cycle questions

so its been a week since i started my cycle with some dead LR & 30 lbs LS.. i do have 40 more pounds of LS that i killed with freshwater on the very bottom..& been testing my parameters & have seen the ammonia going up.about 8ppm now).. still no nitrites, or nitrates... i know this is normal...

i have not seen any kinda of algae or anything... my water is clear... so should i give it more time? or should i add something to help?

i would like for it to go faster if it wouldnt harm anything?

i just ask these questions cause i have read some threads on here & some people have seen changes in a week... i have not seen a thing...
im just wanting to make sure im doing everything correctly...

 

I personally wouldnt do anything to it, your doing fine all this is normal. Depending on the variables yes some ppl see a cycle in a week. My cycle started about a week after i added LR and ended about 3 weeks later. Once you see abunch of brown junk on the sand then those are diatoms and that is a good sign your cycle has started, afterwards you may see algae. Just test your water every day or so and even after it has finished i would wait a week or so then slowly add stock to it. The worst feeling is when you add a fish mid cycle and it doesnt make it.

But nope your doing fine it just takes time

 

Great Advice...

 

i kinda made a mistake my parameters are ammonia..2ppm... nitrites 1-2ppm...& nitrates are 20-30ppm....
is that normal? & i heard that the diatoms come after the ammonia is gone?
thanks MOBY DUCK

 

Yea everything if fine. As ammonia rises they will be converted to nitrites and then to less toxic nitrates. Now that you see nitrites the cycle is working and slowly but surely you wont have any ammonia or nitrites. Some ppl do water changes during their cycle but i never did i always waited till i had a high nitrate.

 

THANK YOU... ill keep checking parameters...