Tank cycles

[jdreefman]

I got a tank that im setting up and its acting very strangely, first i was registering ammonia and nothing else, 1 day later i was registering no ammonia and 5.0 ppm nitrates with no nitrites, now today im registering 2.0 ammonia and no nitrites or nitrates, any input on why this tank is doin what its doin is great

[BubbaBoBobBrain]

What type of test kits are you using. It could be just spiking from cycling or bad test kits or something. Are you adding anything to the tank to help the cycling process along like food or something? If so it could be that. If there is not enough beneficial bacteria yet the food breaking down will cause an ammonia spike until it can compensate for the system overload.

[frankyrivera]

Normal cycle wait it out after all the ammonia spike nitrate nitrite you'll probably suffer some kind of algae bloom bryopsis cyano hair algae don't freak it'll run it's course worse part about cycling is waiting. Chill-ax lol

[icycoral]

Totally normal stuff. You'll prolly see a algea bloom that will last for lil while after before it "burns" itself out too.

[jdreefman]

thanks for the advice, i got the drop test kits, and i added some frozen fish food, api test kit about 6 or 7 months old, do they go bad????

[frankyrivera]

Yup they go bad I had an old calcium test that gave me a reading of 600 when I used my new Hanna checker my reading came in at 421 much better

[jdreefman]

ok so maybe i should get a new test kit, thank u everone, shall i purchase a calcium tester??? if so wich one should i get