Cycle Q's

[Friendlyfishies]

I would like to set up a planted 20 gal with filtration. I read the cycle sticky but I still have trouble with it.

Does this sound okay?

Set up tank
Add water
Add 2 filters (one in each corner)
Add heater (just to make sure its reading corrently)

Now do I add ace hardware ammonia?
How much and how often?
I know id need to test the water but what am I looking for?

I do want to plant it with anubias and java's....would those go in during the ammonia cycling or after the cycle?

When will I know its cycled?

Thank you :)

[inuudo]

Buy an API water testing kit (the liquid not the strips).

Set up your tank with substrate, plants etc from the beginning.

At the bottom of the page is a calculator to help you determine how much ammonia to dose.

Test daily (ammonia; nitrites after the first couple of days). Dose ammonia daily until nitrites spike, then cut ammonia dose to half daily.

Start testing for nitrates daily. Once ammonia is consistently zero, and nitrites have zeroed after the spike, your nitrates will be very high. Do a big water change to bring the nitrates down to less than 20.

Your tank is cycled.

Add fish s.l.o.w.l.y. over a few weeks. Bottom feeders last.

[Friendlyfishies]

thank you! very helpful. One quick Q tho. what would be considered a nitrite spike in #'s?

[inuudo]

Off the chart! 5+

The graph in that link I included shows you the pattern that you should be able to track as you cycle.

(Okay, I just noticed that my link was removed -- reason given that it was to another forum. It wasn't. It was to a separate web page with an informative article. If you google fishkeeping articles cycling, you'll be able to find the link.)

[Friendlyfishies]

I was like where??? haha okay, good to know, thank you. Im really eager and excited. I picked up my clear ammonia today :)