The Puffer Forum

Ok so last night i did a massive water change. this morning the tank seemed fairly clean. only a slight hue of white. so i went and picked up a good test kit and some prime. I did a test and ammonia, nitrates, and nitrites were all 0. Then i added the prime like everyone said too. have been continuously checking my parameters all day. still a slight hue of white but other than that everything seems fine. the fish even seem fine and are swimming about like the day i got them. is my tank close to being cycled? this has got me all confused

No it's not. With all zero readings it hasn't started yet. Print this out:
library/water-filtration/emergencycycle/
You have a couple of weeks of constant testing and water changes ahead of you.

If you added safestart dont do water changes for at least 48hrs. If you have some left dose it again and just let the tank sit, but make sure you dont overfeed the fish already in it. You should start to see some nitrates within a fewdays to a week depending on how you feed the fish. Make sure you get the liquid test kits if you havnt already.

ok thanks guys ya i already have the test kits and i just dosed the tank again with the safe start. if i end up with another bacteria bloom should i just leave it alone or change water again?

You don't need to add the Prime until your ammonia and nitrites start to rise. You also only need to test your water parameters daily, 2x if it makes you feel better. I wouldn't start testing for nitrates until your nitrite spike starts to go down. I would only feed the fish every other day and keep in mind that less is more. Fish need less food than you think.

What brand of test kit did you get? If you got the API kit be sure to shake the nitrate #2 solution bottle for at least 30 seconds and shake the test tube for 60 seconds or it can give you a low reading.

Here's a good, easy article about the nitrogen cycle. http://www.fishlore.com/NitrogenCycle.htm

Prime should be added to the tank right before you refill from a WC. It's main purpose is to dechlor the water. Add the Safestart directly to the filter.

^
I meant when using Prime to detoxify ammonia and nitrites, when you use it at higher doses other than as just a chlorine remover.

LtGhost08 wrote:ok thanks guys ya i already have the test kits and i just dosed the tank again with the safe start. if i end up with another bacteria bloom should i just leave it alone or change water again?

If you get a bacteria bloom then leave it. Those are good in a new tank. The bacteria are multiplying in the water column and will eventually settle all over the tank, hence cycleing your tank. As long as the bloom is milky colored and not green (which would be an algea bloom) your good just let it take its course. Test for nitrates aswell as the others since safestart contains all of the bacteria needed for the cycle.

Every once in a while one of my reef tanks gets all milky/cloudy. I used to panic & do lots of large WC ($$$) but it didn't help much. Seems to come & go on it's own. nothing ever gets harmed from it, not even the Sea Apple in there.

ya i noticed that my fish were more upset about the water change then the bacteria. the tank is nice and clear now! has been for two days. still havnt gotten a amonia, nitrate or nitrite reading yet. i forgot to tell everyone i had ghost shrimp in there too. one died but another one had eggs hatch now i got babies all over the place lol

Clarification: Nitrification bacteria are never sufficiently common in the water column to be detectable by hobbyists, much less visible. They are never part of a bloom. That is pure mythology. They are incapable of multiplying except when attached. Please read the refs mentioned before for more info.

I should have said establishing instead of cyceling. Thnx for the clarification.