yet another fishless cycle question from me

[mistermog]

Ok, long story short.

Put in seeded filter into my canister filter, established bacteria to eat ammonia quickly. 10 days later I can consume 3-4 ppm in about 12-14 hours consistently.

However, my nitrites and nitrates have not budged since day 2.

Nitrites are at 2.0
Nitrates are at 20
(using the api master kit)

They have not moved for almost 2 weeks now, and I am dosing 3ish ppm ammonia daily and it is always consumed.

What could be going on? Shouldnt something else be happening if my ammonia is being eaten so fast?

:help:

 

[lateinningmagic]

When you say "consumed" do you mean it goes down to zero or, it just goes down?

 

[Cluunox]

you would think your trates would rise anyway. do you have plants that could be keeping trates down while trites are being consumed?
do you have any cartredges in filter carbon or something that could be absorbing the trites and trates?

 

[mistermog]

yes the ammonia goes to 0, and no, no carbon, no plants... just gravel and fake plants.

 

[Twistersmom]

Do you think that there is a nitrite spike after adding the ammonia and it is dropping down to 2ppm after 12 hrs?
I noticed doing my fishless cycle, that nitrites would raise every time I added new ammonia and then would lower over the 12 hrs.
The nitrates not raising, I don't have a clue.

 

[mistermog]

no, i test 2-3 times a day and it doesnt budge and after 24 hours it still is 2.

 

[Scrufdog]

just to make sure, did you treat the water with something before it got to the filter? Maybe some chlorine in the tap water killed off some bacteria?

 

[mistermog]

Yes, i double dose prime for the chloramines. The ammonia bacteria is still doin its thing like a champ, its the other ones... the ones i call nitrobstrds

also, i did a water change about a week ago, and theres no difference before or after. (i added the ammonia for that days dose after the change).

 

[mistermog]

anyone? any ideas?