Tank is taking forever to cycle!! (FW)

My mom set up a 38 gallon freshwater tank. I am helping her cycle it and get it ready for fish. The cycle is just taking forever!! She is getting impatient - I don't blame her! She keeps saying "I thought you knew what you were doing!" LOL

So it's been cycling for THREE months! I put some pellets in at the beginning and let them rot. The ammonia took like two months to rise and drop. The ammonia is now 0. But the nitrite is stuck at 5ppm. It's been there for a month.

What is the deal?! Is there any way I can speed this up?! Argh!

Thanks!

 

You can add a bottled bacteria, such as Hagens Cycle and that will speed up the process IME

Steve

 

THANK YOU! Doing it today! I'll try anything!

 

I would get another nitrite test kit also.

 

FW cycles weard . ive found if nothing happins in 2-3weeks its never going to happin add fish mabee ive been lucky but i have never lost a freshwater fish other than old age i would thing i was into cichlids for years other than agression takeing them out ive had them live for 10 years plus .. (ive always wated a discus tank but never could find them localy)

 

I would toss in a molly and some bottled bacteria, tbh. That may be the thing you need to get it fully cycled.

 

I'm going to put some bacteria in tonight. Won't the 5ppm nitrite kill any fish I put in there?

 

5ppm nitrite isn't too bad to begin with, but especially not for a molly. They're probably the single hardiest fish species out there.

 

Okay...it's the last color on the chart! LOL maybe we will try a super hardy fish. But I'm going to try the bacteria first.

 

I agree with the bacteria. I added a whole bottle of it to mine when I set it up and the whole thing cycled in a very short time. I was testing like crazy since I could not believe it would speed up things so much.

Why didn't you do the shrimp method, KC? Does it only work for salt water? That seems to be an easy way to start a cycle too.