# Ammonia



## JeFFLo (Aug 29, 2003)

alright guys i just added some pure ammonia to my tank...then i tested it its reading 0.50...when should i start adding some more ammonia?


----------



## Judazzz (Jan 13, 2003)

I don't know how much ammonia is needed to cycle a 20 gallon tank, but I wouldn't add more. Just stand back, and let the cycling do its work. Test the water from time to time to track the cycle's progress...

You could add a couple of feeders or drop in a piece of shrimp or two to speed up the process, but I don't think that's necessary.


----------



## DonH (Jan 25, 2003)

Tom Griffin has a very good procedure on fishless cycle. First, record how much ammonia you need to add to raise the ammonia to 5 ppm. Add the same amount DAILY until you see nitrIte spike. Then, reduce the daily amount of ammonia added in half until both ammonia and nitrites are at zero (you should have a fairly good amount of nitrAte by then). Do a 50% water change and your tank is cycled.


----------



## JeFFLo (Aug 29, 2003)

i added the carbon in my aqua clear 200 will that affect the cycling?


----------



## DonH (Jan 25, 2003)

jefflopez94509 said:


> i added the carbon in my aqua clear 200 will that affect the cycling?


no... as long as it doesn't have any zeolites in it (the little yellow rocks that are sometimes sold in combination with carbon).


----------



## JeFFLo (Aug 29, 2003)

omg i've added so much ammonia...and i tested it after every addition and the reading keeps coming up the same...it says add at least 4-5 drops per 10 gallons so that would be at least 10 drops for a 20 gallon...and i dont have something i can use as a dropper...so im just pouring it in a little cup guessing if its at least 10 drops...i've done this about 3 times in a row and still the reading are the same?????
what the hell is going on...im running out of test strips


----------



## DonH (Jan 25, 2003)

What are your ammonia readings? What are you using to condition the water (hopefully not AmQuel or Ammo-Lock)?


----------



## JeFFLo (Aug 29, 2003)

all 6 test strips are showing between 3.0 and 6.0 probly im guessing its around 4.0
im using aquasafe for the condition


----------



## JeFFLo (Aug 29, 2003)

actually the last reading is a little darker than 6.0 for any of you who have the mardel test kit...the color is the same color as the 80 alkalinity


----------



## JeFFLo (Aug 29, 2003)

i did a water change cuz i put too much ammonia...i can smell it when i open the lid of my tank....i ran another test and there is still no nitrite or nitrate


----------



## JeFFLo (Aug 29, 2003)

still no nitrite or nitrate....wtf is going on...theres enough ammonia in the tank...im thinking its its the heat that is stopping from bacteria to grow...i just got home and i checked the water and its hella hot im guessing its in the 100's...someone please help


----------



## DonH (Jan 25, 2003)

If you can, add some filter material from an established tank and put it in your filter. This will seed the tank and significantly speed up the cycling time. Adding an air pump to increase aeration will also help.


----------



## JeFFLo (Aug 29, 2003)

i added gravel from used tank but i washed it out first cuz it was really dirty


----------



## tweaked (Aug 3, 2003)

How long have you been trying to cycle that tank? I can tell you that washing the gravel out pretty much killed off the culture.

I noticed that you got some spilo's coming in from Ash soon, so I hope you got your tank up and running. Depending on the time frame you might try a few things.

Try to drain the tank down as much as possible. Refill with some water from an established tank mixing in 25% new treated water. Get some more gravel or substrate from the established tank (or swap). Add about 20 small feeders (check for disease) and overfeed them to produce waste. Once the water turns murky/cloudy, stop feeding them. Increase water flow to the filters and this should clear the tank up in a day or two.

Hopefully ... I'm late with crisis cycling advice and your tank is in top notch condition. To be honest ... I've setup tanks the same day I put p's in and they all survived.


----------



## tweaked (Aug 3, 2003)

BTW ... I got 15 1 in spilo's from Ash last week. All of them are in fine condition. Don't be surprised if the tails and fins are chewed up ... It freaked me out a bit, but they should grow back. I normally don't put med's in my tank ... but I added some stress coat and salt to the their tank with a temp of 82. The water in our area is a high ph, but shouldn't hurt them (at least I think we live in the same CCC area).


----------



## Xenon (Nov 15, 2002)

you gotta give it time man.


----------



## Grosse Gurke (Jan 3, 2003)

Yeah, cycling a tank can take a month or more. You have only been at this a few days. Each spike...Nitrite and then nitrate can take a few weeks.


----------

