Cycle allready?

[zoalover34]

i just set my tank up Sat. i used about 10gal. or a little more of water out of a good tank and about 40lbs. of cured rock i tested my Ammonia today and noticed it was up.. could my tank allready have went through the cycle? i went to 2 LFS today and they both told me that i had to add fish to start the cycle.. i know that everyone says not to so i didn't.. do you think the tank could of cycled in 4 days?! would be great if it did.. ill just keep testing tomorrow.. if it has cycled should i do a water change before i add anything? i think ill get a clean up crew first..

 

[Joe Fish]

You can add fish to cycle the tank, but if your ammonia is up then it's in the process of cycling now. As soon as it drops you will be good in adding stuff....slowly. Anything you add now will probably die due to the detectable amounts of ammonia. It would be bad to do a partial change on the water before adding anything.

 

[Milo]

Hey atleast your water is doing stuff!

 

[1979camaro]

it is possible that it cycled in 4 days...if you were using cured rock from a reliable source it may not "cycle" at all. That said, if you are detecting ammonia, it is not fish ready...

you are correct that there is no reason to put fish in the tank, just let the live rock do the work.

if you get antsy it will only lead to trouble, you are much better off waiting a few weeks/months to make sure everything is right

 

[zoalover34]

heres a result of the rest of my tests..
PH-7.8
ALK-2.2
Nitrite-.1
Nitrate-5.0
Ammonia- .25

are the rest of these ok or should i do a water change or just wait a few days and test again or test everyday? thanks!

 

[Joe Fish]

I think your PH is a little low. Try to get it to the 8.1 - 8.3 range. Nitrite and ammonia should be undetectable. Nitrates under 12.5 should be fine.