[Aquaman1744]

In a previous question I asked about api tests reading ammonia at .25 -.5. I have rebuilt my tank and cycled it i have a ph of 6.2 gh6 kh2
Temp 78 nitrite 0 nitrate 30. When I test ammonia I find.25 but i have no nitrite while cycling I found that if i added ammonia I could get it up to 2 ppm and see an immediate spike in nitrite-ate. The tank is newly planted so there is some melting. But here is where it confuses me I forgot to clean my test tube and came back the next morning to find a reading go from .25 to 0. So I started an experiment i dosed a test to 2.0 and let it sit after a day it was just a different shade it didn’t turn to a 0 reading.
Is the test after sitting correct????
I am probably going to get a ammonia badge just to be safe


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[latchdan]

I've seemed to have the same issues. I was cycling a 10g tank with buffering soil. The ph was always low similar to yours. After 3 months I was still having ammonia very low 0- .25. never saw nitrite but nitrate would climb to 30ppm every week. I would do large wc to lower nitrate. I assumed the cycle was finished and bought 20 CRS. I was battling ammonia at .5ppm and high nitrates still.

Finally this week my ammonia was 0 and nitrates 5 after a week. Only thing I did different was add lots of fast growing plants and increase light intensity.

 

[Aquaman1744]

Update i have checked nitrate it is at 20 ammonia same i have a lot of vallisneria dwarf hair grass, watersprite and a banana plant to consume nitrate . Unfortunately i lost a shrimp but another has successfully molted. Thanks for the reply b4 i had a massive goldfish in there (b4 I went planted you know gravel plastic plants the whole shabam) but still had the same problem.25 never gone. I will be honest before I never cycled my tank but now i did fishless up to 2ppm i had matrix in my hob filter. My tank is a 20g and now I use a fluval 107 with enough matrix biofiltration media for 55 gallons but the ammonia stays

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[latchdan]

You need more plants. Try to get some floating plants. I covered the majority of my tank in dwarf water lettuce.

 

[Aquaman1744]

I wish I could but unfortunately watter lettuce is illegal where I live


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Water**


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[Aaronious]

Yeah, more plants. With the dirt you get a ton of nutrients. I wouldn't be supprised if there was ammonia in a different form in there that breaks down. Probably why they say to do so many water changes. I have had my tank with over 200ppm nitrates(Don't ask). No changes in fish at all. So they water changes are necessary from a Nitrate stand point. The extra leaching of Ammonia however.... fish, especially nano may have issues.

 

[Savetheplants]

I am probably going to get a ammonia badge just to be safe

Badges? We don't need no stinking badges! Vamanos!