Aquarium Nitrogen Cycle

The Nitrogen Cycle is defined as the amount of time it takes the two types of bacteria's to colonize in your aquarium to form a well established biological filter. It is also known as the biological cycle and the start-up cycle. The biological filter is responsible for converting ammonia to nitrite and nitrite to nitrate.

This process takes anywhere from two week to upwards of two months to complete. This is one of the most important things for aquarium owners to understand. The more you understand this process the more successful you will be at keeping fish. Purchasing an aquarium test kit will help you monitor the process. A typical aquarium test kit will test for ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, and ph.

Testing your water regularly during the initial startup is very important. Testing every other day during the nitrogen cycle is a good regime. The first thing you will notice is the ammonia raising. After a week and a half or so the nitrites should be rising and the ammonia should be going down. About another week and a half the nitrite will start going down and the nitrate will start going up. When both the ammonia and nitrite are undetectable and the nitrate is going up, you are safe to say the aquarium is cycled and you can proceed to slowly add fish.

There are 3 stages in the nitrogen cycle. We will go into a little more detail about what exactly happens during the stages.

During the first stage, ammonia is introduced into the tank via fish waste and uneaten food. The organic breakdown of the waste and food produces either ammonia or ammonium. The difference is in the ph. Ph of under 7 will produce ammonium which is not near as toxic, and a ph above 7 will produce ammonia which is highly toxic. Ammonia will burn the gills of the fish as well as starve the water of oxygen.

The second stage is where the bacteria called nitrosomonas is developing that will oxidize the ammonia and eliminate it. The byproduct is called Nitrite. Nitrites are just as toxic as ammonia, but they also mess with the central nervous system

The third stage of the nitrogen cycle is where the bacteria called nitrobater develop. Nitrobacter converts the toxic nitrites to nitrates. Nitrates are not toxic to your fish in low quantities. It is very important to continue testing your water on a regular schedule to make sure the nitrates do not get to high. This combined with a regular water change schedule will ensure the nitrates do not get out of hand. A 25 percent weekly water change is a general recommendation, but there are many other factors that can affect that.

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