How do I know when my biofilter bacteria are up to speed?
When your ammonia and nitrIte are reading 0ppm and your nitrAte is rising your biofilter bacteria are up to speed. Be nice to your biofilter bacteria though, cuz they’re still touchy. They mostly live in biofilms on surfaces, so avoid disturbing them. Always rinse your filter in discarded tank water, NOT chlorinated tap water. Be gentle at first. Later after the biofilms has matured, you can whack the heck out of the filter pad to clear it. You’ll want to keep using your existing filter pad as long as you can, cuz a lot of your biofilter bacteria live there. When it’s starting to get stopped up and smacking it is starting not to clear it, put a new filter pad in the tank in addition to your existing filter pad to start colonizing it.
