Am I going on the right path?

First of all thank you all so much for reading my post and thanks in advance to those of you offering a piece of advice or suggestions.

So we started our tank over 3 days ago and have a gravel flooring and flagstone decoration. No fish in yet. My husband and I did a bunch of reading on cycling the tank and all so now, we actually know what it is and all....

The tap water readings were:

pH: 7.4
Ammonia: 0
Nitrites: 0
Nitrates: 0

NOTES: the fist day we didn't see any changes so we put a chunk of uncooked fish 1" big and kept it in the tank for a day and overnight our water turned from clear to cloudy/gray in appearance.

So at this point we knew this was going to happen so we removed the fish and continued with the the circle. We did our first water test yesterday and these were our readings:

pH: 7.6
Ammonia: .25
Nitrites: 0
Nitrates: 0

Today our water still cloudy and we added a pinch of fish flakes and did a water test which read the same as before except this time our ammonia levels were at zero.

So, should I start freaking out now? I know the tank is still cycling, but is this normal?

 

Hi!

To do a fishless cycle, without stuff like TSS, you need a source of ammonia.

Either pure ammonia, but I never tried it, although people here could guide you on that path...

... or other forms of ammonia, decaying fish food being one!

Now in my experience, one flake per day could stretch the cycle for weeks...

... I opted for a more aggressive method!

What I did is I took a whole lot of flakes, not a handfull but you know, enough to build a considerable hill in your palm...

... and I put the stuff in my fish net, secured it in with a rubber band, and placed the net in the tank!

Sure enough, it took about 5 days for the ammonia levels to rise considerably, much more than 0,25...

... so I removed the food from the tank, as the cycle was about to begin!!!

A week and a half later, it was done and I could (finally) add fishes!!!

My only advice is when you pull your net out of the water, do it gently, for if you don't, some gunk might find it's way through the net and in your water...

... also, keep your nose at a good distance from the above mentionned net...

... I'll let you guess why!!!



Good luck!!!

 

You need to keep dosing the tank with ammonia to keep your cycle going. It's probably better to use pure ammonia than to use a piece of uncooked fish or fish flakes. I know foster and smith sells it but I think you can use the pure ammonia you use to clean your house too (but don't quote me on that!).

Your ammonia needs to go higher than .25 to grow the amount of bacteria needed to sustain the fish tank over the long term. I'm not sure about the exact levels though maybe someone else can advise you on that/

 

This will help.

https://www.fishlore.com/aquariumfishforum/threads/ammonia-instructions-for-a-fishless-cycle.19627/

 

This will help.

https://www.fishlore.com/aquariumfishforum/threads/ammonia-instructions-for-a-fishless-cycle.19627/

Thanks that is a great piece of information!

 

Your tank is lovely! Is the hood/stand a custom build?

I highly recommend using pure ammonia to cycle your tank. That's what I did, and I think I would find any other way too stressful. With pure ammonia, you can completely control the ammonia level, you never have to guess at how much to add. (The ammonia calculator that's linked in the thread mentioned above is a great tool for determining how much you need for your tank.)

Good luck!

 

Your tank is lovely! Is the hood/stand a custom build?

I highly recommend using pure ammonia to cycle your tank. That's what I did, and I think I would find any other way too stressful. With pure ammonia, you can completely control the ammonia level, you never have to guess at how much to add. (The ammonia calculator that's linked in the thread mentioned above is a great tool for determining how much you need for your tank.)

Good luck!

Yes, in fact it is. My husband built the hood. I'll post pictures of his project, he refinished the stand too...

Thank you, we decided that's the way we're going to go just to keep things under control and stop us from going crazy.

This will help.

Ammonia Instructions For A Fishless Cycle | Aquarium Nitrogen Cycle Forum

Now I'm not sure about what to do with the water level. Do I top it off with more water as it evaporates or should I wait until the tank has completely cycle and wait for the water change?

 

Now I'm not sure about what to do with the water level. Do I top it off with more water as it evaporates or should I wait until the tank has completely cycle and wait for the water change?

My view (that's all it is) would be to keep the water at level. But be sure to use water that will not set the BB back. Also be sure to use a good seed bacteria when you start the cycle.