Nitrite cycling

Question
I just set up a 55 gallon tank that had sat dry for about six months and was forced into adding a lot of fish without allowing it to properly cycle and adding them in slowly as of current it has been set up with fish in it for 3 day's I have been doing 50 percent water changes 2-3 times a day because the ammonnia hit 5.0 and I have managed to get it down to about 2.0 with the water changes but I know that is not good enough.  filters are brand new with fresh media and charcole and again tons of water changes. I am refraining from chemical ammonnia solution's begause I am trying to get the bacteria level up but I am losing faith in myself and water changes because of the 2.0 level btw just for clarification I don't meen .02 I do meen 2 full parts per million any idea's or suggestions? thank you very much!

Answer
Hi Jarred
Well....you're tank's going through the normal cycle process.  And, it really has to so the bacteria can develop.  50% water changes 2-3 times a day is only going to prolong the cycle process.  I'd either recommend returning all/most of the fish, or doing a fishless cycle instead.  Or, one thing you could try is getting some Prime by Seachem, and adding that everyday.  It converts ammonia and nitrites to a nontoxic form so the tank can still cycle, but the fish should be unaffected by them.  That can be expensive though, the stuff isn't cheap :)  But, you could go to doing 1 weekly water change if you use that daily, and that's the only product I"d recommend if you choose to go that route.  It dissipates after 24 hours, so must be added daily.  And, you will most likely still get "false positives" on any ammonia and nitrite test kit readings.  

Other options, again the fishless cycle would be best and less stressful on the fish.  But, since you were "forced" to add the fish in the first place, I'm guessing returning them isn't an option :)  
If you know someone with an established disease free tank, you could use some of their filter squeezings and pour that directly into your filter media-that'll pretty much kick start the cycle, almost instantly.  Last option, find some BioSpira, it's bacteria in a bottle, and the only one that works.  Should cycle the tank in about a week.  It's expensive, and difficult to find though, and needs to be kept refrigerated.  Stay away from the ones you find on the store shelves, like Cycle or Stress Zyme-just waste of money.

If absolutely none of those suggestions are an option, I would stick with daily water changes, of about 20%, not the 50% few times a day.  You very well may lose some fish, but like I said, you're just prolong the cycle process by changing out too much water.  Another thing to keep in mind as well, check your ph.  If your ph is 7.0 or lower, ammonia is converted to a non toxic form called ammonium, and will most likely NOT affect your fish, so you would be ok until the nitrites start to spike.  And, when you do start showing nitrites, add some aquarium salt, 1 tablespoon per 5 US gallons(dissolved first in a bucket with dechlorinated water).  That helps the fish absorb oxygen into their bloodstreams, which nitrites inhibit their ability to absorb oxygen.  If you have salt sensitive fish, like cory cats, plecos, tetras, loaches, etc.  add the salt very slowly over the course of the day.

Good luck!

Christy