Cycling a tank

[ron v]

Mag, you can do without a nitrate test kit. We know that when nitrites are gone, nitrates will be present. Just keep on adding enough ammonia to get 3 every day until ammonia and nitrites are both zero. This could take a couple of weeks. Don't add any plants yet.

[Magdelaine]

Myra, it's interesting what this other site says! It's funny how opinions can be so different about the same thing... I thought I would post what I saw that made me think it would work in my ordinary, low light tank:

http://www.fishpalace.org/V_dubyana.html
http://www.aquahobby.com/garden/e_dubyana.php

and this thread: http://www.fishforums.com/phpBB/viewtopic.php?t=1909

My LFS is getting some in next Thursday and I have a lovely peice of driftwood I'm soaking that I will attach it to if/when I can get it (my tank will have to be cycled for sure). So soon I will see for myself if it will work.

About the water sprite, I am getting a potted water sprite but I read somewhere that they do better if they are left to float. Is yours potted or floating?

[MyraVan]

Yes, you certainly have found some people who have very good luck with Java moss, and say it grows quickly for them! One thing I have found about aquatic plants is that how well they do in your tank is a bit hit and miss. There are so many variables involved: lighting levels, fish load, water hardness, etc, etc, and the best policy is simply to try a bunch of things and see which work best for you. By writing that the Tropica website says that it grows slowly, I didn't mean to discourage you from getting it, but just to warn you that it might not grow as fast as you are expecting it to. By all reports, it's one of those super plants that manages to live and grow under almost all conditions, even if not very fast for some people.

And you're right, my water sprite is submerged, which is probably another reason why it's not doing so well. If a plant can be used floating or submerged, it always does better floating, since it has better light and access to atmospheric carbon dioxide. This is why I recommend floating plants to anyone who's doing a cycle with fish.

[Magdelaine]

Thanks, it's good not to have expectations that are too high in the beginning...

[Magdelaine]

I have been fishless cycling for the last 7 days. The last two days, however, I have hit a plateau with my ammonia where it didn't come down at all yesterday and came down slightly today. Nitrates seem to be going up, however.

I haven't been able to add any ammonia the last two days because of this. My question is; is this normal? Or did I do something to kill off my bacteria??

[Huugs]

If you put a raw shrimp in to help cycle your tank do you have to remove it after the cycle has finished or do you just leave it there?

[ron v]

Mag, it will take a couple of weeks for the bacteria to start consuming the ammonia overnight. You are doing OK. Huugs, I've never done the raw shrimp thing but I would think you would remove it at some point. It would make a mess if you didn't. I don't know why you would do it that way, tho? Why not just use ammonia so you have more control over the process?