Lots of water chemistry parameters to change. Where to start...

[dieselplower]

Good news! The ammonia levels dropped, the nitrite is high, and the nitrate is just starting to show up... So it's finally starting to cycle! I left the UV filter off last night, and turned it back on this morning. Because I unwisely have the UV light and skimmer pump wired together, I can't turn off the UV without also turning off the pump. Although it doesn't affect my main pump and biofiltration, I don't want to leave the skimmer off too long. This morning at about 6, ammonia levels were still high, and no nitrite. Then by noon is when I did my latest test.

Also a while back you said nitrite is high and nitrate is starting to show up and then today you said "this is the first time i had any nitrite or nitrate readings".

 

[max384]

It would if the ammonia was converted to nitrites and nitrates. The ammonia has to be converted to something. With bacteria it's a 2 step method. Ammonia to nitrites. And then nitrites to nitrates. Not at the same time.

The nitrites went up first. The nitrates were low, but still registering. So that would make sense in the two step process. I took the first reading a few hours after adding the bacteria. Chemical ammonia reducers don't convert ammonia into nitrites or nitrates. Bacteria do this. So having a chemical ammonia reducer still doesn't explain the sudden appearance of nitrates and nitrites.

 

[max384]

Sounds more like divine intervention then scientific possibility.
Even if you were to transplant a large quantity of living bacteria directly from an active bio-filter the possibility of those water parameters changing that quickly from a purely biological process seems unlikely. My bet is the bottle contained some chemicals that lead to those changes, as John suggests.

I'm just going by my direct observations. I bought a product and it did just as it was advertised to do. It is Aquascape liquid beneficial bacteria. It didn't appear to have any ammonia reducing agents in it. I had high ammonia prior to adding it. I then added it and a few hours later, the ammonia had decreased and I had nitrite and nitrate readings for the first time.

I'm not a religious man, but even if I were, I wouldn't be so bold as to proclaim that God helped me with my pond water chemistry...

 

[max384]

Max in one post you said "ammonia and nitrite is consistently zero" and then in the very next post you said "ammonia dropped significantly" so I am confused.

Also a while back you said nitrite is high and nitrate is starting to show up and then today you said "this is the first time i had any nitrite or nitrate readings".

I replied to an older post about the beneficial bacteria. Currently my nitrite and ammonia levels are reading zero. A while ago when I first added the beneficial bacteria is when the nitrate and nitrite shot up.

 

[dieselplower]

OK thanks Max I was confused!

 

[max384]

Yeah, after rereading it, I realized I wasn't very clear about that. It's too late to edit my part to make it clearer now though.

 

[Lisaebetten]

Oh boy... well I certainly don't want to turn this thread into some sort of argument or pissing match. So regardless of whether it helps or not, I figure it can't hurt, so why not? Plus if I'm adding liquid bacteria to the pond, it makes sense to me to turn it off, since they're free floating at first when they come from a bottle.

Poor Randy must feel like kicking his dog (if he has one) every night when he reads about people buying bacteria in a bottle!!! Makes me giggle just thinking of him reading these posts!!! My pond doesn't have water yet but I sure am thinking about a lot of people I've never met in person (thank God)!!!

 

[Mucky_Waters]

Poor Randy must feel like kicking his dog (if he has one) every night when he reads about people buying bacteria in a bottle!!! Makes me giggle just thinking of him reading these posts!!! My pond doesn't have water yet but I sure am thinking about a lot of people I've never met in person (thank God)!!!

Hey Lisa don't worry about me. Feel sorry for the people spending their hard earned money on those bottles of placebo fluid, dumping jug after jug into their ponds thinking they are adding live bacteria.
Like I've said before, rather then trying to reason with people to stop wasting their money I aught to be jumping on the band wagon and selling my own bottles of bacteria. It's not hard to sell bottles of water with bacteria in them. It takes more effort to try and kill off or neutralize any bacteria in a bottle when you seal it then it does to seal bacteria in there. But the fact is, the sort of bacteria we want to culture in our ponds and bio-filters needs oxygen to survive and be active and viable, and you just can't seal that sort of bacteria in an air tight bottle, store it on a shelf, and expect it to be any more active and viable then the bacteria that can already be found in your pond water.
There certainly are things you can add to your pond to jump start the viable bacteria already existing in your pond, but adding live "bacteria" from a bottle of a shelf is just not practical. You could add ammonia, pee, dog food, fish food, molasses, a dead frog, etc... and they will all help feed the bacteria that already exist in there, but if you want to add live, active, bacteria it must come a living active source, and that could be pond water from an existing pond, top soil, media from and active bio filter would be even better, or even scrapings from rocks in a local creek or stream, because all these sources are actively exposed to a source of oxygen which is keeping the bacteria alive and active. Take any of those materials though and put them in a container devoid of oxygen and within a day or two all the "good" bacteria will be dead, eaten, or at best go dormant.
So again, there are things that you can add to your pond or bio-filters to help jump start the bacteria already in there, but I think it's sensible to know what you are adding, and why.