# Sticky  The Fishless Cycle



## rtbob

I wanted to add some info to this process without taking away too much from the time spent into creating this thread. There have been numerous recent issues with the cycle stalling and seemingly taking longer than it really needs to. I have never used the steps mentioned below but have used a fishless cycle 3 times now and the result has always been fairly consistent. the only thing that hasn't been the same each time is how long it takes to complete....that will be different for every tank. Here is what I do once I have the ammonia and the tank has tested 0ppm ammonia:

1. Dose 1/2tsp, wait a minute or two and test. Keep doing this until 4ppm ammonia is attained. Remember this amount. DO NOT dose based on someone else's recommendation because not all ammonia bottle are the same and have varying concentrations of ammonia. It will take less to get to 4ppm with a higher concentration.

2. Stop testing for ammonia. It will drive you crazy if you don't. Just dose the ammonia daily and don't think about the ammonia level again. Dose about the same time every day.

3. On about the 5th day or so start daily testing for nitrites - can be done earlier if you desire. 

4. Once any trace of nitrites show, cut daily dose amount in half and now dose ammonia every 4 days.

5. Keep doing that until nitrites test 0ppm.

6. Once nitrites are 0ppm, _then_ test ammonia again and make sure it has zeroed also. 

7. You can test the system if you choose. Dose some ammonia and test for ammonia the next day, along with nitrites, etc....until it all disappears again.

I just did a fishless cycle on a 20L to verify this method as it worked for me twice before and just wanted another test to be sure before I posted here. My tank completed the cycle in 12days. On the 13th day everything tested 0ppm except nitrates. Every tank will be different and smaller tanks do not mean it will occur faster. My other 20g took a little longer but not much.

- jrman83

*The Fishless Cycle*​
This article is intended for those of you who would like to establish a safe environment for your freshwater fish before introducing any fish into your aquarium. As opposed to the method of cycling using a “hardy species” of fish, this method, when done correctly will not cause any harm to any of our aquatic friends. 

Fishless cycling is considered by me and many others to be the most humane way of establishing the nitrogen cycle that is currently available to the aquarium hobbyist.

Rather than go into the different methods of introducing ammonia into the setup aquarium I’m going to focus entirely on using pure ammonia as the source. There are other ways such as allowing shrimp to rot or using fish food. The method of monitoring the progress of the cycle would be the same no matter what the source of ammonia. Also with the pure ammonia method there is no chance of introducing saprolegnia (mold) into your tank.

This article also will not cover the setting up of the tank and its hardware (that’s not what it is about). Also the method I will lay out here is for aquariums with out any live plants. I’m not saying it won’t work with live plants, just that since I have never had any, *I claim no knowledge of cycling an aquarium where live plants are present.*

*What is needed?*

In my opinion the most important tool needed for this process is something to monitor the progress of the cycle with a fair degree of accuracy. A good liquid test kit is imperative so you know just how much ammonia to add to reach the desired level and to maintain this level through out the majority of the cycle. Also with out a test kit it is impossible to know when the cycle has completed and it is safe to add fish.

There are many liquid test kits out there and they vary in price from around twenty dollars up to five times that amount and more. Fortunately the least expensive of these liquid kits is sufficient for the task at hand. I recommend the API Freshwater Master Test Kit. This kit has every test we will need to keep the ammonia levels where they need to be. Also included are tests to monitor nitrites, nitrates, and dare I mention PH. Put the PH test kit away and forget about it for now. You can use it once the cycle has completed. The PH should not be adjusted during cycling. This will just mess the whole process up.

Next thing needed is ammonia. No problem, right? Guess again. *Not just any ammonia will work. Ammonia that is scented or has added detergents should never be used. * You will need to read the ingredients on the bottle of ammonia. If it lists anything other than ammonia it is the wrong kind. You should be able to shake the bottle with out the contents foaming at the surface is another way to test. Ammonia containing surfactants only may not foam up when shaken. There is a small consensus out there who believe ammonia with surfactants is safe to use for cycling. I do not subscribe to this theory. I recommend using only pure surfactant free ammonia. Pure ammonia also comes in different concentrations which make it hard to establish dosing parameters, i.e.: add one teaspoon per gallon to achieve a certain level. Don’t worry about the strength of the ammonia. There is away around this that will be explained later on.

You should also have a heater in your tank and a thermometer as proper temperature during the cycle is important. These items will also be needed after the cycle has completed if you plan on keeping tropical fish.

Get a note book. You will need to write things down. Many people (me included) keep a running log to keep track of water parameters, tank and filter maintenance and anything else you want to remember.

I think that covers the materials needed for fishless cycling. One place I know of to get the right kind of ammonia is Ace Hardware. I have also heard that Dollar Tree stores carry pure ammonia.


*The Process!*

Okay here we go, the tank is set up. I recommend letting it run for 24 hours to allow all the “dust” to settle before starting. During this waiting period adjust your heater to bring your tank water temperature to 83-85 degrees Fahrenheit. The warmer temp will help speed things up just a bit. This is also a great time to test your tap water for ammonia, nitrites and nitrates. Let your cold water tap run wide open for 2-3 minutes to flush the line. Fill a clean well rinsed container of at least a liter in volume half way. Add the recommended amount of dechloranator (you do have some, right?) to the container. Let it sit 24 hours for the C02 to gas out and the water to stabilize. Run the full gauntlet of tests included with your test kit (yes you can even test the PH). Make sure you write all the results down. This has now given us a baseline on your tap water. 

Tap water parameters will change through out the year. Water treatment plants change the amount of chemicals used from Summer to Winter. Also heavy rain or drought conditions can affect your water quality. It is a good idea to test your tap water several times a year.

*IMPORTANT!*​
*Make sure you read and understand the directions included with your test kit. Follow these instructions to the letter. Not doing so will result in inaccurate, useless results.*

Before adding any ammonia lets also get a baseline reading of the level in your tank. This time leave the PH test out. I’m going to say that ammonia, nitrite and nitrate all read zero in your tank water because everybody’s is going to be different. Just know that if your tank water shows any level of these three things they will affect your test results later on.

* Dose the ammonia at one teaspoon per 10 gallons. Let the water circulate for two hours and test for ammonia. The goal here is to get the level up to 3-5ppm. If after testing your levels fall in this range that is great. If it is less than 3ppm add another teaspoon per 10 gallons and retest. Repeat the ammonia dosing until 3-5ppm is achieved. Write down the dosage you used to obtain this level. This is why the concentration of the ammonia is not important as mentioned earlier. If you should happen to over dose don’t panic. Replace some of the water in the tank with some of your tap water and retest. Eventually you will get it right. 

Now just sit back and do nothing for 72 hours. Tell your wife/husband I said it was okay. (let me know if this works). No need to test during this time. The time has passed and it is time to start monitoring the progress of the cycle. Test your ammonia levels at least once every 24 hours. Once they begin to drop add the appropriate amount of ammonia to bring the levels back up to 3-5ppm.

Now that the ammonia levels have begun to drop it is time to pull out your nitrite test kit and begin monitoring both the ammonia and nitrite levels. Again testing should be done at least once every 24 hours. Keep dosing ammonia to maintain adequate levels (3-5ppm).

At some point your nitrites will peak at around 5ppm. At this time I recommend cutting your ammonia dosage by 50% and reduce the frequency of dosing to every other day. Monitor the ammonia levels closely! To high of a level may stall the cycle and prevent the colonization of bacteria. When nitrites begin to decline begin testing for nitrates. When nitrates begin to register you are getting close to completion. Continue to dose ammonia at the reduced level and monitor closely. 

**(More dosing info at the end of article)*​
Your cycle has completed when you can dose the ammonia up to 4ppm and after 24 hours when you test the results are zero ammonia, zero nitrites and X ppm nitrates.



Do a water change to bring the nitrate level down to less than 20ppm. *Do not do any filter maintenance or gravel vacuuming at this time !* Don’t forget to adjust the temp of the tank water to the appropriate range for the fish you plan on keeping.


The tank is prepared for fish now. A great benefit of this cycling process is that your aquarium has a large bacteria population and can support a greater initial bio load (number of fish). *Do not wait to stock your tank after cycle completion as the bacteria will die off if an ammonia source is not present.* 

You should continue to monitor your ammonia and nitrite after introducing your fish into your aquarium. Better safe than sorry. After about a week of continued readings of zero for ammonia and nitrite you can quit testing for them. 

Monitor nitrate levels and base the percentage of water changed out on the results of this test. Let’s say after a week of zero ammonia and nitrite you test the nitrate and the results are 40ppm. A 50% water change using replacement water with zero nitrate will result in a 50% reduction in the nitrate level. Your new nitrate level will be 20ppm. I would not recommend any filter maintenance at this time and light gravel vacuuming to avoid triggering a mini cycle. 

The following week keep some of your tank water you drain in a bucket and clean your filter media in this water. Do not clean the bio media unless it begins to impede the flow of the filter. I recommend alternating deep vacuuming of the substrate and the cleaning of the filter. *You should never deep vacuum and clean all of the filter media at the same time. * 

I have at least two filters on all my tanks. Besides improving water quality and circulation this allows me to alternate filter maintenance. Also in the event of a filter failure an established backup is in place and running. If you can do the same.


*How long does this take?*

Well let’s see. When the Earth was first formed it took around two billion years before the first bacteria showed up. If you have read the Bible God did it all in seven days (he must have had a real good bacteria in a bottle product!). So I would say some where between 7 days and 2 billion years. *No, really it will take as long as it takes. Patience is the key here. * My best guess is somewhere from 21-28 days. 

Use the time to research the fish you want to keep. Read all you can about the hobby. Participate in this forum. Post pictures of your tank, ask questions, help others along. The time will go by fast and the results are well worth the time invested.



If you have managed to read through all of this and have learned a thing or two, than I have accomplished one of my goals for writing this. My other goal was to completely waste your time.


Type at ya later,

Rtbob.

*Additional dosing instructions added 06/09/11 (Thank you Holly!)*​
The plan here is to maintain the ammonia levels at the level needed to feed the colonizing bacteria with out rasing levels to high. In a freshly set up system (no bio help what so ever) it is pretty much useless to test the ammonia for around 72 hours after the baseline has been accurately recorded. It will take this long for the bacteria to start forming.

You should have at this time a baseline reading for your tap water and a baseline reading for the tank water. You should also have recorded the initial dose of ammonia required to achieve the desired range (3-5ppm) Using this info you should be able to calculate the amount of ammonia needed to maintain this level.

Example: Baseline ammonia level of tank water was zero. After dosing one tsp for every 10 gallons your new levels were 2 ppm. Not quite there. You add another tsp per gallon and retest. Levels are now 4ppm. Perfect. It took two tsp to achieve the desired level. Initial reading was zero end reading was 4 and dosage was 2 tsp. Divide dosage (2) by change in ammonia level (4)=0.5 tsp. This gives us the dosage required to change the ammonia level by 1ppm, 1/2 a teaspoon.

In a case where the intial dose of 1 teaspoon per 10 gallons was enough to reach the desired level you divide 1 by 4 = 0.25 or 1/4 tsp per gallon would adjust the level by 1ppm.

Maintain the ammonia level dosing your calculated amount of ammonia as needed. As the concentration of ammonia varies by product the initial tank dosage is the best way I know of to account for this. 

I couldn't just say dose "X" amount because with some products this would be way to much and with others not enough.

Hope this clears things up a bit.


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## rtbob

Comments or suggestions, constructive criticisms ? I can take it, really I can!


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## Subaru4wd

A great post that I think more people need to read.

I've been doing alot of research on this and found a few good sites on the internet that go into great detail on fishless cycling and the many options you have.

This is a great site that does a good job of covering just about everything!
The Aquarium Nitrogen Cycle


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## holly12

Thanks for the post! Great info'! I've never done a fishless cycle and have wondered what exactly is involved. Now I've got another option for when I set up my next tank.


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## jrman83

Good post, but didn't see much on the mechanics of it. The dosage that is recorded needs to added daily until nitrites show, then dosages are reduced to half and only every other day. At least this is what I did. If you had that stuff in there, sorry only glanced over it.


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## rtbob

Yes the mechanics of the process are limited. My main goal is to prevent us members from directing new members to links to other forums.

Instead we could direct them to a sticky which has been fine tuned by us that could answer their questions and save us members a lot of typing. Thank you very much for taking the time to read my post.


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## Rohkey

You should also do a section on the "silent cycle" aka using a lot of plants, since plants eat ammonia and nitrates, no nitrites would form or need to be dealt with. Using this method you can add fish right away without the wait, but have to keep up on the plant maintenance.


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## mrrobb39

Just FYI to all interested in fishless cycling, I purchased pure lab grade ammonium chloride from a local lab supply store for about $10. 

I was having a hard time finding the pure ammonia, and with the ammonium chloride you use waaay less. For my sons 10g tank I dosed at about 0.2g/day to reach 4-5ppm ammonia.


Here's a link to their online store if you're interested...
San Jose Scientific - The Science Shop
Ammonium Chloride
AMMONIUM CHLORIDE LAB GRADE
The microspoon I used to dose
SPATULA, MICRO SS SPOON 6-1/4"

I'm sure there are any number of places you can get these thing online, but this place is local for me.
-Rob


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## mrrobb39

Also....Ill try to post my graphs and tables from my cycle when its complete, so far so good!

One interesting observation was that the Nitrates in my local water supply are relatively high at 10ppm so this value has remained unchanged.

Ammonia and Nitrites are cycling properly, we'll see how much of a Nitrate spike I get near the end of the cycle. 

I'm not interested in bringing the Nitrates down for now, if at all, I will re-evaluate prior to adding fish.


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## wimpyreef

awesome read. you rocked the post!! hehe

just what i was looking for today.


but 21-28 days ?? i know patience is the key but dang...
planning to move homes, and transfer my fishy's and corals to a bigger tank...they wont be too happy with me if i gotta keep em all separate in small buckets for a month.. 

any info on the "silent" cycle aka plant cycle? like what types of plants work well etc?


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## rtbob

wimpyreef said:


> awesome read. you rocked the post!! hehe
> 
> just what i was looking for today.
> 
> 
> but 21-28 days ?? i know patience is the key but dang...
> planning to move homes, and transfer my fishy's and corals to a bigger tank...they wont be too happy with me if i gotta keep em all separate in small buckets for a month..
> 
> any info on the "silent" cycle aka plant cycle? like what types of plants work well etc?


Thank you for taking the time to read my post. 

Having no experience with a planted aquarium I'm going to leave it up to those who do have the experience to write the "silent cycle" article.


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## beaslbob

I would like to add my .02 of the planted tank cycle.

By starting the tank with a mix of fast growing and slower growing plants right from the start it is normal to get no ammonia nor nitrIte spikes. because the plants consume the ammonia directly.

therefore there is no stress on the fish at any time. In fact the plants remove the carbon dioxide and return oxygen so if anything the fish feel little to no stress at all.

Because of chlorines, chloramines and what have you I recommend you stock the tank then wait one week before adding fish. that way the plants will be in control and the water conditioned for fish.

then add a very low (1 fish for a 10g tank) fish load and wait one week. During that time do not any food.

After the week stock up the tank and start very light feedings.

what results is the "silent" or phantom or whatever cycle where there are no ammonia nor nitrIte spikes but there can be an initial nitrate spike as substrates (for instance) may leach out nitrates as well as ammonia. The plants are consuming the ammonia and not using nitrate for their nitrogen.

then as the aerobic bacteria build and consume ammonia, the plants are forced to use nitrates for their nitrogen. So nitrates finally drop down after 3-4 weeks or so.

And that's the basic "silent" planted cycle using fish.

my .02


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## beesee

A fantastic article, thanks


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## Fearmancer

Very helpful, thanks for the planted cycle too beaslbob.


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## beaslbob

Fearmancer said:


> Very helpful, thanks for the planted cycle too beaslbob.


Welcome.

FWIW it took me many years/decades before I found out why it works. *old dude

my .02


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## holly12

rtbob said:


> *The Fishless Cycle*​Dose the ammonia at one teaspoon per 10 gallons. Let the water circulate for two hours and test for ammonia. The goal here is to get the level up to 3-5ppm. If after testing your levels fall in this range that is great. If it is less than 3ppm *add another teaspoon per gallon* and retest. Repeat the ammonia dosing until 3-5ppm is achieved. Write down the dosage you used to obtain this level. This is why the concentration of the ammonia is not important as mentioned earlier. If you should happen to over dose don’t panic. Replace some of the water in the tank with some of your tap water and retest. Eventually you will get it right.


When you said to add another teaspoon per gallon if your original dose doesn't reach 3-5ppm, *did you mean another teaspoon per 10 gallons*? (Just thinking that 1 teaspoon per 1 gallon will be waaaay to much ammonia). Using your method though and reached 4-5ppm right away! (Woot!) Day two and so far I'm at 4-5ppm still! Thanks so much (and my fish that were going to be the 'cyclers' thank you as well.)


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## rtbob

holly12 said:


> When you said to add another teaspoon per gallon if your original dose doesn't reach 3-5ppm, *did you mean another teaspoon per 10 gallons*? (Just thinking that 1 teaspoon per 1 gallon will be waaaay to much ammonia). Using your method though and reached 4-5ppm right away! (Woot!) Day two and so far I'm at 4-5ppm still! Thanks so much (and my fish that were going to be the 'cyclers' thank you as well.)



Yes I ment another tsp per 10 gallons. Thank you for catching that for me. It has been fixed.


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## sondre

Hi guys,

Quick question about "planted cycling" .

So i set everything up (put gravel,plants,decorations in,fill it with water ) and just wait a week without doing anything? 
no need to do any tests / no need to add ammonia ???

Sorry if this sound stupid question,it just seems too easy  Want to make sure i got it right before i mess things up .


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## Rohkey

sondre said:


> Hi guys,
> 
> Quick question about "planted cycling" .
> 
> So i set everything up (put gravel,plants,decorations in,fill it with water ) and just wait a week without doing anything?
> no need to do any tests / no need to add ammonia ???
> 
> Sorry if this sound stupid question,it just seems too easy  Want to make sure i got it right before i mess things up .


It's easy because plants are so good at filtering water and nature is designed to have fauna/flora balance each other out.

It's difficult because in order to achieve the silent cycle, you need to have a lot of plants.

Either way...I've read that you don't have to wait at all, but it probably would be good to wait a week as beasl suggested for the reason he mentioned along with letting the plants settle and grow a bit before the bioload is introduced. Ammonia isn't needed because you're not trying to cycle the tank but you could add a small amount. The plants will do most of the work and the small amount of bacteria that forms will form slowly over the next couple months.


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## beaslbob

sondre said:


> Hi guys,
> 
> Quick question about "planted cycling" .
> 
> So i set everything up (put gravel,plants,decorations in,fill it with water ) and just wait a week without doing anything?
> no need to do any tests / no need to add ammonia ???
> 
> Sorry if this sound stupid question,*it just seems too easy * Want to make sure i got it right before i mess things up .


Yes it does seem easy and to me it is.

The week before adding fish also lets the chlorine and chlorimine dissapate before introducing the fish.

Adding one fish and not adding food the first week is to insure you don't overload the plants. And IME (with 10g tank) feeding that first fish always resulted in it dying on the 5th day just like clock work. Not adding food resulted in that first fish surviving.

Adding very light feedings with the second fish addition resulted in no cloudiness. When I measured stuff there was a very short spike after I started adding food. In an extreme case where I had fed the fish nitrItes spiked up very hign (pegged the test kit so 5ppm+++) for days. Then after I stopped adding food they dropped to 0 in a couple of days. So now I just feed very very lightly and the nitrItes have a very small one day spike.

So even though it seems simple and it actually is, the "method" is actually the result of several attempts I made in the past.

my .02


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## susankat

Hey guys, I am gonna sticky this thread.


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## beaslbob

susankat said:


> Hey guys, I am gonna sticky this thread.


ouch!!!!!!!

*r2

actually good deal. even if I do get and new tail. *old dude


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## susankat

Thought you needed a new tail Bob!


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## sondre

rtbob said:


> *The Fishless Cycle*​
> At some point your nitrites will peak at around 5ppm. At this time I recommend cutting your ammonia dosage by 50% and reduce the frequency of dosing to every other day. Monitor the ammonia levels closely! To high of a level may stall the cycle and prevent the colonization of bacteria. When nitrites begin to decline begin testing for nitrates. When nitrates begin to register you are getting close to completion. Continue to dose ammonia at the reduced level and monitor closely.
> 
> .


Can anyone help me with this please ?

I started getting nitrite at 5.0ppm right from the first time i added ammonia , i did test my tap water , but its 0 .

And nitrate is at 10-20 ppm .

Should i lower ammonia doses then ? i only started adding ammonia 6 days ago .

on the 7th july, i added 2.5 ml of ammonia,2 hours later test showed 8ppm .

yesterday i tested again,and it showed ammonia at 0 ppm (within 24 hours!)
So i added 1.25 ml (half dose) ammonia yesterday evening and 7 hours later test shows ammonia 0.5 ppm , nitrite 5.0 ppm .

The tank is planted , but not planted enough to do silent cycle , and i use API liquid test kit.

What should i do ? should i add ammonia every day ? or every other day and wait for nitrites to drop to 0 ?


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## holly12

Maybe try one more day with adding ammonia - just to be sure it wasn't some weird fluke. If it drops as fast as it has been doing within 24 hours, then just do it every 2 or 3 days and wait for the Nitrites to drop. Your Nitrates will spike when the Nitrites start to drop.

You're lucky! Sounds like your cycle is almost done and you just started! I'm going to be going into week 7 of mine on Monday!!!!! And I still can't get the ammonia to drop past 1ppm or the Nitrites past 1ppm!!! Grrrr!


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## sondre

i think it could be plants "eating" ammonia lol , it actually drops within 12 hours . 

so i will start adding ammonia every other day .

why do we need to add it every other day ? it kind of seems to me,if it drops down to 0 within 12 hours,we should add it every 12 hours to get more bacteria . (???)

Sorry if this sounds silly,just want to know how these things work , and it is my first tank after all,so i got no experience with tanks . 

Holly,i hope your cycle will finish soon, 6 weeks is a loooong time ! you are very patient !
When you start your 36 gallon , maybe you could add couple plants in it,to compare if they actually do make a difference .


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## Meave

I read on some other sites about the lighting during this process, some say to keep it on all the time, and other say keep it dark? Any recommendations?


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## holly12

Keep them off!!! I had mine on and grew a bunch of algae that screwed up my water!!


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## Gizmo

holly12 said:


> Keep them off!!! I had mine on and grew a bunch of algae that screwed up my water!!


...unless you have live plants in there. Then you'll want the lights on for some of the day to keep the plants happy.


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## jebusfreek666

I was wondering, if you finish cycling your tank and your fish haven't arrived yet do you just keep dosing the ammonia at 1/2 every other day to keep the bacteria alive and then do a water change the day you get the fish to lower nitrates to an acceptable level prior to adding the fish? Or do you have to get fish the same day when the cycle finishes?


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## jrman83

jebusfreek666 said:


> I was wondering, if you finish cycling your tank and your fish haven't arrived yet do you just keep dosing the ammonia at 1/2 every other day to keep the bacteria alive and then do a water change the day you get the fish to lower nitrates to an acceptable level prior to adding the fish? Or do you have to get fish the same day when the cycle finishes?


If it is going to be a long period after the cycle has completed before fish, then you could add a little ammonia. Just make sure it has time to go away before fish go in.


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## jebusfreek666

One more question on this. I have been doing my cycle for 5 days now, and there has been no change in the ammonia levels in the tank. I dosed it to 5 ppm, and there has been no change what so ever. I am guessing that mine is just taking its time, but at what point should I start to become concerned and start over? A week? 2 weeks?


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## Suzanne

Awesome post rtbob, thanks! I have just one question (so far, as I haven't actually started): how important is it that the testing be done *exactly* every 24 hours... like if I do it at noon one day, and at 8 am or 5 pm the next, is that likely to affect my results enough that it would matter? Not that I'm planning on doing this, but I know how my life is, and I figure it's likely to happen at some point.

Edit: Ok, one more: I'm planning to use some bacterially "seeded" ornaments; at what point should I put those in the tank that I'm cycling? (I'm thinking right away, after the initial 24 hours of the tank running...)


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## LariM78

Hi there,

I just set up my new tank over this last weekend. I managed to get some laboratory grade ammonia hydroxide solution - 25% concentration. I'm pretty sure that this stuff is much stronger than what you will find in a hardware store so I'm going to add only a little at a time to make sure I don't overdose. I will post my findings. I have put in most of the decorations. Hopefully I can fill it with water tonight.


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## jrman83

Concentrations will vary from brand to brand....you need to go slow and test to determine your level before adding more.


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## baeya

Can you cycle an aquarium with live bacteria? That's how we cycle our pond. I just set up a 90 gal. tank to raise my baby koi and put some of the bacteria I use in the pond into the tank. I also put some of the anacharis from the pond into the tank. I put 4 baby koi in and it has been a week. I test every day and ammonia and nitrites are 0. My test kit came with a phosphate instead of nitrate for some reason. I ordered a nitrate kit last night. Any comments please...


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## beaslbob

baeya said:


> Can you cycle an aquarium with live bacteria? That's how we cycle our pond. I just set up a 90 gal. tank to raise my baby koi and put some of the bacteria I use in the pond into the tank. I also put some of the anacharis from the pond into the tank. I put 4 baby koi in and it has been a week. I test every day and ammonia and nitrites are 0. My test kit came with a phosphate instead of nitrate for some reason. I ordered a nitrate kit last night. Any comments please...


Yes you can use live bacteria to cycle a tank.

But even with no bacteria initialy present, enough fast growing plants will consume any ammonia the bacteria "miss" preventing ammonia spikes. Anacharis is excellent at that plus removing carbon dioxide as well.

Then bacterial will still build up and eventually consume the ammonia and the anacharis will consume nitrates for thier nitrogen.

So with no bacteria (worse case) and plenty of plants it is entirly possible even expected to get no ammonia spike but an initial nitrate spike. Then as bacteria build up the nitrates drop to unmeasureable levels.

my .02


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## baeya

Thanks so much for your comment beaslbob. I was hoping for that answer. I haven't seen anyone discuss using live bacteria to cycle their aquarium. Is it not good practice?

I sure wish I had that nitrates test kit now. I can't believe mine came with a phosphates one.......I haven't even seen anyone talk about phosphates....


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## beaslbob

baeya said:


> Thanks so much for your comment beaslbob. I was hoping for that answer. I haven't seen anyone discuss using live bacteria to cycle their aquarium. Is it not good practice?


from time to time we do hear of people selling live bacteria stuff. And using material from existing aquarium/ponds is a recommended practice. But to me it is at least unnecessary. Afterall the bacteria will grow and get established anyway.


> I sure wish I had that nitrates test kit now. I can't believe mine came with a phosphates one.......I haven't even seen anyone talk about phosphates....


Phosphates are IMHO actually harder to get down. And when nitrates go down with some phosphates you tent to get cyano. At which point I kill the lights and stop feeding to kill off the cyano. Then resume with less lighting and feeding so the plants thrive but the algae/cyano stays away.

my .02


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## jen13189

okay I have a question.i've been fishless cycling for 5 weeks now,at a temperature of about 78-81 degrees with my canopy light on for about 7 hours of the day from the time i get up to about 7pm or about 10:30pm if no one turns off the light when i'm not home.and ph is at 7.6 before when i had my well water in which was hard.it was above 7.6.But I did a 50-60% water change and added spring water and that brought it down a bit.But its never been below 7.6,I used a neaturalize because right after i change it with the spring water it went up a bit,so i tested it again after using the neautralize it went down to 7.6.But my question is I was told to use distilled water to get the rest of my well water out of the tank with the water change and to the lower the ph.

The ph when I tested the spring water(deer park) it was below 7.6 it was in the yellows before i put the spring water in the tank.My question is would that work if I used distilled water or should I do another 30 percent water change with the spring water to get the rest of the well water out and the ph down?Or would that have no effect?I still have about 40 percent well water in their now the next day after i added the spring water I did another 10 percent water change to add the rest of the spring water.I have a 10 gallon tank.would this help or no?i also used dechlorinator after i put the spring water in.just in case.


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## Pigeonfish

jen13189 said:


> okay I have a question.i've been fishless cycling for 5 weeks now,at a temperature of about 78-81 degrees with my canopy light on for about 7 hours of the day from the time i get up to about 7pm or about 10:30pm if no one turns off the light when i'm not home.and ph is at 7.6 before when i had my well water in which was hard.it was above 7.6.But I did a 50-60% water change and added spring water and that brought it down a bit.But its never been below 7.6,I used a neaturalize because right after i change it with the spring water it went up a bit,so i tested it again after using the neautralize it went down to 7.6.But my question is I was told to use distilled water to get the rest of my well water out of the tank with the water change and to the lower the ph.
> 
> The ph when I tested the spring water(deer park) it was below 7.6 it was in the yellows before i put the spring water in the tank.My question is would that work if I used distilled water or should I do another 30 percent water change with the spring water to get the rest of the well water out and the ph down?Or would that have no effect?I still have about 40 percent well water in their now the next day after i added the spring water I did another 10 percent water change to add the rest of the spring water.I have a 10 gallon tank.would this help or no?i also used dechlorinator after i put the spring water in.just in case.


Why do you want the pH down? Most fish can do very well in 7.6, especially if they're drip acclimated.


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## jrman83

jen13189 said:


> okay I have a question.i've been fishless cycling for 5 weeks now,at a temperature of about 78-81 degrees with my canopy light on for about 7 hours of the day from the time i get up to about 7pm or about 10:30pm if no one turns off the light when i'm not home.and ph is at 7.6 before when i had my well water in which was hard.it was above 7.6.But I did a 50-60% water change and added spring water and that brought it down a bit.But its never been below 7.6,I used a neaturalize because right after i change it with the spring water it went up a bit,so i tested it again after using the neautralize it went down to 7.6.But my question is I was told to use distilled water to get the rest of my well water out of the tank with the water change and to the lower the ph.
> 
> The ph when I tested the spring water(deer park) it was below 7.6 it was in the yellows before i put the spring water in the tank.My question is would that work if I used distilled water or should I do another 30 percent water change with the spring water to get the rest of the well water out and the ph down?Or would that have no effect?I still have about 40 percent well water in their now the next day after i added the spring water I did another 10 percent water change to add the rest of the spring water.I have a 10 gallon tank.would this help or no?i also used dechlorinator after i put the spring water in.just in case.


Have you tested your water with the high range ph test? The reason I ask....if you test your water with the low range test and your ph is higher than what the low test will register, the highest reading you get is 7.6. 7.6 is the range limit of the low test kit. So your water could be 8+ and you would never know until you test with the high range test. If you haven't already.....


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## jen13189

no i haven't i'm a bit tight on money right now.But I can always ask the fiance to buy me one if he can.and my nitrate and nitrate and ammonia was around .25 when i last checked it on the 7th at about 5:30pm.i should probably check it again.

Well the reason i want to lower it is because the place i'm getting the fish has a reading of neautral plus right now i still have well water in the so its gonna be a bit hard at the moment.My mom bought me some distilled water today when she went to the store.should i still use that mixed with the spring water?or is that a bad idea?

p.s. I have live plants in my tank would that effect plants if i didn't lower the ph and would they survive with catfish?


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## amdanand

I am in the middle of my fishless cycling. Yesterday, I saw that the Ammonia=0ppm, Nitrates~20ppm but there was a Nitrite spike ~5ppm. I guess only one kind of Nitrifying bacteria (that converts Ammonia to Nitrite) has been established so far. My Nitrates haven't changed since past 3-4 days and the ammonia has depleted. I didn't want to lose any of already established bacteria and so dosed it with Ammonia up to 3ppm. Is it okay to do so? My only concern is that it might spike the Nitrites even more and I hope that doesn't affect the establishment of second set of bacteria. I could also do a PWC, but I am not sure of what other effects that might cause impeding the cycle. Please let me your thoughts on this. Thanks!


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## RylandVT

I've just started with my fishless cycle and I guess I'm a little confused. how do you know you have an ammonia reading of 5 with the API test kit? Mine has a reading for 4 and 8 but nothing in between. Is it just a guess if the color is between the two? is there a different test kit out there?


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## jrman83

4ppm will work.


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## dante322

should carbon be removed from filters to do a fishless cycle? carbon is supposed to remove ammonia isn't it?


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## FishlessCycle

dante322 said:


> should carbon be removed from filters to do a fishless cycle? carbon is supposed to remove ammonia isn't it?


It doesn't matter as activated carbon doesn't do much about ammonia, nitrite, nitrate. 


I have done fishless cycle with activated carbon still inside my new canister filter. It cycled just fine. Although the activated carbon isn't really needed unless you try to remove medication from the water. I removed the carbon pad not too long after my cycle was completed, and I never added another.


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## bigcountry10

quick question, my amonia levels are dropping to zero now within 24 hours, but my nitrites are really high still (around 5ppm) and my nitrates are at around 40ppm, im about 3 weeks in. is this sounding about right ??? I've also started to half dose ammonia everyother day.


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## jrman83

Sounds about right to me. Usually this stage takes a little longer, but hang in there and it will be over soon enough. Nitrates being that high may signify that the nitrites are being processed to some level.


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## jrman83

I posted some info in the beginning of this thread to hopefully fix some problems people have been having getting through a fishless cycle.

http://www.aquariumforum.com/f66/fishless-cycle-15036.html#post98610


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## Redbug

Just interested as to wether you did your fish less cycle in a planted aquarium?
Your post answered lots of my questions. Thanks heaps. RB.


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## Redbug

RT. Sorry, ignore last post, question answered, read the whole thread.:fish5:


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## Wusker

Okay I need some advice.
All the stuff you need to know so far is. Started my fishless cycle 12 days ago, new freshwater 34 gal tank, no plants, temp at 82-84 degrees, substrate, sand, pea gravel all added in and strained ahead of time I let it sit for 48 hours with filter running and I dechlorinated it. I have been dosing using the ammonia from Ace hardware. dosing at 3 tsp.

I followed the rules very closely, and have been documenting levels and dose each night as the post stated and it took me 5 days after the initial 72 hour wait period for ammonia to drop. since then I cannot get my nitrates to get lower than 20-40 ppm. for instance tonight again my levels were ammonia 0ppm,nitrite 0 ppm, nitrate 40 ppm. and once again tonight i added 3 tsp of ammonia if i test it in an hour or so ill get same result of 4-8 ppm of ammonia.

Am I building a bacterial colony or what? LOL. I figure something has to have removed/ broken down the ammonia and nitrites.
What is the wait time for this?
Is there anything else I need to do? 
Is my cycle done?
I did not want to do a water change as the post stricly talks against it. I guess I am just concerned I stalled my cycle.

Maybe I am just not understanding the process of how it should work for me to gauge it.

Thanks again,
Wusker


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## dalfed

you are done. if ammonia and nitrites drop to zero in 24 hours cycle complete, do a 50% water change to get nitrate levels below 20 may need 60% then add your fish!!


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## OspreyPrey

In the case of FW cycling, does RO/DI water have a positive neutral or negative effect? Also if I bought premade FW from my LFS would I still need to cycle as itcomes from an established nitrogen cycle? Ideas?


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## coralbandit

Very little bacteria actually live in water column.I would try to get cycled filter material from LFS if they have any(many LFS keep their tanks sterile).I imagine if RO watre has the correct parameters for your fish(very low pH,and hardness) then it can be cycled without issue.


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## Wusker

Okay looking for suggestions, I cycled my tank and had it complete on the 11-12th day, after that I was waiting for a piece of manzanita wood, and looking at lights.
I figured I would continue to cycle and add my ammonia in each day until I had my lights and decor. well life happened and I missed two days I continued my cycles as I had left off adding in 3tsp of ammonia, two days later I checked my levels and I had 8ppm ammonia. I stopped adding in ammonia for 4 days and tested each day. 
At this point its beeen over 2 weks, I have changed the water twice and cleaned all the filters and even bio wheels, I cannot get the ammonia levels below 8ppm.
I still have no plants or fish in tank.
Any suggestions?


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## susankat

Do not clean filters or bio wheels. doing that you have just started your cycle over again.


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## Wusker

susankat said:


> Do not clean filters or bio wheels. doing that you have just started your cycle over again.


I dont think you understand my cycle was done acording to my daily time chart 3/24/13, within that week that i missed two days of adding ammonia I have done nothing as far as adding ammonia and *my levels will not drop below 8ppm in over a month, almost a month and a half!* 

After that much time I was at my wits end so I have done mutiple water changes, no effect. I have tested daily, no change. Finally another water change and clean everything i could, still no change.


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## susankat

> cleaned all the filters and even bio wheels, I cannot get the ammonia levels below 8ppm.
> I still have no plants or fish in tank.


I understand completely and unless you cleaned your filters and bio wheels in old tank water you kill off all the bacteria on the filters and starts your cycle all over again.


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## hockeyman7lw

Sorry for the confusion but I am a total newby and do not totally understand everything, even after ready the awesome advice here. I have been doing a fishless cycle on a 10 gallon tank that has 3 java ferns, driftwood and some shale along with the gravel substrate. I was wondering why all of a sudden my ph would drop from 7.0 to 6.0 within 2 days and my NO2 maxed out over 2 weeks at 1 and is now down to .25 with NO3 steady at 10. Does this sound like my tank is almost cycled or is it stalling out? Any advice is appreciated. thank you


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## jchase79

Thanks for posting this! I never knew about fishless cycling back when I first started an aquarium. Now that I am getting back into the hobby, I'm using this method - just about halfway through the cycle and it seems to be going well.


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## SeanMcC

I recently read another article about a fishless cycle and their steps were almost identical except that say you need to add bacteria from a healthy donor tank or a commercial product. Is this really necessary, and if not, where do the bacteria come from? Are they present in the water even though it is treated tap water?


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## coralbandit

The bacteria develope(grow) from the ammonia source.Not left to be completely stagnate(a filtered aqurium we'll say) wants to be healthy.The bacteria grow in two phases being first those that convert ammonia to nitrite,then in the saturation of nitrate the next bacteria begin to grow which will convert nitrite to nitrate.Nothing else but ammonia(the proper ammonia) is needed to fishless cycle.
If you move cycled material to another tank,as long as you add fish(source of ammonia),then the tank is ready to go day one.Stocking for this situation should be done slowly so the bacteria can grow with increased bio load,whereas using the fishless cycle and ammonia at 4ppm to complete allows for full/complete stocking all at once.


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## SeanMcC

I am sorry to say I highly doubt there is any bacteria in the ammonia, but maybe that is not what you mean. I am asking if I do not seed my tank with bacteria and I add ammonia, where does the bacteria that grows come from? Is it present in the water in minute quantities and grows from that even though I am on city water with chloramine in it?


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## jrman83

He wasn't saying it is in the ammonia, but more caused by the ammonia entering the water. The presence of the ammonia is what triggers the whole process. It is not bacteria you are putting in the tank. It is formed naturally to start the decomposition of the matter in the water - the ammonia. The same thing happens out of water when something dies. The nitrogen cycle affects everything on Earth. The Chloramine is what kills the bacteria in your water but it is the stuff that causes disease, infections, etc so you can drink it and not get sick. Not the same type of bacteria.


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## SeanMcC

This is an interesting discussion... Hope I am not upsetting you.

Ok.. I guess I am not making myself clear. 

Lets say I take distilled water and put it in a closed sterilized container with ammonia. Will bacteria develop? If so, where was the first bacteria that the colony grew from? It had to be in the water, the ammonia or the air the water touched. 

Our tanks are not distilled water, so I suppose there could be some bacteria in the water. I believe, but don't know for sure, that chloramine will kill the good bacteria we want too... why else would we not want to rinse the filter media in tap water? So if that is the case, I still do not know where the good bacteria in my tank comes from. The air?


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## Jenniferinfl

It would be hard to setup an aquarium and not inadvertently add bacteria. 
Nitrosomonas (ammonia-oxidizers) and Nitrobacter (nitrite-oxidizers) are found in very small quantities in even chlorinated water. Obviously, a good colony cannot grow in chlorinated water, but, there are enough survivors to very slowly start up an aquarium. Adding them from an already cycled aquarium is significantly faster.


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## coralbandit

Before I wander(much farther) than what I know for 100% WHO ADDS THE BACTERIA TO ALL NATURAL WATER BODIES?The bacteria is developed/inveloped/created by REACTION to "things" added to the water .Be it decomposing plant,food or once live creatures they decompose creating ammonia.The ammonia"in effect"(not being healthy or wanted) is then taken care of by bacteria that is grown/developed "because" of it.
If you think you need to help mother nature in your tank you're right.If you think you need help mother nature in nature,.....I wish you luck!We are all trying to emmulate nature ,just seems a little more work on enclosed systems(then again I couldn't even begin to figure the pump size for Niagra falls so maybe I'm clueless{but not upset by your thoughts!)


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## SeanMcC

Jenniferinfl said:


> Nitrosomonas (ammonia-oxidizers) and Nitrobacter (nitrite-oxidizers) are found in very small quantities in even chlorinated water. Obviously, a good colony cannot grow in chlorinated water, but, there are enough survivors to very slowly start up an aquarium.


Jenniferinfl... THAT'S IT!!! That was what I was asking. We are growing the survivors of our chlorinated tap water if everything else is eliminated.

Now, for the other part of this. The article I was reading about adding bacteria for a fishless cycle is not 100% necessary. It can work very well on it's own albe it a little slower.

Thanks for the answers! I really appreciate it. It really helps me understand what is being accomplished.


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## Avraptorhal

rtbob said:


> and retest. Repeat the ammonia dosing until 3-5ppm is achieved. Write down the dosage you used to obtain this level. This is why the concentration of the ammonia is not important as mentioned earlier. If you should happen to over dose don’t panic. Replace some of the water in the tank with some of your tap water and retest. Eventually you will get it right.
> 
> Now just sit back and do nothing for 72 hours. Tell your wife/husband I said it was okay. (let me know if this works). No need to test during this time. The time has passed and it is time to start monitoring the progress of the cycle. Test your ammonia levels at least once every 24 hours. Once they begin to drop add the appropriate amount of ammonia to bring the levels back up to 3-5ppm.
> 
> Now that the ammonia levels have begun to drop it is time to pull out your nitrite test kit and begin monitoring both the ammonia and nitrite levels. Again testing should be done at least once every 24 hours. Keep dosing ammonia to maintain adequate levels (3-5ppm).
> 
> At some point your nitrites will peak at around 5ppm. At this time I recommend cutting your ammonia dosage by 50% and reduce the frequency of dosing to every other day. Monitor the ammonia levels closely! To high of a level may stall the cycle and prevent the colonization of bacteria. When nitrites begin to decline begin testing for nitrates. When nitrates begin to register you are getting close to completion. Continue to dose ammonia at the reduced level and monitor closely.
> 
> **(More dosing info at the end of article)*​
> Your cycle has completed when you can dose the ammonia up to 4ppm and after 24 hours when you test the results are zero ammonia, zero nitrites and X ppm nitrates.
> 
> 
> 
> Do a water change to bring the nitrate level down to less than 20ppm. *Do not do any filter maintenance or gravel vacuuming at this time !* Don’t forget to adjust the temp of the tank water to the appropriate range for the fish you plan on keeping.
> 
> 
> The tank is prepared for fish now. A great benefit of this cycling process is that your aquarium has a large bacteria population and can support a greater initial bio load (number of fish). *Do not wait to stock your tank after cycle completion as the bacteria will die off if an ammonia source is not present.*
> 
> You should continue to monitor your ammonia and nitrite after introducing your fish into your aquarium. Better safe than sorry. After about a week of continued readings of zero for ammonia and nitrite you can quit testing for them.
> 
> Monitor nitrate levels and base the percentage of water changed out on the results of this test. Let’s say after a week of zero ammonia and nitrite you test the nitrate and the results are 40ppm. A 50% water change using replacement water with zero nitrate will result in a 50% reduction in the nitrate level. Your new nitrate level will be 20ppm. I would not recommend any filter maintenance at this time and light gravel vacuuming to avoid triggering a mini cycle.
> 
> The following week keep some of your tank water you drain in a bucket and clean your filter media in this water. Do not clean the bio media unless it begins to impede the flow of the filter. I recommend alternating deep vacuuming of the substrate and the cleaning of the filter. *You should never deep vacuum and clean all of the filter media at the same time. *
> 
> I have at least two filters on all my tanks. Besides improving water quality and circulation this allows me to alternate filter maintenance. Also in the event of a filter failure an established backup is in place and running. If you can do the same.
> 
> 
> *How long does this take?*
> 
> Well let’s see. When the Earth was first formed it took around two billion years before the first bacteria showed up. If you have read the Bible God did it all in seven days (he must have had a real good bacteria in a bottle product!). So I would say some where between 7 days and 2 billion years. *No, really it will take as long as it takes. Patience is the key here. * My best guess is somewhere from 21-28 days.
> 
> Use the time to research the fish you want to keep. Read all you can about the hobby. Participate in this forum. Post pictures of your tank, ask questions, help others along. The time will go by fast and the results are well worth the time invested.
> 
> 
> 
> If you have managed to read through all of this and have learned a thing or two, than I have accomplished one of my goals for writing this. My other goal was to completely waste your time.
> 
> 
> Type at ya later,
> 
> Rtbob.
> 
> *Additional dosing instructions added 06/09/11 (Thank you Holly!)*​
> The plan here is to maintain the ammonia levels at the level needed to feed the colonizing bacteria with out rasing levels to high. In a freshly set up system (no bio help what so ever) it is pretty much useless to test the ammonia for around 72 hours after the baseline has been accurately recorded. It will take this long for the bacteria to start forming.
> 
> You should have at this time a baseline reading for your tap water and a baseline reading for the tank water. You should also have recorded the initial dose of ammonia required to achieve the desired range (3-5ppm) Using this info you should be able to calculate the amount of ammonia needed to maintain this level.
> 
> Example: Baseline ammonia level of tank water was zero. After dosing one tsp for every 10 gallons your new levels were 2 ppm. Not quite there. You add another tsp per gallon and retest. Levels are now 4ppm. Perfect. It took two tsp to achieve the desired level. Initial reading was zero end reading was 4 and dosage was 2 tsp. Divide dosage (2) by change in ammonia level (4)=0.5 tsp. This gives us the dosage required to change the ammonia level by 1ppm, 1/2 a teaspoon.
> 
> In a case where the intial dose of 1 teaspoon per 10 gallons was enough to reach the desired level you divide 1 by 4 = 0.25 or 1/4 tsp per gallon would adjust the level by 1ppm.
> 
> Maintain the ammonia level dosing your calculated amount of ammonia as needed. As the concentration of ammonia varies by product the initial tank dosage is the best way I know of to account for this.
> 
> I couldn't just say dose "X" amount because with some products this would be way to much and with others not enough.
> 
> Hope this clears things up a bit.


One of the best if not the best fishless cycle instruction I have ever seen.

Many thanks. I'm going to set up another 5.4Gbetta tank this next week I'll follow this to the letter because I finally understand the process. I can then monitor it with some understanding. I hated chemistry (both high school and college) so I didn't study it enough to truly understand it so the other descriptions of the cycle process weren't simple enough for me!!!

Thanks again!!!


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## snowghost45

Hmmm, wonder how many people I can tick off on this post? LOL I don't add ammonia, I don't use test kits. I set up my tanks, let them run for a few weeks and toss in a fish. Been doing it this way for 20 plus years.


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## dalfed

snowghost45 said:


> Hmmm, wonder how many people I can tick off on this post? LOL I don't add ammonia, I don't use test kits. I set up my tanks, let them run for a few weeks and toss in a fish. Been doing it this way for 20 plus years.


Go grab a discus and let me know how that turns out for ya lol. We now know the damage we cause to fish by doing this, seems a tad cruel now.


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## snowghost45

Who said anything about being cruel? I can't get discus in my area but I did have two beautiful turquoise severums for years in my 55 gallon. Everyone thought they were bluegills, gives you an idea where I live at. In the country. So sad to lose them. They are very smart fish, one that looks outside the tank.


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## coralbandit

snowghost45 said:


> Hmmm, wonder how many people I can tick off on this post? LOL I don't add ammonia, I don't use test kits. I set up my tanks, let them run for a few weeks and toss in a fish. Been doing it this way for 20 plus years.


Not a matter of "ticking people off" as I KNOW BETTER,AND UNDERSTAND THE NITROGEN CYCLE.
You've already been told that being lucky with your method doesn't mean it is sound advice to offer to others!But if you don't care about passing along questionably bad info it is your name you give this info under ,so have at it!
But obviously anyone with a clue about the nItrogen cycle knows that just running a tank with no source of ammonia is just that.YOU RUN YOUR TANKS,YOU CERTAINLY DO NOT CYCLE THEM.


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## jrman83

snowghost45 said:


> Hmmm, wonder how many people I can tick off on this post? LOL I don't add ammonia, I don't use test kits. I set up my tanks, let them run for a few weeks and toss in a fish. Been doing it this way for 20 plus years.


20+ years of ignorance. Running your tanks for a few weeks does nothing but waste a few weeks of your time. Cycling does not mean to "let it run". It means the nitrogen cycle! 

If you refuse to read about the nitrogen cycle, PLEASE stop with this tidbit of how you have fumbled through things in the last 20yrs.


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## Avraptorhal

coralbandit said:


> Not a matter of "ticking people off" as I KNOW BETTER,AND UNDERSTAND THE NITROGEN CYCLE.
> You've already been told that being lucky with your method doesn't mean it is sound advice to offer to others!But if you don't care about passing along questionably bad info it is your name you give this info under ,so have at it!
> But obviously anyone with a clue about the nItrogen cycle knows that just running a tank with no source of ammonia is just that.YOU RUN YOUR TANKS,YOU CERTAINLY DO NOT CYCLE THEM.


Amen!!!!!*i/a*


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## steck

i seem to be stuck mid way with my Fishless cycle, and looking for help..

i'm about 3 weeks in.


i'm basically seeing ammonia to 0 after 24 hrs. a week ago Nitrites appeared, but were way off the charts...(real dark purple) with the API. and a good dose of Nitrates !! so i was happy about the 'trates !

so i read a water change would bring down the nitrites, so i did a 50% today, and tonight my nitrites are still through the roof !!! 

do i still dose ammonia with the nitrites so high? or let it run its course, continuing perhaps daily water changes..

thx all..


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## jeff5347

Hey all. I apologize if I should just start a thread but being this is on a fishless cycle I figured I would ask. Ive had my tank set up for a week, added some feeder fish a few days after and as a few where dying so I read up on the fishless cycle ( had always cycled w fish previously). I brought the rest back to the store and proceeded to start my fishless cycle. What I have is a 75 gallon with a penguin hob and a susnsun 4 stage canister filter and used the recommended doseage of API stress zyme+. I have my media ( bio and mechanical) in both filters and have the tank set to 82 degrees and have an air stone in to oxygenate the water. I'm using Austin's clear ammonia and from what I gather it has about 3 % ammonia in it as I had to dose about 40ml to get 4 ppm of amm. In the tank. I started dosing yesterday so I know I won't see a change anytime soon. I tested this morning and have still ~4ppm amm and just under .25 ppm nitrites (bluish purple color). 

Now that I listed my specifics this is what I'm wondering. I just found out we will b on vacation at the start of 4th week into cycling. So I will have 3 weeks to continually test and adjust on what the tank is doing but the 4th week will be gone about 6 days. I've read to add frozen shrimp, get a food dispenser and add fish food, add extra ammonia before leaving ,ect but I'm worried about crashing the cycle or taking the wrong advise. What would you all day I should do as I will be gone in the middle (and probably most crucial) part of the cycle. 

PS: if this should not be here I will start a new thread.
Thanks in advance


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## LucT

I am starting my 55 gal. Soon. What is the best product for adding beneficial bacteria? I plan on having livebearers and plants. Thanks!


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## ondoa

I like Dr. Tim's One and Only.


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## nebusoi

For the record, you were right when you said the bacteria is in the air.


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