does my cycle sound right?

[pastina]

220g bare bottom set up 5 days ago
temp 77
ammonia 1 ppm
nitrAtes 5-10 ppm
ph 8.2

nitrite not tested yet (i have to buy a new kit)

its been awhile since ive set up a new tank, i kinda forget a few things lol
so what is it again?...when nitrAtes fall to zero i can add a cleanup crew?

[Loverotties]

You want to waite till the Ammonia goes down to zero.Is this going to be a reef tank?

[pastina]

Originally Posted by Loverotties

You want to waite till the Ammonia goes down to zero.Is this going to be a reef tank?

yeah i know the ammonia part, i just wasnt sure about the nitrate part if that had to get down to zero too??
so ammonia 0
nitrite 0
and nitrates after a cycle should be zero too?? or is it normal if nitrates are present right after a cycle? and it is then safe to add hermits, snails etc as long as ammonia and nitrite are zero?
its like i have a memory lapse lol

it will be fish only, no corals
butterfly fish, a few tangs, blenny, id like a dozen green chromis but im not sure if they will kill each other?

[tperk9784]

No matter if cycle is finished or not just slowly add your fish. 5 days is not that long of a time for the bacteria to grow. I would add some fish food and wait to see if your ammonia spikes some more. Bacterial populations grow and decline with the availability of food present in the tank.

Personally in a 220 having seen a small ammonia spike and decline I would add a few of those chromis and wait a couple weeks then start slowly start adding your fish from there.

[pastina]

Originally Posted by tperk9784

No matter if cycle is finished or not just slowly add your fish. 5 days is not that long of a time for the bacteria to grow. I would add some fish food and wait to see if your ammonia spikes some more. Bacterial populations grow and decline with the availability of food present in the tank.

Personally in a 220 having seen a small ammonia spike and decline I would add a few of those chromis and wait a couple weeks then start slowly start adding your fish from there.

oh boy!!

[luvmylo]

I wouldn't add ANY fish yet. The problem with adding "chromis" and seeing what happens is like putting a human in a room that may be full of tear gas or may not. You don't know. 5 days isn't anywhere near long enough for your cycle to be completed. I would atleast wait about another week or so and test again just to make sure. Remeber that these are animals just like your dog or cat.

[pastina]

ahh i knew it was too good to be true


when it tests zero i'll just get hermits and snails, then wait a week after them and get the chromis.
can i get the whole school of chromis at once? (dozen)
because i order online and with the min purchase price and shipping it actually saves me if i get them all at once
they are pretty small 3/4 "

[tperk9784]

Originally Posted by luvmylo

I wouldn't add ANY fish yet. The problem with adding "chromis" and seeing what happens is like putting a human in a room that may be full of tear gas or may not. You don't know. 5 days isn't anywhere near long enough for your cycle to be completed. I would atleast wait about another week or so and test again just to make sure. Remeber that these are animals just like your dog or cat.

It's a 220 gallon tank not a 20 gallon. a couple little chromis in a tank this size is NOTHING. Your human analogy is laffable at best. Tear gas is not as bad as you might think it's unpleasant but it wont kill ya.

There is a huge misconception in this hobby that the nitrogen cycle is a finite process, your cycle is never complete thats why they call it a cycle because its ongoing.

If you don't feed the bacteria they die. thats why you read about people with mature tanks seeing spikes in ammonia when an animal dies in the tank and they can't find it. even a fully cycled tank sometimes can't handle a huge spike in ammonia caused by a rotting animal.

[pastina]

im still at 1 ppm ammonia...shouldnt it be rising or even falling by now??

the thing is, with the chromis i wouldnt just add a couple, id have to add 12


with 1 ppm of ammonia im afraid it will kill them...no?

[tperk9784]

I apologize PAstine I misread your original post. I thought it said .1ppm not 1 ppm. at those levels I would not add anything.

[pastina]

Originally Posted by tperk9784

I apologize PAstine I misread your original post. I thought it said .1ppm not 1 ppm. at those levels I would not add anything.

yeah its kinda high
i hate cycling...it feels like forever, at this point id even be happy to see some algae

[Twitterbait]

if you detect ammonia or nitrite you should not add fish or coral. it is that simple. they may survive but you are needlessly causing a measure of suffering to the animal. we always recommend a frozen table shrimp in the tank. let that rot for a few days and your cycle will have plenty to get going without hurting a fish.

what kind of skimmer do you have on the tank?

[luvmylo]

Originally Posted by Twitterbait

if you detect ammonia or nitrite you should not add fish or coral. it is that simple. they may survive but you are needlessly causing a measure of suffering to the animal. we always recommend a frozen table shrimp in the tank. let that rot for a few days and your cycle will have plenty to get going without hurting a fish.

what kind of skimmer do you have on the tank?

Yep!

[pastina]

Originally Posted by Twitterbait

if you detect ammonia or nitrite you should not add fish or coral. it is that simple. they may survive but you are needlessly causing a measure of suffering to the animal. we always recommend a frozen table shrimp in the tank. let that rot for a few days and your cycle will have plenty to get going without hurting a fish.

what kind of skimmer do you have on the tank?

i'll wait until ammonia, nitrite are zero
id rather not do the shrimp thing..is there a chance i can do this without a shrimp? if the ammonia is at 1 ppm, it has to go down eventually without life in the tank...correct??
im not running a skimmer during the cycle, i didnt buy one yet for this tank, im still undecided on which one to get
i prob will go with a tunze

[hng]

You should be fine, even without a shrimp.