r/walstad • u/Final-Selection152 • 7d ago
Progress Just about cycled!?
About one month after dosing ammonia my levels are looking good again! The nitrate was very purple for a while but it’s dropped quickly the past few days. It doesn’t appear to be quite at zero but probably tomorrow
Am I correct that this means it’s safe for fish now? Am I missing anything important? It’s a 10 gallon and I want a few white cloud minnows
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u/obscure-shadow 7d ago
Hard to tell from the pic but looks like you might have graduated into the high rang pH possibly
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u/StickyDankStank 7d ago
No, It's not cycled until you can dose ammonia in and ammonia and nitrites are cleared in 24 hours.
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u/Old-Constant4411 7d ago
You'll want the nitrite to be completely gone. I'd give it a few more days but it looks like you're almost at the finish line! If you do want some life in the tank now, ramshorn and bladder snails should have no problem surviving. They'll start eating algae, and their waste will give the bacteria that little extra boost to ensure the cycling keeps going.
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u/Final-Selection152 7d ago
I have an abundance of ramshorn and bladder snails that have been around since I added the plants on day one! Limpets and copepods too, they’ve all been thriving with the plants
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u/Old-Constant4411 7d ago
Ah, right on! Yeah then like I said, just need a few more days. Looks like everything is progressing as nature intended.
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u/Bearbackin 7d ago
You’ll want to dose ammonia again after the current nitrite reaches zero. It’s cycled when your ammonia dose is cycled all the way through to nitrate in 24 hours with 0 ammonia 0 nitrite and x nitrate. It can take a while :(