Is my tank cycled or not started? NEED HELP!

littlea8 · 03-01-2009, 03:22 PM

coral life salt i think...btw i just tested the water again...my nitrate went up to 20ppm and ammonia and nitrite are still at 0...im so confused lol

Lorna · 03-01-2009, 04:54 PM

do the shrimp thing.....test for ammonia, then for nitrite. Believe me you will get an ammonia spike with the shrimp. Once everything comes down to zero you should then retest your ph etc. If it isn't reading 8.2 then use some Kent's buffer to buffer it to the proper ph. I think you should mix up some of your salt mix and measure the ph it may mix up on the low side. I am not sure of that brand as I use Reef Crystals or Tropic Marin Pro....It is a good habit to get into to check your water you use for water changes after you mix it, check for ph, sg, and alk to make sure that it matches that of your tank, in this case though you would need to buffer it higher as well as your tank to get it to the right ph. I wouldn't worry too much about it until you are done cycling.....sometimes cycling will throw the parameters out also

littlea8 · 03-01-2009, 05:09 PM

okay thank you I will try that and let you know what the results are

MatthewLaw · 03-02-2009, 10:09 PM

use a buffer...I use Kent's pH buffer

littlea8 · 03-03-2009, 03:21 PM

okay so after having the raw shrimp in my tank for 2 days I testing everything once again. My results were as follows:

Ammonia still stayed at 0ppm
Nitrite increased to 0.25ppm from 0ppm
Nitrates stayed the same at 20ppm
PH stayed the same at 7.2

So the only increase I noticed was a very small increase in nitrites. What does this mean and where do I go from here? Is my tank cycled?

Whiskers · 03-03-2009, 03:38 PM

Imo i would say yes your tank is cycled since your nitrites went up. if you had tested your tank sooner you might have seen the ammonia rise a little but the process was faster than you hahaha. watch your tank and test again and see if your nitrites go down, im sure they will. as far as your ph goes i don't have salt tank so i don't know if you can put anything else in your tank other than what was suggested by others which is the kents ph buffer. my ph is naturaly high around 8.0 to 8.4 so if and when i go to salt i know my water prams are gonna work well.

Lotus · 03-03-2009, 03:43 PM

If you have nitrites, then your tank isn't cycled. Nitrites need to be at zero.

littlea8 · 03-03-2009, 04:02 PM

the nitrites were at 0 before i added the shrimp....so what stage is my tank at right now and what should i be doing?

Whiskers · 03-03-2009, 05:02 PM

ok im lost lotus. if the ammonia in a tank is intentionly jacked up won't the nitrites go up as the ammonia goes down? then the nitrites go down as bacteria eats it up turning it into nitrates? am i wrong? if the shrimp was added to make ammonia go up wouldnt this be the process it goes through ? just wondering if i've got it wrong.

Lorna · 03-03-2009, 05:46 PM

Whiskers you are right.....she may have missed the small ammonia spike up....the nitrites would then go up and the ammonia down....in a few days the nitrites should be at zero and then we will know that the tank is cycled for sure.

03-01-2009, 04:54 PM	#12
Lorna Super Fish Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: NE Indiana Posts: 3,044	do the shrimp thing.....test for ammonia, then for nitrite. Believe me you will get an ammonia spike with the shrimp. Once everything comes down to zero you should then retest your ph etc. If it isn't reading 8.2 then use some Kent's buffer to buffer it to the proper ph. I think you should mix up some of your salt mix and measure the ph it may mix up on the low side. I am not sure of that brand as I use Reef Crystals or Tropic Marin Pro....It is a good habit to get into to check your water you use for water changes after you mix it, check for ph, sg, and alk to make sure that it matches that of your tank, in this case though you would need to buffer it higher as well as your tank to get it to the right ph. I wouldn't worry too much about it until you are done cycling.....sometimes cycling will throw the parameters out also __________________ 75g reef 29g reef Living the salty side of life

03-03-2009, 03:43 PM	#17
Lotus Moderator Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Southern California Posts: 14,778	If you have nitrites, then your tank isn't cycled. Nitrites need to be at zero. __________________ Lotus and Ecotank's tanks "So long, and thanks for all the fish."

03-03-2009, 05:46 PM	#20
Lorna Super Fish Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: NE Indiana Posts: 3,044	Whiskers you are right.....she may have missed the small ammonia spike up....the nitrites would then go up and the ammonia down....in a few days the nitrites should be at zero and then we will know that the tank is cycled for sure. __________________ 75g reef 29g reef Living the salty side of life

03-01-2009, 03:22 PM	#11
littlea8 Teenie Weenie Fish Join Date: Feb 2009 Posts: 23	coral life salt i think...btw i just tested the water again...my nitrate went up to 20ppm and ammonia and nitrite are still at 0...im so confused lol

03-01-2009, 05:09 PM	#13
littlea8 Teenie Weenie Fish Join Date: Feb 2009 Posts: 23	okay thank you I will try that and let you know what the results are

03-02-2009, 10:09 PM	#14
MatthewLaw Medium Fish Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: PA Posts: 490	use a buffer...I use Kent's pH buffer

03-03-2009, 03:21 PM	#15
littlea8 Teenie Weenie Fish Join Date: Feb 2009 Posts: 23	okay so after having the raw shrimp in my tank for 2 days I testing everything once again. My results were as follows: Ammonia still stayed at 0ppm Nitrite increased to 0.25ppm from 0ppm Nitrates stayed the same at 20ppm PH stayed the same at 7.2 So the only increase I noticed was a very small increase in nitrites. What does this mean and where do I go from here? Is my tank cycled?

03-03-2009, 03:38 PM	#16
Whiskers Medium Fish Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: central Michigan USA Posts: 425	Imo i would say yes your tank is cycled since your nitrites went up. if you had tested your tank sooner you might have seen the ammonia rise a little but the process was faster than you hahaha. watch your tank and test again and see if your nitrites go down, im sure they will. as far as your ph goes i don't have salt tank so i don't know if you can put anything else in your tank other than what was suggested by others which is the kents ph buffer. my ph is naturaly high around 8.0 to 8.4 so if and when i go to salt i know my water prams are gonna work well.

03-03-2009, 04:02 PM	#18
littlea8 Teenie Weenie Fish Join Date: Feb 2009 Posts: 23	the nitrites were at 0 before i added the shrimp....so what stage is my tank at right now and what should i be doing?

03-03-2009, 05:02 PM	#19
Whiskers Medium Fish Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: central Michigan USA Posts: 425	ok im lost lotus. if the ammonia in a tank is intentionly jacked up won't the nitrites go up as the ammonia goes down? then the nitrites go down as bacteria eats it up turning it into nitrates? am i wrong? if the shrimp was added to make ammonia go up wouldnt this be the process it goes through ? just wondering if i've got it wrong.