Can someone confirm that I am cycled?

[Tradewind]

I think I am there.  I let my PH crash and lost my progress and then about a week ago, I corrected and this is the first time I have seen 0 ammo 0 nitrites and measurable nitrates.

Here are my numbers for the past week or so.

Date         PH      A     Nitri    Nitra     comments                                                Days

07/17/13    6.0    8.0    0.25    0.0    added 3 palms of sodium bicarbornate            26
07/18/13    7.5    6.0    0.50    0.0    added 3 lime stones to grow beds inflow         27
07/19/13    7.2    4.0    2.00    40.0                                                                     28
07/20/13    8.2    1.0    5.00    40.0    added 2 caps ammo, removed two stones     29
07/21/13    6.8    2.0    5.00    20.0    Put 2 stones back, added 1 palm of soda      30
07/22/13    7.2    1.0    5.00    40.0    added 1 palm of soda                                  31
07/23/13    7.2    0.0    5.00    40.0    added 1 cap of ammonia                              32
07/24/13    6.8    0.0    5.00    40.0    added 1 cap ammo and 1 palm soda             33
07/25/13    7.2    0.0    0.25    40.0    added 1 cap ammo                                      34
07/26/13    6.8    0.0    0.00    20.0                                                                      35

If you guys give me the OK, I will add "Shiners" (bait fish) to the fish tank and continue testing.

Thanks,

[Vlad Jovanovic]

When you can dose ammonia to the tune of 1-2ppm and within 24 hours have BOTH ammonia AND nitrites back down to zero, AND YOU CAN DO THIS CONSISTENTLY 3-4 DAYS IN A ROW...you can then consider your cycled 

[Keith Rowan]

once you do get fish (after following Vlad's advise), don't swing your ph by more than a couple of points (tenths) in a day or you'll be stressing your fish

[Harold Sukhbir]

Hi Tradewind,

With a 150 gal FT and 2 days of dosing getting a zero Ammonia and a zero nitrite read on the second day, I'd say yes to you being cycled. Listen to Vlad's advice though and go for 2 more days of ammonia dosing.

[Tradewind]

Thanks guys.  I guess I will run it a couple of more days.  I will go out tonight and dose it with two caps and see how that works out.  I have discovered however, I need to find a way to reduce the temp of my water.  I talked to the guy with the Shiners and he tells me I will kill them within an hour at the temp I am running .  He has a chiller on his tank and takes it down to 65 degs.  I have done a little research and this would be a good temp for a lot of fish and would allow me to use more varieties.  I certainly don't have to take it down that low, but I know that 90+ degree water is not a good thing.  I am thinking a small refrigerator with a heat exchanger inside with line off the pump through the exchanger and back to the tank.  The frig has thermostat so I could have some control.  I am just not sure if it will be enough.  

As far as PH goes it seems to want to gravitate at 6.8 if I just leave it alone.  I was bumping it up for the nitrifying bacteria's sake. I am not sure, but I may not have to mess with it.  I intentionally did all I could to have as neutral as a PH as possible when I set my grow beds up.

I do not know what I am doing, but I researched a lot, asked a lot of questions and followed their advice.  Thanks again for yours.  It will be heeded.

[Tradewind]

Eureka!    I do believe I am cycled.  As suggested I dosed my system everyday taking it to about 2 PPM Ammo and 24 Hrs later she is reading 0 Ammo, 0 Nitrites, and 20 Nitrates.  Today was the 4th day with such results.  I am happy.  Now it is time to go get some fish to kill.  Today I started putting together my DWC that looks like an NFT system to add on to what I have.  Wood work has been done, now the hard part about drilling all those holes in the 4" PVC.