Cycling Question

johnbob

johnbob

Member
I had a question about cycling the aquarium. I have a 55 gallon with 10 pounds of live rock(which now have a substantial amount of die off, a HOB Aquaclear 70 power filter, a seaclone 100 protein skimmer, and a powerhead. I tested my water and PH is between 8.1 - 8.4 and my sg is 1.024. I've had my aquarium up for 7 days and i tested it once when i first set it up and i got:
Ammonia: 0
Nitrite: 0
Nitrate: 0
Now seven days later i have:
Ammonia: 0
Nitrite: 0
Nitrate: 20
My question is first could I have nitrates in my tank without going through a cycle?
Second if I did go through a cycle is it safe to addd any fish?
Im new to this so any help would be greatly appreciated.
 
jumpfrog

jumpfrog

Active Member
In theory you can't have nitrates until you finish the cycle, but, this seems pretty fast to me. Only 10lbs of rock in a 55 and you're seeing/seen substantial die off. Is it possible to get your LFS to double check your ammonia and nitrite just to make sure your test kit is ok?
I can see why you're asking the question :notsure:
 
mr_bill

mr_bill

Active Member
I agree with jumpfrog, a nitrate reading of 20 while the rest are 0 would lead me to believe you've passed a cycle. I'd get a second test done in case your test kit is bad. Have you tested a second time yet?
 
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