So I've had my 40g awaiting cichlids for over six months now. I had it all cycled up and ready to go then I suddenly found I didn't have the loot for the fish. So I kept it artificially cycled to await more money.
Somewhere along the line, I lost interest in the hobby and just stopped feeding the ammonia.
A good two months passed and then a few weeks ago I decided to get back on top of things. I dropped in some ammonia.
The next day's test was uncanny - 0 ppm!
Then the next day I tested nitrite, and it was off the chart.
Conclusion is that the bacteria which eats ammonia somehow survived all that time without a food source. But the nitrite bacteria did not.
However, the nitrite part of the cycle was finished within only a week...as if some of the bacteria had survived.
Not important I know, but I figured it might be valuable information to someone, somewhere, somehow, someway.
Somewhere along the line, I lost interest in the hobby and just stopped feeding the ammonia.
A good two months passed and then a few weeks ago I decided to get back on top of things. I dropped in some ammonia.
The next day's test was uncanny - 0 ppm!
Then the next day I tested nitrite, and it was off the chart.
Conclusion is that the bacteria which eats ammonia somehow survived all that time without a food source. But the nitrite bacteria did not.
However, the nitrite part of the cycle was finished within only a week...as if some of the bacteria had survived.
Not important I know, but I figured it might be valuable information to someone, somewhere, somehow, someway.
