What is up with my levels?

Bulldog39 · 11/08/2017, 03:39 PM

I used Dr. Tim's one and only bacteria to try and cycle my tank quick. Put it in 3 days ago along with 40 drops of ammonia because instructions said one drop per gallon and I have a 40 breeder. Look at my test.
Ammonia 2ppm
Nitrite 1ppm
Nitrate 40ppm

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mcgyvr · 11/08/2017, 04:27 PM

You likely have less than 40 gallons of water due to rock/sand,etc....
As such your initial ammonia results were likely higher than 2ppm.. not to mention that the bottle of bacteria may contain some ammonia,etc...
Its also only been 3 days and that kind of bottled bacteria rarely works as advertised..

Just relax/wait..
Don't add any more ammonia..
Your tank is cycling.. Now you just wait..

Bulldog39 · 11/08/2017, 04:42 PM

Used with sump and all 55 gallons of water and when I added it initially i had 4ppm ammonia.

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mcgyvr · 11/08/2017, 04:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bulldog39

Used with sump and all 55 gallons of water and when I added it initially i had 4ppm ammonia.

ok well.. good... then your tank is progressing properly..
Your levels are to be 100% expected IMO..
again.. do not add more ammonium chloride.

Bulldog39 · 11/08/2017, 04:48 PM

Awsome thanks so now just wait for diatoms and levels to drop I guess.

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mcgyvr · 11/08/2017, 04:53 PM

And a FYI for others.. see their high nitrate readings (and they will likely get worse)
That is exactly why dosing past 2ppm (heck even dosing past .5ppm) is not a smart move..4ppm is way too much and close to the point where you are actually killing bacteria not feeding it...
Now they are going to have to do a bunch of large water changes to rid the tank of all that excessive nitrate and get it down to acceptable levels post cycle..
I'd start making water now.. Expect to need to change maybe 50-100 gallons of water because of that.. and the larger the change the less water you will actually need.. (aka a big water change is better than multiple smaller ones)

looking at it again your nitrate isn't that bad..20ppm maybe. but it will get worse I'd bet..It could be 40 though.. hard to tell from here..

How many pounds of rock do you have BTW?

Bulldog39 · 11/08/2017, 05:16 PM

45 lbs of rock and 40lbs of libe sand. Looks like 40ppm nitrate to me. Btw this is only week and a half total time and day 3 after the bacteria in a bottle

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Bulldog39 · 11/08/2017, 05:17 PM

Also not using my filter sock for another 12 hours per the instructions. And no protien skimmer bought yet

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JUNBUG361 · 11/08/2017, 11:31 PM

Should of just cycled naturally. Be patient

nereefpat · 11/09/2017, 08:31 AM

As stated, everything is fine. Just give it more time...like weeks.

FYI, if nitrItes are present, nitrAte will read way higher than it actually is. If you dosed to 4ppm ammonia, your final nitrate reading should be <20ppm, as long as you didn't add any more sources of N.

mcgyvr · 11/09/2017, 11:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nereefpat

FYI, if nitrItes are present, nitrAte will read way higher than it actually is.

Thank you..good point.. Yes the presence of sufficient Nitrite has been stated to cause errors in nitrate readings

jlmawp · 11/09/2017, 01:27 PM

I saw your other post about the Dr. Tims product, where you posted this as well.

You have only been going for 3 days. I wouldn't worry too much. You need to give things time to do what they do. Take a breath and let nature take its course. It will be cycled when it's cycled. Wait another week and then test again. Don't bother wasting your test kits this early in the game.

Lsufan · 11/09/2017, 07:04 PM

Don’t rush the process just because u used dr. Tims & are expecting a quick cycle. I have used it a few times & I don’t think it really sped up the cycle. It processes ammonia to nitrite quickly but in my case nitrite would stay around for weeks. So I anticipate that your ammonia will zero out in the first week, but it will still take 2 to 4 weeks after that for the cycle to complete. This was always my experience anyways.

I came to the conclusion that the reason these bacteria products say u can add fish is because it processes the ammonia quickly & nitrite usually is not toxic in saltwater at the levels we see.

11/08/2017, 03:39 PM	#1
Bulldog39 Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2017 Location: Georgia Posts: 234	What is up with my levels? I used Dr. Tim's one and only bacteria to try and cycle my tank quick. Put it in 3 days ago along with 40 drops of ammonia because instructions said one drop per gallon and I have a 40 breeder. Look at my test. Ammonia 2ppm Nitrite 1ppm Nitrate 40ppm Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G935A using Tapatalk

11/08/2017, 04:27 PM	#2
mcgyvr Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: North Carolina Posts: 20,050	You likely have less than 40 gallons of water due to rock/sand,etc.... As such your initial ammonia results were likely higher than 2ppm.. not to mention that the bottle of bacteria may contain some ammonia,etc... Its also only been 3 days and that kind of bottled bacteria rarely works as advertised.. Just relax/wait.. Don't add any more ammonia.. Your tank is cycling.. Now you just wait.. __________________ Who me?

11/08/2017, 04:53 PM	#6
mcgyvr Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: North Carolina Posts: 20,050	And a FYI for others.. see their high nitrate readings (and they will likely get worse) That is exactly why dosing past 2ppm (heck even dosing past .5ppm) is not a smart move..4ppm is way too much and close to the point where you are actually killing bacteria not feeding it... Now they are going to have to do a bunch of large water changes to rid the tank of all that excessive nitrate and get it down to acceptable levels post cycle.. I'd start making water now.. Expect to need to change maybe 50-100 gallons of water because of that.. and the larger the change the less water you will actually need.. (aka a big water change is better than multiple smaller ones) looking at it again your nitrate isn't that bad..20ppm maybe. but it will get worse I'd bet..It could be 40 though.. hard to tell from here.. How many pounds of rock do you have BTW? __________________ Who me?

11/09/2017, 08:31 AM	#10
nereefpat Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2016 Location: Central Nebraska Posts: 3,190	As stated, everything is fine. Just give it more time...like weeks. FYI, if nitrItes are present, nitrAte will read way higher than it actually is. If you dosed to 4ppm ammonia, your final nitrate reading should be <20ppm, as long as you didn't add any more sources of N. __________________ Pat Current Tank Info: 125 in-wall , 40b sump. 6 bulb T5. ASM G2 skimmer. LPS and leathers

11/08/2017, 04:42 PM	#3
Bulldog39 Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2017 Location: Georgia Posts: 234	Used with sump and all 55 gallons of water and when I added it initially i had 4ppm ammonia. Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G935A using Tapatalk

11/08/2017, 04:48 PM	#5
Bulldog39 Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2017 Location: Georgia Posts: 234	Awsome thanks so now just wait for diatoms and levels to drop I guess. Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G935A using Tapatalk

11/08/2017, 05:16 PM	#7
Bulldog39 Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2017 Location: Georgia Posts: 234	45 lbs of rock and 40lbs of libe sand. Looks like 40ppm nitrate to me. Btw this is only week and a half total time and day 3 after the bacteria in a bottle Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G935A using Tapatalk

11/08/2017, 05:17 PM	#8
Bulldog39 Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2017 Location: Georgia Posts: 234	Also not using my filter sock for another 12 hours per the instructions. And no protien skimmer bought yet Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G935A using Tapatalk

11/08/2017, 11:31 PM	#9
JUNBUG361 Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2013 Location: Antioch,CALIFORNIA Posts: 1,091	Should of just cycled naturally. Be patient

11/09/2017, 01:27 PM	#12
jlmawp Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2016 Posts: 595	I saw your other post about the Dr. Tims product, where you posted this as well. You have only been going for 3 days. I wouldn't worry too much. You need to give things time to do what they do. Take a breath and let nature take its course. It will be cycled when it's cycled. Wait another week and then test again. Don't bother wasting your test kits this early in the game.

11/09/2017, 07:04 PM	#13
Lsufan Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2013 Location: Baton Rouge Posts: 1,410	Don’t rush the process just because u used dr. Tims & are expecting a quick cycle. I have used it a few times & I don’t think it really sped up the cycle. It processes ammonia to nitrite quickly but in my case nitrite would stay around for weeks. So I anticipate that your ammonia will zero out in the first week, but it will still take 2 to 4 weeks after that for the cycle to complete. This was always my experience anyways. I came to the conclusion that the reason these bacteria products say u can add fish is because it processes the ammonia quickly & nitrite usually is not toxic in saltwater at the levels we see.