Cycle Won't Start... At all

About 4 weeks ago I started a fishless cycle on a 10 gallon aquarium. Looking to setup a quarantine tank to avoid some of the issues I've had in my main tank.

I added some gravel, some PVC tubing, filled it with water (treated with API Stress Coat+). I setup a heater (keeping it at 76 degrees) and a hang on back filter.

I purchased some Fritz Ammonia, and added what I thought was the dosage to get the Ammonia level to about 4 ppm. I added API Quick Start as well. After a week I tested the ammonia, and it was about 8 ppm (possibly higher, was same color as highest point on API test kit). No sign of any Nitrite or Nitrate.

So I did two 50% water changes, and got the ammonia to about 3 ppm. I also took some filter media (Fluval Biomax) from my main tank and added it to this one.

Fast forward to now (3 weeks later). Ammonia is still at 3ppm. No nitrite or nitrate. Last time I did a fishless cycle it was done in three weeks. I figured I should at least see some Nitrite by now. pH is at 7.2 (same as it was at the start).

I'm wondering if I killed all the beneficial bacteria with the high level of ammonia at the start.

What to do here? Just keep waiting? 100% water change / start over? Was thinking about getting a bottle of Tetra SafeStart and see if that gets things going.

Thanks for all the help!

 

About 4 weeks ago I started a fishless cycle on a 10 gallon aquarium. Looking to setup a quarantine tank to avoid some of the issues I've had in my main tank.

I added some gravel, some PVC tubing, filled it with water (treated with API Stress Coat+). I setup a heater (keeping it at 76 degrees) and a hang on back filter.

I purchased some Fritz Ammonia, and added what I thought was the dosage to get the Ammonia level to about 4 ppm. I added API Quick Start as well. After a week I tested the ammonia, and it was about 8 ppm (possibly higher, was same color as highest point on API test kit). No sign of any Nitrite or Nitrate.

So I did two 50% water changes, and got the ammonia to about 3 ppm. I also took some filter media (Fluval Biomax) from my main tank and added it to this one.

Fast forward to now (3 weeks later). Ammonia is still at 3ppm. No nitrite or nitrate. Last time I did a fishless cycle it was done in three weeks. I figured I should at least see some Nitrite by now. pH is at 7.2 (same as it was at the start).

I'm wondering if I killed all the beneficial bacteria with the high level of ammonia at the start.

What to do here? Just keep waiting? 100% water change / start over? Was thinking about getting a bottle of Tetra SafeStart and see if that gets things going.

Thanks for all the help!

Just keep waiting. Bacteria will grow in the presence of ammonia and warmth. Adding TSS may help speed things up at this point.

 

Just keep waiting. Bacteria will grow in the presence of ammonia and warmth. Adding TSS may help speed things up at this point.

I agree, it seems like different people have vastly different time frames with their cycles. As long as there is ammonia, you should see some progress soon.

 

What's your pH? Very low pH can stall your cycle. IIRC, it needs to be close to 7 or higher for optimal bacteria development.

 

I always use Fluval cycle when setting up a new tank, and once a month I will add a little to my existing tanks.

 

What's your pH? Very low pH can stall your cycle. IIRC, it needs to be close to 7 or higher for optimal bacteria development.

It's at 7.2 right now.

Just keep waiting. Bacteria will grow in the presence of ammonia and warmth. Adding TSS may help speed things up at this point.

Okay, thanks for the input. I'll try to be a bit more patient.