It's too soon to tell if we're officially cycled. The ammonia was 0, the nitrites were 0, and oddly enough, the nitrates were 0. I was horrified by that. How could nitrates be 0 if the tank was cycled and no water change had been performed? It was impossible. I did some research. Ultimately I decided to go with an explanation offered on one forum; if the nitrates are literally off the chart, the indicator solution can't display it. Much like when I got a gray nitrite reading last week, this was just too high to register. Somebody suggested diluting the tank water with tap water, and when I did, I got a nitrate reading, as you can see in the photo.
So when I got the no-ammonia, no-nitrite reading, I assumed it was the final stage. I dosed the tank with ammonia. A few hours later, these are the readings I got. So I have to wait 24 hours to make sure the bacteria can process things.
This morning, the nitrites are sky-high. They have until this evening to disappear. Fingers crossed!
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