# Fishless Cycling Am I Adding Too Much Ammonia?



## JMagick (Aug 6, 2006)

Hi guys im trying fishless cycling as advised on this sitehttp://www.tropicalfishcentre.co.uk/Fishlesscycle.htmim trying to set up my tank (im a newbie) i set up my tank on wednesday i added some sera nitrivec bacterial suppliment to be precise at the required amount for my sized tank 120 litres i decided to go with the quick method of fishless cycling as shown on the above site which suggests i add ammonia mixed with water at a strengh of 9.5% until i reach 5ppm to kick start the ammonia spike so i added 50 drops until my kit was reading 4ppm (because the next one up is 8ppm doesnt seem to have a 5ppm level on the kit) then today 24 hours after adding my first amount of ammonia i checked ammonia and nitrite levels and they seem to be reading the same as yesterday 4ppm ammonia and no nitrites 0ppm so today i added more as the intructions on the page tell me to do ive added another 50 drops ammonia i imagine its off the chart 8ppm now but i havent checked it yet just wanted to know if im doing the right thing adding more ammonia everday at this amount until i see nitrites rise? does this sound as if im on the right track or have i already added too much ammonia? thanks in advance for any help


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## Guest (May 7, 2007)

mine was like that but i think u need to dose less ammonia because its 9.5% unless thats what it says on the forum. I was confused because i couldnt tell it was 4 or 8 but right now my tank is almost done and its been 4 weeks. Also you dont want to overdose on the ammoina because it will prolong the cycle.


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## JMagick (Aug 6, 2006)

thanks for the reply dude







yeh no change here i decided to leave off the ammonia so in the end i only added two doses of ammonia over two days at 50 drops to 120 litre tank at 9.5% im just gonna wait and see what happens my kit is still reading 4ppm but it could be anywhere between 4-and 8ppm as thats the next colour up on the kit i still have no sign of reduction and its day 4 since i added the first ammonia its wierd because i had 2-4ppm nitrate before i added ammonia and 0.25 nitrite and now i have no nitrite at all showing i dont know what my nitrate is now i didnt test it .. mm slightly confused still but if you say it takes 4 weeks im guessing ive got more head scratching to go


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## TerryMik (Feb 23, 2006)

JMagick said:


> Hi guys im trying fishless cycling as advised on this sitehttp://www.tropicalfishcentre.co.uk/Fishlesscycle.htmim trying to set up my tank (im a newbie) i set up my tank on wednesday i added some sera nitrivec bacterial suppliment to be precise at the required amount for my sized tank 120 litres i decided to go with the quick method of fishless cycling as shown on the above site which suggests i add ammonia mixed with water at a strengh of 9.5% until i reach 5ppm to kick start the ammonia spike so i added 50 drops until my kit was reading 4ppm (because the next one up is 8ppm doesnt seem to have a 5ppm level on the kit) then today 24 hours after adding my first amount of ammonia i checked ammonia and nitrite levels and they seem to be reading the same as yesterday 4ppm ammonia and no nitrites 0ppm so today i added more as the intructions on the page tell me to do ive added another 50 drops ammonia i imagine its off the chart 8ppm now but i havent checked it yet just wanted to know if im doing the right thing adding more ammonia everday at this amount until i see nitrites rise? does this sound as if im on the right track or have i already added too much ammonia? thanks in advance for any help


*2007-05-07*

When ammonia is above 2 ppm it acts as a disinfectant, so keep it under that level or you will not cycle at all. You also need to maintain 1 or 2 Degrees of kH so the nitrifying bacteria have sufficient minerals to properly process the ammonia.

Terry


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## Guest (May 8, 2007)

TerryMik said:


> *2007-05-07*
> 
> When ammonia is above 2 ppm it acts as a disinfectant, so keep it under that level or you will not cycle at all. You also need to maintain 1 or 2 Degrees of kH so the nitrifying bacteria have sufficient minerals to properly process the ammonia.
> 
> Terry


I read that it is not supposed to get above 6ppm but i think mine got over that since i didnt read the thing right and mine is almost done bu i would say try to keep it at 4ppm or 5ppm.


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## 17166 (May 8, 2007)

piranhaseeker said:


> *2007-05-07*
> 
> When ammonia is above 2 ppm it acts as a disinfectant, so keep it under that level or you will not cycle at all. You also need to maintain 1 or 2 Degrees of kH so the nitrifying bacteria have sufficient minerals to properly process the ammonia.
> 
> Terry


I read that it is not supposed to get above 6ppm but i think mine got over that since i didnt read the thing right and mine is almost done bu i would say try to keep it at 4ppm or 5ppm.
[/quote]

4 is toxic isn't it..


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## Guest (May 13, 2007)

Jimbo245 said:


> *2007-05-07*
> 
> When ammonia is above 2 ppm it acts as a disinfectant, so keep it under that level or you will not cycle at all. You also need to maintain 1 or 2 Degrees of kH so the nitrifying bacteria have sufficient minerals to properly process the ammonia.
> 
> Terry


I read that it is not supposed to get above 6ppm but i think mine got over that since i didnt read the thing right and mine is almost done bu i would say try to keep it at 4ppm or 5ppm.
[/quote]

4 is toxic isn't it..
[/quote]
it is for fish but ammonia should not exceed 6ppm.


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## Dr. Giggles (Oct 18, 2003)

Just continue with what you are doing. Nitrites should appear around the 10th day and that is when you cut the ammonia dosage in half. You will then notice ammonia levels going down.


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## Guest (May 17, 2007)

Dr. Giggles said:


> Just continue with what you are doing. Nitrites should appear around the 10th day and that is when you cut the ammonia dosage in half. You will then notice ammonia levels going down.


that is whats supposed to occur mine was wacky it took a while for nitrites to apear since i think i added to much ammonia, and it took a long time for ammonia to do down.


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## TerryMik (Feb 23, 2006)

piranhaseeker said:


> *2007-05-07*
> 
> When ammonia is above 2 ppm it acts as a disinfectant, so keep it under that level or you will not cycle at all. You also need to maintain 1 or 2 Degrees of kH so the nitrifying bacteria have sufficient minerals to properly process the ammonia.
> 
> Terry


I read that it is not supposed to get above 6ppm but i think mine got over that since i didnt read the thing right and mine is almost done bu i would say try to keep it at 4ppm or 5ppm.
[/quote]

4 is toxic isn't it..
[/quote]
it is for fish but ammonia should not exceed 6ppm.
[/quote]

*2007-06-01*

According to Seachem, the nitrifying bacteria begin to die off when the ammonia goes above 2.0 ppm

It is also my understanding the Nitrosomonas & Nitrobacter secrete a gel that coats & protects the colony. This slime helps it to ward off chlorine, among other things. I don't know if research has been done to see what level of ammonia the gel protects the colony from, but it takes time for this slime to build up - - - in a new set up, the bacteria are more fragile. *In a new tank, I would keep the ammonia** below 2 ppm* . . . an established tank might withstand higher concentrations, but why risk it in a new set up???

That's my 2 Cents worth.









Terry


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## Guest (Jun 2, 2007)

not to prove u wrong or anything just to tell you that an established tank will not have ammonia because it has the bactera, but i heard many people saying a tank cycling tank should not go over 6ppm of ammonia.


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## ILLdose13 (Nov 25, 2004)

i heard nitrosomonas and nitrobacter dont really work..i heard nitrospira is what really works..biospira is the only product that contains this correct bacteria..


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