Nitrite levels

February 13

I installed the wet/dry sump

February 20

 My nitrite levels continue to run high, but the ammonia has gone to zero.  Waiting for the second tier of bacteria is like waiting for your bangs to grow.

  UPDATE February 26 

I built the wet/dry sump on the 13th.  Nearly two weeks later I have begun to see  Nitrobacter and Nitrospira begin to bloom!

To keep my fish healthy I have done 75% or better water changes everyday.   What a relief this is.   I chose to add fish before cycling only because of the rare opportunity to get these fish locally.   I would never recommend placing fish before the tank is cycled.

Nitrite oxidoreductase

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Nitrite oxidoreductase (NOR or NXR) is an enzyme involved in nitrification. It is the last step in the process of aerobic ammonia oxidation, which is carried out by two groups of nitrifying bacteria: ammonia oxidizers such as Nitrosospira, Nitrosomonas and Nitrosococcus convert ammonia to nitrite, while nitrite oxidizers such as Nitrobacter and Nitrospira oxidize nitrite to nitrate.
The enzyme is bound to the inner cytoplasmic surface of the bacterial membrane and contains multiple subunits, iron-sulfur centers and a molybdenum cofactor.^[1][2] The enzyme is relatively abundant, making up 10-30% of the total protein in these bacteria and forms densely-packed structures on the membrane surface.<sup>[3]


CLICK HERE for details of my aquaponic system cycle</sup>