages of tank work.

[dlaunde]

It's less than 1.0ppm but greater than 0.5ppm (rechecked the color card).

The tank water smells like the ocean...like seaweed and saltwater. Doesn't smell anything like urine or other ammonia related by products. And the water is definitely clear.

 

I will do my planned 10% water change tomorrow and retest an hour or so afterwards. I just want to make sure I'm not torturing the live stock I already put in. Don't want to be that guy

[brandon429]

They would show marked ammonia stress for sure see RHF article ammonia in the reef tank.if all looks and smells good it's gtg. We intended in that thread to paint the picture that it's hard, hard to cause death and true benthic animal loss when moving live rock.

[dlaunde]

Also, here is a picture of the LR.

 

The corals all opened up within an hour of being placed in the tank if that info helps reaffirm that the parameters are gtg.

 

Thanks!

[brandon429]

Hey that looks nice pink colors good picks on rock

I wonder if those are sponges grown onto the rock in places?

 

 

We didn't use API there in the link above and at 4+ pages how much livestock loss do we show?

 

 

We eliminated use there because of how you reported having to take a guess at the readings, most posters mentioned the same subjectivity. I won't need API ever, the visual options using the tank we show to work.

 

Safety insurance is a single large water change

Per details in the thread there's no continuing ammonia source to rebound. If you have any doubts don't toil over the subjective color readings just change water and look at what the animals do that would otherwise be bound up tight, clearly mad, if you did have a source leaking several ppm ammonia daily (such that only .25-.5 couldn't be reduced)

 

The obvious smell of rot would come from the 4.0 leak source where the massive pink surface area was only able to metabolize down to trace amounts, the leak would have to be sustained at those massive amounts for your test to be accurate.

 

In our link we mentioned verifying the low level tests, they're unverified here so it's better to use biology which is verified well in the thread

 

If all your snails are dead this morning when you wake up we'll know

If they aren't dead then...

[seabass]

So what do my Ammonia, Nitrite, and Nitrate numbers indicate is going on in my tank?

So here is the polar opposite advise that Brandon warned you about. I don't think that your tank is ready and you will probably lose your livestock (unless you do something to export or detoxify the ammonia). Disregarding the tests, the organic material sloughing off indicates to me that it is breaking down. This would cause an ammonia spike (which is backed up by your tests).

 

Brandon gives no credibility to API ammonia test results (although he has never tried one). But to his credit, in many cases (when given sufficient time and evidence) it is possible to judge the stages of the cycle via observation alone. However, I don't believe that sufficient time (one week) and/or visual queues were present to assume an established nitrogen cycle.

 

Your testing backs this up. And it's not just one test that shows an incomplete nitrogen cycle, but both ammonia and nitrite. Both should be undetectable before livestock is added to your tank.

 

The nitrate level just indicates that you have the bacteria needed, but the presence of ammonia indicates that your biological filter is currently overwhelmed and cannot keep up. Nitrite is just another indicator which supports this (although it usually isn't toxic at marine pH levels).

 

I would have expected the pH to be lower than it is. Generally, pH falls during this initial stage. However, I don't feel that this parameter alone warrants disregarding the other test results.

[dlaunde]

I will do a large water change today and monitor the ammonia levels with plans to do continuous changes until ammonia stays at or around 0 on its own.

 

I hate using chemicals to control an otherwise natural cycle but is there anything I should add to help keep the ammonia low while the bac keeps building?

[brandon429]

If you feel the ammonia is a concern even though delicate snails are alive you can do prime, which skews other API tests causing nitrite chasing be ready, but it's best to locate and remove the source of the rot altogether

 

It will be easy to locate, it will stink massively.

 

The sandbed isn't the source so it will be easy to find if its one of the rocks, that's the only place you could be leaking 4+ ppm sustained, for days, if you feel that test is accurate and your tank wouldn't comply like the others in the thread.

 

Since you brought in animals and bacteria on and in the live rock there's no need for ammonia in your cycle, so if you are using unverified API readings to guide the cycle the correct action would be to find the source of rot and remove it, not dose things to offset it.

[seabass]

Partial water changes only temporary depress ammonia. My testing shows that ammonia can quickly return to its previous level. And although partial water changes don't tend to export enough ammonia (or organics) by themselves, in this situation (with livestock), I wouldn't avoid them either.

Like Brandon stated, you can continue to dose Seachem Prime to temporarily detoxify the ammonia while the biological filter becomes established. Also, there are nitrifying bacterial cultures (like Microbactor7, Biro-Spira, or DrTim's One & Only) that you can add which might also help. These products wouldn't be necessary if you didn't have livestock.

[dlaunde]

Thanks guys. Doing a water change right now and will monitor testing.

 

I also just realized I am using Instant Ocean Saltwater mix and not their Reef mix (was testing the premade bucket of saltwater and wondered why Calcium was 340ppm and not higher). Will pickup a bag of the Reef mix and use that going forward also.

 

I feel bad for rushing things. D'oh

[seabass]

How is everything doing? Snails active, shrimp not molting?

[dlaunde]

How is everything doing? Snails active, shrimp not molting?

 

All 6 snails are still active...well, 4 are active as two of the bumblebees are just hitching rides on the other 4 as they see fit. And the peppermint is restlessly scouring the live rock eating.

 

In fact as I was typing this I just saw him break off a huge piece of biological material from the rock.

 

All corals are open (the leather closed during the water change as I hit him pouring water back in too quickly).

[dlaunde]

Did a 2.5 gallon water change and added some Prime (which I had not added at all before today) about 4 hours ago and retested Ammonia just now...it's reading between 0.25ppm and 0.5ppm now.

[seabass]

If ammonia is going down, you are in pretty decent shape. Once this happens, water changes will effectively export ammonia from the water column. The more water that you change at this point, the better. Then just keep dosing Prime everyday for a few more days, and it will likely be fine.

[dlaunde]

Thanks for all the help.

I love how quickly coral can expand when it becomes happier to the lighting/water parameters. Moved my mushroom anemone from the sandbed (where is was open and happy to begin with) to an outcropping on my LR and it's nearly doubled in size already.

[dlaunde]

Tested today before another water change, Ammonia still holding between 0.25ppm and 0.5ppm. Changed 2 gallons and added more Prime. Will test again tonight. All critters are still active and corals still open. One of my bumblebee snails has a little bit of crusty spots on it (not sure if they were always there, didn't inspect them thoroughly during purchase). Other than that everything seems "happy".