How Long Until Nitrites Show Up?

[CammieTime]

I am doing a fishless cycle with pure ammonia from the hardware store. I have the ammonia concentration at 2ppm. How many days does it usually take for nitrites to show up? How long after that until nitrates appear?

[Akili]

There are many factors that come in play such as,tank size,water temperature, pH and so forth.Keep testing for ammonia every 24 hours, fishless cycle can be completed in a matter of days if the conditions are right.

[CammieTime]

75 gallon BB at 84.1 degrees with pH of 8.2.

[White Worm]

Typically, new aquariums can be cycled in 2 to 6 weeks, but the actual length of time depends on amount of ammonia being added during the cycling period & efficiency of the biological filtration. You can increase the cycle time by including bacteria boost additives. You should see nitrites around day 7. Nitrates around day 10.

[Kyla]

Make sure ur heaters are on too, as I think the cycle will be faster in a warmer tank. My step daughter cycled some jars for science class and I think the cold temp slowed it down a bit

[CammieTime]

After 10 days at 84 degrees nitrites nor nitrates did not show up on API Test and ammonia never dropped. No idea why. This appears to be a common problem if you google it. Fishless cycle is not as simple as it appears.

[Akili]

After 10 days at 84 degrees nitrites nor nitrates did not show up on API Test and ammonia never dropped. No idea why. This appears to be a common problem if you google it. Fishless cycle is not as simple as it appears.

I have added Seachem Stability to give it a kick start

[DJW]

After 10 days at 84 degrees nitrites nor nitrates did not show up on API Test and ammonia never dropped. No idea why. This appears to be a common problem if you google it. Fishless cycle is not as simple as it appears.

The nitrifying bacteria have to find their way into the tank somehow. In a random way you introduce some on your hands, under your fingernails maybe from another tank... flying insects possibly.

If you don't have other tanks, or pets, or don't have much contact with soil it could take a while. Nitrifying bacteria live in soil. I started a tank once with a handful of damp dirt from the garden and had nitrite in 3 days. Bottled bacteria don't work very well.

[CammieTime]

If you don't have other tanks, or pets, or don't have much contact with soil it could take a while. Nitrifying bacteria live in soil. I started a tank once with a handful of damp dirt from the garden and had nitrite in 3 days. Bottled bacteria don't work very well.

If true this would have been good to know before I started. I knew that Bottled bacteria does not work and what you see when you use it is simply the placebo effect.

[DonMD]

Always takes me at least 6 weeks no matter what I do. Just cycled a 150 gallon, fully cycled now with fish in it. Took a full six weeks at 2ppm ammonia.

[Jack L]

it depends 6+ days, however i just seed BB from an established tank and there is no cycle

[White Worm]

Toss some flake food in there and let it decompose.

[CammieTime]

Toss some flake food in there and let it decompose.

I did that and the ammonia amount was virtually zero so I added ammonia from the hardware store. Regardless, the nitrifying bacteria come from the fish themselves or an established cycled filter, since my tank had neither of these my nitrite readings were zero.

Anyway, I found a simpler solution. Prime binds ammonia for 24 to 48 hours into a form that is consumable to nitrifying bacteria but harmless to the fish. Prime also binds nitrite for a day or two. All you need to do after adding fish is dose prime every day and do a water change every other day and your cycle will complete without harm to the fish.

[LJSmith]

Seachem can’t qualify or quantify how their product works to bind Nitrite. If I remember correctly they only recommend it to detoxify nitrite in emergency situations. I would be patient with the fishless cycle.

[DonMD]

All you need to do after adding fish is dose prime every day and do a water change every other day and your cycle will complete without harm to the fish.

I have done this successfully in breeding tanks with new sponge filters.