what is going on here?

[ozonebaby]

???

OK so I have everything set up - i started the fishless cycle about 4-5 weeks ago - and I seem to be getting nowhere! i test for nitrites & nitrates - and i have no reading - i keep the ammonia around 5 but it just doesnt seem to be working! do i just need some more patience?

also i have noticed a white film on my hood & filter - i am thinking i have hard water, and those are deposits? should i test for water hardness? does it make a difference how hard the water is?

what are the best test kits? i saw ones that were just strips - no drops in a test tube and all that jazz - do those work as well as other kits?

any info is greatly appreciated, as always!

thanks!

*celebratesmiley*

 

[JWright]

Did you seed your tank with anything? If you didn't add any existing bacteria, then it is possible for the cycle to take that long. I would reccomend you try to find some gravel or filter material from a clean disease free tank and add that to your filter.

Josh

 

[ronrca]

Patience is the key.

Hardness does make a difference depending on the type of fish you want and also if you are going with real plants. For example, discus and african cichlids require different hardness. Ph is also affected by hardness (kh). Its nothing to really worry about though unless you can afford to spend some extra cash on hardness removers like r/o units or if you maybe want to breed some soft watered fish.

About the test kits, I recommend going with the test tube kits. I like them way better than the strips. I have tried the strips and found them a little unreliable. But that is just my opinion.

 

[colesea]

Definately go with test tube kits. The strips only test the first centimeter of water, which exchanges with suface atmosphere during aggitation, and thus give a different reading than the water tested off the bottom of the tank.

That's where I test from. I invert the test tube to trap air in it, and then go strait down to the bottom of the tank. I rinse the tube this way at least three times that way any residual water or chemicals from washing it aren't going to give a faulty reading. After that I take a sample at substrate level, by tipping the tube to let the air pocket out and the water gets sucked in. Then I cap it and bring it up for testing.  It's the water on the bottom of your tank that will tell you how well your filtration is doing, and give more accurate readings.

In fact, if you really want accurate readings, you should test surface, middle, and top three times each from three random locations and average the values...but that's too time consuming for most of us<G>.
~~Colesea