I've been doing a fishless cycle in my 55g for the past couple weeks and yesterday I got a zero nitrite reading so I dosed ammonia again and checked when I got home from work. Ammonia and nitrite read zero, nitrate reads 10ppm. I expected nitrate to be quite a bit higher than that by this point.
Cycle is complete but nitrate level seems kinda low
- Thread starter XR250rdr
- Start date
Thanks
I've always just fishy cycled my tanks in the past. Everyone kept talking about doing a huge water change change to get nitrate down after fishless cycling.
I've always just fishy cycled my tanks in the past. Everyone kept talking about doing a huge water change change to get nitrate down after fishless cycling.
echoofformless
Peat Advocate & Defender Of Snails
Is the tank planted? Plants will look to nitrate for a nitrogen source in the absence of ammonia and nitrite.
The amount of nitrate present after a fishless cycle in a non-planted tank will be proportional to how much ammonia you have been adding to the system. For example when I was fishless cycling my mbuna tank I overdosed the heck out of the ammonia in preparation of the large and sudden addition of a full tank of large fish that would need a huge bacterial presence. By the time the tank had cycled, my nitrate was beyond the measurable amount and I had to do a 100% water change to get it back down to zero.
So if you've been using very little ammonia, you won't be getting a lot of nitrate.
And vice versa.
The amount of nitrate present after a fishless cycle in a non-planted tank will be proportional to how much ammonia you have been adding to the system. For example when I was fishless cycling my mbuna tank I overdosed the heck out of the ammonia in preparation of the large and sudden addition of a full tank of large fish that would need a huge bacterial presence. By the time the tank had cycled, my nitrate was beyond the measurable amount and I had to do a 100% water change to get it back down to zero.
So if you've been using very little ammonia, you won't be getting a lot of nitrate.
And vice versa.
There is nothing in the tank but play sand as substrate. I didn't want to add plants until after I had gotten the tank cycled.
I initially added 3 cap fulls of ammonia expecting I would need to use a bit more than that to get 55 gallons up to ~5ppm. It put the tank up to ~8ppm which I left for a week and a half until it dropped to zero then I dosed to ~3ppm daily until yesterday.
So in volumetric terms I added something like 15mL initially then 5mL daily after it reached stage 2. Probably something like 75mL total.
I initially added 3 cap fulls of ammonia expecting I would need to use a bit more than that to get 55 gallons up to ~5ppm. It put the tank up to ~8ppm which I left for a week and a half until it dropped to zero then I dosed to ~3ppm daily until yesterday.
So in volumetric terms I added something like 15mL initially then 5mL daily after it reached stage 2. Probably something like 75mL total.
Sounds like you did it right, now, get in your car, and go get fish, get home, then do your water change, while you float the bags. Once the tank is filled, you can start to acclimate your fish.
Woo Hoo!
Woo Hoo!
I'm going to plant the tank now and get the CO2 injection running and stable before I add fish. That way the fish don't have to deal with me planting the tank and I wont have to worry about overdosing CO2 and killing the fish.