• You are viewing the forum as a Guest, please login (you can use your Facebook, Twitter, Google or Microsoft account to login) or register using this link: Log in or Sign Up

High ammonia, nitrites AND nitrates during cycling

It will be easier for you to plant without much water in the tank. You don't have fish to worry about so a big water change would be OK
 
I wouldn't worry about ph crashes as ada amazonia will buffer your ph. You will still see ammonia as the amazonia will still be leeching it out in large quantities. Sounds like you are doing everything right. Amazonia is great for cycling your filter.

Sent from my SM-G920F using Tapatalk
 
ldcgroomer said:
I wouldn't worry about ph crashes as ada amazonia will buffer your ph. You will still see ammonia as the amazonia will still be leeching it out in large quantities. Sounds like you are doing everything right. Amazonia is great for cycling your filter.

Sent from my SM-G920F using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

Hi Lindy

thanks for your comments. I did a 90% water change yesterday, and planted semi-heavily. I thought i had ordered more plants, so not as heavily planted as I would have liked. I checked the water parameters just now (24 hrs later), and ammonia is around 2ppm, and nitres were nil. Hadn't expected the nitres to be nil so quickly. At what stage would you say it is safe to introduce some ottos and SAE? I can already see diatoms (not bothered about them, as i understand they'll disappear soon enough. But there is little bit of brush algae on the wood.

All the plants are low-tech (anubias, ferns etc.). I've set my lighting for 5 hours. Temp is 23 degrees.

I'll try and post some tank pictures tomorrow.

Thanks!
 
I've uploaded a new thread in the journals forum in case anyone is interested in it. Thanks for your help on the water chemistry stuff. If anything specific about the water comes up, I'll post it here, but will probably just keep most questions to the journal thread. Thanks again
 
When you have 3 consecutive days of 0 ammonia and 0 nitrite you can add fish. It took me 6 weeks to cycle my tank, you'll probably be a bit quicker. A big water change the night before fish shopping will be needed to reduce nitrates.

You need to research which fish suit your water. Otos need soft slightly acidic water, SAE can tolerate soft to moderate hardness, but I think your tank is on the small side for them.

Plants are important but the welfare of fish is paramount.
 
frogbit said:
When you have 3 consecutive days of 0 ammonia and 0 nitrite you can add fish. It took me 6 weeks to cycle my tank, you'll probably be a bit quicker. A big water change the night before fish shopping will be needed to reduce nitrates.

You need to research which fish suit your water. Otos need soft slightly acidic water, SAE can tolerate soft to moderate hardness, but I think your tank is on the small side for them.

Plants are important but the welfare of fish is paramount.
Click to expand...
Thanks frogbit. I had nitrites back up at 5ppm today, so my excitement was premature.

In time I will be using RO water (I just don't have enough of it to fill the whole tank in one go - hence using tap water so far). Using RO for my future water changes should help me get conditions that are better for ottos. I've had SAE before, but admittedly that was in a 90cm long tank. I might consider young ones and then move them to a larger home in a couple of years. Not sure. I'm a little hesitant with ottos and shrimp because I want to keep open the option of a pair of angelfish. I'm not totally sure about them, but I think a pair could look good in a 60cm high tank. Ottos and shrimp would eventually become food for the Angels...
 
Hmmm...i seem to have seen no change at all in my test results. Still 2.0ppm ammonia, 5ppm nitrite, and 40/80ppm nitrate. Taking longer than i was expecting. I wonder if the test kit is dodgy. I have had it for years (opened), but it says it is still within its expiry date of Jan 2017.
 
After doing a very large water change and seeing practically no change in test results, i've decided to get some new test-kits, as I realised mine were 4 years old. I've read that this is pretty much at the end of their shelf-life. Hopefully this will bring me some good news, as i just find it strange that my results have hardly changed at all...
 
hi, 3rdtimelucky
i am cycling an acuarium wit ada amazonia substrate.
two weeks now, sky high ammonium, nitritres and nitrates ,at the beginning, which could not come from bacteria work. did a few water changes and at two weeks now, barely measurable nitrites and nitrates, and ammonia still sky high, beyond the capacity of my jbl test kit to measure.

i assume the soil contained nitrites and nitrates besides ammonia. now nitrites and nitrates have been washed out by the water changes.

and i am left with the ammonia whict is obviously still leaching out of the substrato

i believe that there is still no appreciable nitrifying bacterial activity since nitrites or nitrates are not appearing.

I have just planted heavily and added co2.
260 l tank, temp 27, ph 6
plants are pearling heavily, hopefully removing ammonia
 
three weeks into fishles cycling amazonia substrate, ammonia has come down to 3, nitrites and nitrates appeared.. cycling is started... no bacteria added
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top