going to cycle with guppies

[cain420]

lol rites went up from 0.05 to 0.10 for 1 day then bak down to 0.05 next day and rates were up this mornin from 2.5ppm to 5.0ppm.. ammonia has been at 0.25ppm since i set it up.. i dont get why the shrimp isnt adding ammonia and it is that rotted, lol...i managed to tweak my skimmer today and its workin for a change..i dont get it, i figured i would be starting the cycle by now.. how long would it take to spike if it wasnt cured? should i just dump a whole bucket of shrimp in there? LOL
haha wait.. i just tested my ammonia and it went down slightly.. could i have had a super mini cycle? i think ill get alot more shrimp and get this goin already...lol just checked my rates again too: rates are in between 10 and 20!! had to be a mini cycle or what???

 

[ophiura]

You may have cycled already. If you see nitrates, you have. You have basically cured LR AND a skimmer, and both of these will dramatically cut down the time of the cycle. You may never see a more significant spike, though I do suggest getting your water tested elsewhere. There are some test kits that unfortunately always read .25 on the ammonia.
You can do a couple of things. You can really push the tank HARD but adding several more shrimp....or you can basically remove the shrimp, feed the tank as you would with fish in it for a week, and see if the ammonia responds in any way. If it is cycled, it basically won't. If it isn't cycled then it may start. I am a big proponent of pushing a tank hard.

 

[cain420]

hmm :notsure: :notsure:
i am confused.. a mini cycle perhaps.. i didnt expect to see ANY rates for at least a week...
yea my test kit goes from 0 - .25 and up.. its starting to lean towards the yellow or 0 and the shrimp are still in there.. could the water have already sucked all the ammonia out of em?
THANK GOD WE MADE SOME USE OF THIS THREAD!

 

[agent707]

I something wasn't write with him after reading the first post and noticing his Title... "Reefer" man.
I suppose all that "reefer" clouded his thinking...

 

[alyssia]

Originally Posted by Agent707
I something wasn't write with him after reading the first post and noticing his Title... "Reefer" man.
I suppose all that "reefer" clouded his thinking...

 

[ophiura]

Originally Posted by cain420
hmm :notsure: :notsure:
i am confused.. a mini cycle perhaps.. i didnt expect to see ANY rates for at least a week...
yea my test kit goes from 0 - .25 and up.. its starting to lean towards the yellow or 0 and the shrimp are still in there.. could the water have already sucked all the ammonia out of em?
THANK GOD WE MADE SOME USE OF THIS THREAD!
A lot of the "classic" cycle profiles where you see charts are based on tanks without LR. LR can REALLY impact the cycle and it is not uncommon to see any ammonia spike at all. Basically the shrimp ARE giving off ammonia, but you have enough bacteria in the rock to "eat" it and so it is beyond the resolution of your kit to detect - but I am assuming here that the kit is wrong. That is why you should have it double checked. THere is a certain brand of test kit that almost always incorrectly reads .25. The other thing you can do is go buy a gallon of distilled water at the store, and use your test kit on it to see if there is an ammonia reading. THe will effectively "correct" for the error in the test kit, but is not ideal.

 

[oreo12]

Originally Posted by cain420
hmm :notsure: :notsure:
i am confused.. a mini cycle perhaps.. i didnt expect to see ANY rates for at least a week...
yea my test kit goes from 0 - .25 and up.. its starting to lean towards the yellow or 0 and the shrimp are still in there.. could the water have already sucked all the ammonia out of em?
THANK GOD WE MADE SOME USE OF THIS THREAD!
I thought this was a real fun thread

 

[phsyco]

I have guppies and sailfin mollies in a 55 FOSW tank. salinity 1.025. they have been fine and breeding for over 2 years now. Babbys are doing great and thriving beter than they ever did when it was fresh water. It took me about 2 weks to turn them to SW. wife didn't understand when I took one of her sailfins and just thew it from her tank to mine. OH what a look I got from her!!!!!

 

[hagfish]

Originally Posted by phsyco
I have guppies and sailfin mollies in a 55 FOSW tank. salinity 1.025. they have been fine and breeding for over 2 years now. Babbys are doing great and thriving beter than they ever did when it was fresh water. It took me about 2 weks to turn them to SW. wife didn't understand when I took one of her sailfins and just thew it from her tank to mine. OH what a look I got from her!!!!!
Are you keeping them to feed something else?