Buy Clear ammonia ( I get mine at Wal-mart) but essentially you want the generic stuff with no scents sufactants etc. If it suds up when you shake it don't use it. The ingredients on the stuff I buy are water ammonia and cheleating agents nothing else.
Dose to a level of 4-5 ppm and keep it at that level for the first couple of weeks. At first you won't have to add more each day, but as the bacteria develope, then you will have to add ammonia regularly. As the bacteria consume the ammonia they will produce nitrite, and in turn another type of bacteria will begin to grow and consume the nitrite. The nitrite eaters produce nitrate, which can then be removed via water changes.
Once the nitrite stage starts , then you can back the ammonia level down to 2-3 ppm. You will most likely have to add ammonia everyday from that point on. once the nitrite level drops then you are almost done. When the day comes (4-6 weeks) that you can add 3 ppm ammonia and 24 hours later your ammonia and nitrIte levels are both 0 ppm then your tank is ready for a full bio-load. It is advisable to do a very large water change (80-90%) shortly before adding you fish. this will reduce the nitrates that build up during your fishless cycle, and also put the tank water parrameters very close to tap water so subsequent maintenance is easy on your new fish.
A word of caution: If you have soft water, add some baking soda to counteract the consumption of KH. You should maintain a KH level of 3+ during the cycle. The process of converting ammonia and nitrite into nitrate uses a lot of KH. The baking soda will keep you from having a problem. My experience is that 1 teaspoon of baking soda will raise 30 gallons of water approxamately 1 degree Kh. It is better to test, but if you don't have a KH kit you can get started with those numbers since you have no fish to harm if you are off a bit.
Dave
Dose to a level of 4-5 ppm and keep it at that level for the first couple of weeks. At first you won't have to add more each day, but as the bacteria develope, then you will have to add ammonia regularly. As the bacteria consume the ammonia they will produce nitrite, and in turn another type of bacteria will begin to grow and consume the nitrite. The nitrite eaters produce nitrate, which can then be removed via water changes.
Once the nitrite stage starts , then you can back the ammonia level down to 2-3 ppm. You will most likely have to add ammonia everyday from that point on. once the nitrite level drops then you are almost done. When the day comes (4-6 weeks) that you can add 3 ppm ammonia and 24 hours later your ammonia and nitrIte levels are both 0 ppm then your tank is ready for a full bio-load. It is advisable to do a very large water change (80-90%) shortly before adding you fish. this will reduce the nitrates that build up during your fishless cycle, and also put the tank water parrameters very close to tap water so subsequent maintenance is easy on your new fish.
A word of caution: If you have soft water, add some baking soda to counteract the consumption of KH. You should maintain a KH level of 3+ during the cycle. The process of converting ammonia and nitrite into nitrate uses a lot of KH. The baking soda will keep you from having a problem. My experience is that 1 teaspoon of baking soda will raise 30 gallons of water approxamately 1 degree Kh. It is better to test, but if you don't have a KH kit you can get started with those numbers since you have no fish to harm if you are off a bit.
Dave
