Cycling question.... how long...

[Knitterly]

• I'm 2 weeks out from starting.
• 10 gallon glass tank with folding glass lid, florescent light above it on the cabinet.
• We have the heater set to 88F.
• There is a light that we leave on for a few hours a day.
• I have taken to leaving the cover open halfway just to allow bacteria from the air to have better access.
• I'm running a sponge filter.
• I'm also running an airstone bubbler.
• Ammonia has never dropped below 3ppm (probably never really dropped below 5ppm, since the test strips were undermeasuring the levels)

How long before I should really start to see some Nitrites? When should I start worrying that I'm doing something wrong?

[Knitterly]

the water is hard, despite our softener, and the pH is 8.

[Hallyx]

I'm sorry I didn't see this until just now, Knitterly.

Unfortunately, it can take months for the nitrifying bacteria to fall from the sky. That's why we always encourage new cyclers to try to get seeded media. Of course, once you have some, you'll always have it.

The bacteria double every 24 hours. So once you get some in there, it shouldn't take more than a week or two to see nitrites.

High hardness and pH is good for a fast, stable cycle.