# First Time Doing a Cycle



## herefishyfishyfishy (Nov 28, 2015)

Good morning everyone! So I started my first cycle last night on my 36 gallon. I used about 1 teaspoon of fish flakes since I had no access to pure ammonia. My question is, would it be ok to switch to ammonia if i can find it? Or do I have to continue with the flakes since that's what I put in yesterday? Will adding pure ammonia on top of the food make the levels skyrocket beyond control? I know cycling takes a while, I just don't want to continue with flakes if that takes so much longer than using ammonia. Thanks for your help!


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## Chillwill007 (Aug 20, 2010)

Yea doing it with food takes lot longer. And it doesn't matter if you switch. Other thing that I think k is much easier is to just drop a frozen shrimp in there but in a mesh bag or pantyhose. That way your not having to remember to put something in. When I did that I just put it in and waited till it was all dissolved and mucusy to even start checking.


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## Summer (Oct 3, 2011)

You can switch. Just about any dollar store will have pure ammonia in their cleaning section for a dollar or two.


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## Summer (Oct 3, 2011)

Also know people who toss a raw piece of shrimp in to kick start things


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## herefishyfishyfishy (Nov 28, 2015)

Well after an hour & half of driving around town, I finally found ammonia!! I put it in my tank almost 2 hours ago & I've got a reading! .5 ppm


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## Summer (Oct 3, 2011)

you want to dose it to read 4ppm


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## herefishyfishyfishy (Nov 28, 2015)

It's at 4 now! So I guess now I wait.


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## Summer (Oct 3, 2011)

Its a tedious process, I usually break it up by planting and scaping, but since you're all "I hate green" I guess you have a month or so off waiting  (just pickin on ya) If you want to speed it up get some used filter media from a known source (somewhere you're sure doesnt have diseases--not petco or walmart) and you can cycle basically in a day or so


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## herefishyfishyfishy (Nov 28, 2015)

I'll definitely look into that. I don't know anyone with a tank & all I have in my town is petsmart/petco. I did get some seachem stability which claims to introduce bacteria quickly. I'll used it last night & tonight. We'll see how that works. & in the meantime I'm researching fish compatibility.


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## Summer (Oct 3, 2011)

This is a subject of many a debate, But I truly dont trust bacteria in a bottle gimmicks. Just be sure your tank shows 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite before you become a believer.


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## herefishyfishyfishy (Nov 28, 2015)

I figured what the hey. There's no fish in there for me to kill so why not. So now that I've got ammonia & "bacteria" how long should I expect before I see nitrite levels?

I also need to add something to lower my ph. It's over 8.5


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## Summer (Oct 3, 2011)

You should NOT mess with your Ph. Always drip acclimate new fish, and the Ph doesnt matter. When youll see nitrites depends, but for about a week just test water daily for ammonia, and dose to 4ppm if it drops. I'd test nitrite in about a week and see if you see anything, but you may not. A true fishless cycle from scratch can take 6-8 weeks


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## herefishyfishyfishy (Nov 28, 2015)

Thank you both for that info! I'll leave ph alone


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## herefishyfishyfishy (Nov 28, 2015)

1 week in, ammonia still between 2-4, no nitrites, no nitrates. Is there anything else I should be doing? I used some gravel from an established tank, but it hasn't seemed to have an effect on anything.


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