still stalled on cycle??

[tmace64]

8th week cycling

-- For 2 weeks now,,, nitrates have peaked to 20 and dissappeared while my nitrites have remained dangerously high - 2.0 to 10ppm!!!

44gal pentagon
wet / dry -- skimmer is off with explicit instruction from new LFS
7.5 pounds of Caribbean LR added last Friday
adding calcium and alkalinity.....
rinsing all media once a week

Ive added 4 snails and 7 blu leg hermits,,,, and have 2 yellow tails - all look well,,, all are eating, moving and the tank looks much nicer with a control on algae....... its amazing what those snails and hermits have done

Last Saturday - a new LFS suggested adding 2 oz. go juice, did it,,, had a slight cloud,,,, water cleared and the cycle actually began to move!!!!! Now, today,,,, readings have slipped back to where they were,,,,, high nitrites,,,, stalled ammonia and no real nitrates appearing......????

TODAYS READINGS
PH - 8.2 - 8.3
AMM - 0.25 - no change for 2 to three weeks
N02 - 2.0 to 10 !!
N03 - 0 to 5.0 - showed a slight increase after shutting off skimmer and adding go juice,,,,, now appears to have dropped again.....??

This new LFS seems very trustworthy,,,,, they suggested another dose of go juice........ is this good advise?

Thanks so much for time and help :(
Todd

[kreblak]

After 8 weeks, I would expect zero ammonia and the presence of nitrites, but not 10 ppm. I am puzzled.

What temperature are you running the tank?

What is your water movement level? Powerheads, filters, etc. Where do they point, what are you running, how many GPH?

I ask because the only problem I can think of is that you don't have enough oxygen dissolved in your water to allow you bacteria to thrive and bring down your levels.

[OrionGirl]

Have you had the LFS verify your test results? What do you mean by "go juice"

Nitrites that high will kill off inverts and fish, so I suspect your test kit, testing procedure, or something other than the water.

[tmace64]

TESTING - Yes the LFS tested my water,,, and came up with a little less toxic conclusion. They said that the minor inhabitance should be alright,,,, and very happily so,,, everyone looks fine, though i know they are truly stressed.

GO JUICE,, bacterial soup additive to jumpstart,, , or aid a cycle to start or finish. I've added 2 oz. to my tank last saturday,,, and saw my cycle actually only budge forward a bit,,, but quickly return to its stalled state today.....

WATER TEMP rides continuously at 79.

WATER FLOW -- Kreblak - the LFS was wondering the same thing!!
They too questioned oxygen. Currently the currents are driven by a "below" wet/dry - sump - Cap1800 @ 650 gph,, i also have a surface mounted powerhead301,, 30 gph. Both discharge at the surface, they shoot into the center of the 3 sides of a pentagon. Should i look to break the surface more? Cause more splash and surf? Is this too much movement? Is it possible that my wet/dry is too big for my tank?,,,,, wet/dry rated to up to 75 gal capacity.

You should see this LFS ! Gainesville Florida, Aquatropics. Awsome stock! Some of their stock I've never seen before. The people are great,,,, they're extremely helpful and friendly. You can tell, all of them, truly love aquaria and thus, their job. Their diagnosis and help; They sent me home with 2 oz of go-juice and as well,,, suggested taking 15 bio balls from the chamber and placing them in the sump chamber floating,,, for more contact.

7 lbs of Caribbean LR. I placed it in there last Friday,,, and have been adding calcium and alkaline,,,,, no smells are coming from the tank. The LFS here in Ocala said the rock was finished curing. Could this be contributing to my high nitrites problem? Could this rock still be curing?


Thanks so much,,, i have to do some more reading on cycling....

todd

[kreblak]

Bacteria are the biggest users of oxygen in your tank. They consume much more oxygen than fish do. That is why oxygenation is so important. As long as you have surface agitation, then you are getting gas diffusion. It sounds like you have plenty of agitation.

Anyway, I brought out my graphs from my first cycle, and I have good news for you. As of the end of my 8th week of cycling with 3 damsels, my ammonia was at 1 ppm and my nitrites were at 10 ppm. By the end of the 9th week, I had zeros across the boards. So, hang in there, the end is in sight!

[tmace64]

Thanks Oriongirl and kreblak --- you two have been a huge help. as well as a comfort during strange / learning times. That really helped knowing your past experiences with high nitrites kreblak, and sorry,,, that you too experienced a fish cycle like the one i have......:(


Is it possible to have "too much" filtration for any given tank?

[tmace64]

Last week, a swarm of moths got into Mrs. Yutzes sheet. Within a few minutes the sheet was full of holes !!
Mrs. Yutzes then yelled out;
"HOLEY SHEET!!!"

-- YOU GO GO JUICE !!!!

Plummited nitrites overnight!!!,,, readings;

PH 8.3
AMM 0.25 --- no movement for 3 weeks
N02 0.5 DROPPED from a 10 yesterday, go juiced last night!!
N03 0 - 5 Dropped slightly....... ??

Should i expect additional spiking.....??
--And, after reaching zeros, should i wait any additional time for insurance? Can I add more LR at this time?
---- WHY WHY the stubbornly stuck blasted gawl darn ammonia??!!
-----WHERE are my nitrates,,,, man,,, that is not by the rule books!

---- I was thinking about throwing a banana in there,,,, or freeze the surface for an ice skating rink,,,, or finally get that black smoker ive been wanting to add

[kreblak]

I'm not sure for the constant ammonia in the tank. I am glad to hear that your nitrites have come down, though. Constant ammonia at .25 just seems wierd. When the LFS tested your water, you said that came to a "less toxic conclusion." What exactly was that conclusion? Did they say you have zero ammonia?

[tmace64]

LFS test

PH 8.1
AMM 0.3
N02 0.4
N03 10


MY TEST -- same time

PH 8.3
AMM 0.25
N02 10
N03 0-5


i realize that there are differences between test kits and their results..... They concluded having less nitrites than i thought i had and had results for,,,, this to me was good news at the time because of my concerns over what i thought was a much more dangerous level of nitrites.........


LR questionaire;

What physical changes can i expect of this 7lb caribbean LR piece?

---- Today i noticed these small tubes,,,, semi-transparent, brown,,,, they look like tree branches that had lengths broken off,,,, leaving a hollow opening,,, i'm not sure whether or not i missed thesse when first placing the rock in there......... i do recognize a "return" of colors,,, specifically bright greens,,, they faded and have returned.
Also i noticed for the first time,,,, a flat, bright green semi-transparent leaf plant coming out,,,, it matches another one that was originally present on the top of the rock. Today,,,, after last nights readings,,, i can clearly notice a return of colors, very very interesting,,,,,, i have a selection of plants out on my balcony,,,, this rock looks to outdo all those a thousand times!!
Also, on top of the rock,,, i noticed something new,, small, round,, looks like a slice of kiwi fruit,,,, but with the color of a scallop, and slight transparency at edges giving it that gelatinous look,,, there are two small physicals of this....???

-- I think this rock might be the problem with my ammonia,,,, it does have some hanging grey matter,,, that appears clearly lifeless,,,, does this stuff have to be scrubbed off?

--- ALGAE, i have 7 hermits and 4 snails, all appear good, since added, all algae, diatoms and hair have decreased dramatically, by 90%!!! Is this totally the grazing of the hermits,, or part of the cycle???

Today, my tank has a bright white look to it,,,, much less algae,,,,water clearing,,, with that "clean" looking white, slight fog,,, the type that usually signifies the finish of a growth or adjustment in bacteria/water.... I did notice after cleaning my siphon box - covered in algae,,, clear plastic,,, all the algae i cleaned out of it,,, has NOT returned?? This is what was leading me to believe that the dissappearance of substrate and rock algae was part of the cycle..... or hermits???

thanks so much :)
tod