# How long to cycle with ADA New Amazonia & PowerSand Special



## sunyang730 (Jan 30, 2012)

I think it is leaching Ammonia and not Nitrites. Ammonia got converted in to Nitrites from my understanding. I have 2 tank with New Amazonia, and here is from my experience. 

After filling it up with water, you have to do a water change the next day. Try to poke in the substrate before you do the water change to release any air bubbles under the substrate. If you want to wait for 2 days it will be better. Just make sure you poke the air bubbles as much as you can. 

I always use the Nutrafin Cycle. I think it helped a lot. Not sure if you are using tap or RO or both, if both use tap with PRIME and after first water change mineralize your water and fill it up. 

I dose Nutrafin Cycle everyday (I think I am overdosing) but I don't care. LOL I want as much bacteria as I can in there. 

My tank was cycled after 10 days. But before you add any shrimp, I will recommend do another water change, and get the water to settle for 1 or 2 days, check the parameter and then add shrimp. 

Hope this help.


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## triscene (Apr 7, 2012)

i am currently using mostly tap water, but last water change was mostly RO, when finishing cycling i plan to use RO with Bee Shrimp Mineral GH Plus to remineralize it to softwater shrimps. No tap water afterwards.
I did one day after planting some seeding of HC so some bubbles got away?
how bad is it to have bubbles under substrate, shouldnt it go away as time goes?

I have also some bacteria starters but dont want to rush it as PowerSand Special already includes Bacter 100 and Clear Super which are already usefull bacteria.

how did u realize that it is cycled? 0 level of Ammonia?
i have my shrimplets provisionary in another tank and dont want to risk any harm, probably will drop few neos in a week whether they will survive.


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## sunyang730 (Jan 30, 2012)

You know it is cycled when you have 0 Ammonia and Nitrite and some reading of Nitrate. Nitrate should be close to 0 if not then you need to do a water change. From my opinion, the power sand special is for the bacteria under the substrate and it may take a while to get it up? I am not sure. 

The bubbles are really bad. It is poisonous and can kill your shrimp. You better do it now then later. Especially for newly setup tank. The bubble don't leave the substrate unless you poke it. Does it go away as time goes? I don't know and I don't want to risk that. The longer it stay there, more poisonous it is that is what I think. After I have some experience with it, I always try to get rid of the bubble as my as I can during first fill in. After that I will wait until the tank almost cycle and throw in some Malaysian Trumpet Snail and let them take care of the rest.


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## TexasCichlid (Jul 12, 2011)

If you have nothing living in the tank, don't worry about water changes. When ammonia and nitrites are zero, and you have nitrates, is when the cycle is done or nearly so. Bubbles in the substrate of a newly scaped tank are not much of a concern to me, personally. They are probably just trapped air pockets gradually escaping.


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## triscene (Apr 7, 2012)

i am not a big fan of MTS as i want to have HC carpet and they really like to go under the soil. my friend has experience that it ate the roots so he had to change the whole substrate and was very thankful to me that i gave them to him 
i will try to stir the soil a bit.


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## sunyang730 (Jan 30, 2012)

TexasCichlid said:


> If you have nothing living in the tank, don't worry about water changes. When ammonia and nitrites are zero, and you have nitrates, is when the cycle is done or nearly so. Bubbles in the substrate of a newly scaped tank are not much of a concern to me, personally. They are probably just trapped air pockets gradually escaping.


The bad part is when they don't escape that soon and it will create a poisonous gas pockets. Which kill a lot of my OEBT. LOL




triscene said:


> i am not a big fan of MTS as i want to have HC carpet and they really like to go under the soil. my friend has experience that it ate the roots so he had to change the whole substrate and was very thankful to me that i gave them to him
> i will try to stir the soil a bit.


Really? I have no problem with it in my HC carpet tank. I will think that they don't know where to go when HC is full in the tank. LOL They are a really good helper.


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## Vermino (Jun 14, 2012)

usually takes about a week or so.. i did about 20% WC first day, second day, and then like 7th day (because of the high nitrate) on the 8th I everything was stable. This comming from a mature HOB. So just keep testing, you dont have to do a WC but it's just something I do.

use a skewer to poke air bubbles in your substrate to get them out. they will usually come out themselves but still good to do it while cycling


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## HBdirtbag (Jun 15, 2015)

Hey guys, bringing this up. I've been cycling Amazonia did 3 weeks now. My ammonia is at zero and has been about a week, but my nitrite is off the chart. I'm doing daily 50% changed without much luck. 


Tank is planted with co2. Also using EI dosing.


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## Couesfanatic (Sep 28, 2009)

I would do one water change a week. You might be dropping the nitrite too much and not allowing the nitrate to build up.


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## HBdirtbag (Jun 15, 2015)

Even after water changed the nitrite isn't going down much and pops back up within hours. I'm traveling part of next week so that'll force no changes.


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## Couesfanatic (Sep 28, 2009)

Could be a testing kit error or something. Tanks cycle on their own as long as ammonia is present. The tank will cycle itself with Aquasoil. I've done tanks with Aquasoil with no water changes in the first two months. Things grew great. You will be fine.


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