Cycling help

Hi everyone, I'm currently a very confused beginner.
I'm looking into getting an axolotl, and have now bought a second hand 110L tank (that came w a filter and LED lights)

1. Roughly two days ago I cleaned everything and filled it up and treated the water. The filter itself is the 'All Pond Solutions' 9W UV 700IF+ - but it didn't have any media since it was second hand so I just put some kitchen sponge in the bottom temporarily, not sure if this was a mistake? I also put some 'Supa Fern' plants inside of the tank but currently (2 days later) the water has gone green and the supa fern has some kind of build up on it - could this be because of the supafern (i didnt rinse it) or the filter (incorrect media).

2. I went to the store where they kept the axolotl and was really confused to hear that I didn't have to cycle the tank? Only do a 75% water change weekly for about a month to reduce ammonia levels and then follow up w some stabiliser to level it out, then after a month and a bit reduce it to 20% water change weekly.
In conclusion this information has left me even more confused because the research I did beforehand suggested cycling the tank for 1 week+ to level out the bacteria before putting the animal inside, (but apparently that isn't needed?) then do a 20% water change weekly without the need for a stabiliser.

If anyone could clear these up I would be really grateful, thank you

Hi welcome to the forum

I have to admit I've never read much about Axolotl but in terms of cycling a filter I think there are a couple of steps you have missed and some things youve done that wont help but we can help

The filter you mention is it this one? https://www.allpondsolutions.co.uk/9w-700lh-700if/

The sponge you mentioned from the kitchen - what type of sponge? Even if it was new it could contain soap or anti mould agents that are not a good thing in a tank so I would recommend getting aquarium specific media.

Super Fern is a brand of plants rather than a specific plant could you show us some pictures to work out what type you have? The green water is a type of algae that gets suspended in the water which could mean you have ammonia and nitrites in the water as well as possibly too much light.

To properly cycle a tank and filter we recommend a method called fishless cycling (or Axlotolless cycling in this case) which you can read about here
https://www.fishforums.net/threads/cycling-your-new-fresh-water-tank-read-this-first.421488/

Wills

Most fish shops - and presumably those that also sell axolotls - don't believe in cycling. After all, if the fish die you'll go back and buy more.

I know little about axolotls but as they are aquatic creatures I presume they need the same water quality as fish. In other words, a cycled tank.
In fishkeeping, we always recommend a fishless or plant cycle - and both of these take longer than a week. Using bottled bacteria can speed up a fishless cycle but it still takes a while. This is how to do a fishless cycle https://www.fishforums.net/threads/cycling-your-new-fresh-water-tank-read-this-first.421488/
A plant cycle relies on the tank having lots of fast growing live plants as plants use ammonia as fertiliser. Slow growing plants don't take up much ammonia compared to fast growing plants. With this method, the tank is planted and then left until there are visible signs that the plants are growing and not about to die However I don't know if it is considered good practice to keep axolotls in a tank with a lot of live plants.


Re the filter - are the sponges plain ones or are they impregnated with detergent or any other chemical? Do they allow water to pass through them freely? And do they fill the filter chamber completely from side to side with no gaps for the water to squeeze through?
You may want to buy the correct media for the filter before starting to cycle the tank - the media is shown on the website under product spares.

Wills posted as I was typing

Wills said:

Hi welcome to the forum

I have to admit I've never read much about Axolotl but in terms of cycling a filter I think there are a couple of steps you have missed and some things youve done that wont help but we can help

The filter you mention is it this one? https://www.allpondsolutions.co.uk/9w-700lh-700if/

The sponge you mentioned from the kitchen - what type of sponge? Even if it was new it could contain soap or anti mould agents that are not a good thing in a tank so I would recommend getting aquarium specific media.

Super Fern is a brand of plants rather than a specific plant could you show us some pictures to work out what type you have? The green water is a type of algae that gets suspended in the water which could mean you have ammonia and nitrites in the water as well as possibly too much light.

To properly cycle a tank and filter we recommend a method called fishless cycling (or Axlotolless cycling in this case) which you can read about here
https://www.fishforums.net/threads/cycling-your-new-fresh-water-tank-read-this-first.421488/

Wills

Click to expand...

Yes, that's the filter. I'm going to purchase the media (ceramic balls for the top and filter foam for the bottom) ASAP but this is the kind of sponge that's being used -->

And this is the fern -->

(Not sure how else to show it )

Ohh, so the ammonia and nitrite may have been caused by too much light?

essjay said:

Most fish shops - and presumably those that also sell axolotls - don't believe in cycling. After all, if the fish die you'll go back and buy more.

I know little about axolotls but as they are aquatic creatures I presume they need the same water quality as fish. In other words, a cycled tank.
In fishkeeping, we always recommend a fishless or plant cycle - and both of these take longer than a week. Using bottled bacteria can speed up a fishless cycle but it still takes a while. This is how to do a fishless cycle https://www.fishforums.net/threads/cycling-your-new-fresh-water-tank-read-this-first.421488/
A plant cycle relies on the tank having lots of fast growing live plants as plants use ammonia as fertiliser. Slow growing plants don't take up much ammonia compared to fast growing plants. With this method, the tank is planted and then left until there are visible signs that the plants are growing and not about to die However I don't know if it is considered good practice to keep axolotls in a tank with a lot of live plants.


Re the filter - are the sponges plain ones or are they impregnated with detergent or any other chemical? Do they allow water to pass through them freely? And do they fill the filter chamber completely from side to side with no gaps for the water to squeeze through?
You may want to buy the correct media for the filter before starting to cycle the tank - the media is shown on the website under product spares.

Click to expand...

Thanks, I will give that a read.

Both light and ammonia/nitrite make the floating algae grow, the algae that turns the water green.
Ammonia comes from fish and axolotl waste, and the good bacteria turn ammonia into nitrite (and more good bacteria turn nitrite into nitrate).

Something I'm not clear about - did you buy an axolotl? If you did you will be doing what we call a fish-in (or axolotl-in) cycle. If you have, you can't do a fishless cycle, and we can help you keep the axie safe until the tank does cycle.


I would not use those sponges. They look like some I have which do not contain any detergent, anti mould etc chemicals but they don't allow water to flow properly through them. I would get the proper media for the filter. It looks to be sponges and a bit of ceramic media. Just the sponges is fine. Don't replace them as the instructions probably say, just wash them in old water taken out during a water chnage.

essjay said:

Both light and ammonia/nitrite make the floating algae grow, the algae that turns the water green.
Ammonia comes from fish and axolotl waste, and the good bacteria turn ammonia into nitrite (and more good bacteria turn nitrite into nitrate).

Something I'm not clear about - did you buy an axolotl? If you did you will be doing what we call a fish-in (or axolotl-in) cycle. If you have, you can't do a fishless cycle, and we can help you keep the axie safe until the tank does cycle.


I would not use those sponges. They look like some I have which do not contain any detergent, anti mould etc chemicals but they don't allow water to flow properly through them. I would get the proper media for the filter. It looks to be sponges and a bit of ceramic media. Just the sponges is fine. Don't replace them as the instructions probably say, just wash them in old water taken out during a water chnage.

Click to expand...

No, I didn't buy one because I didn't feel secure enough with the information I'd been told or the research I had done. I'll order the filter foam today

In that case I think the algae may have been caused by the LED light - what can I do to correct this?
Thank you

cla.ra said:

Yes, that's the filter. I'm going to purchase the media (ceramic balls for the top and filter foam for the bottom) ASAP but this is the kind of sponge that's being used -->View attachment 125711

And this is the fern --> View attachment 125712

(Not sure how else to show it )

Ohh, so the ammonia and nitrite may have been caused by too much light?

Click to expand...

Ah so the plants are just plastic/nylon?

Like Essjay said the ammonia and nitrites are caused by things rotting in your aquarium which if there is nothing living in there could come from build up of waste in the gravel etc. The algae is then caused by the availability of these chemicals and nutrients and light.

Wills

Wills said:

Ah so the plants are just plastic/nylon?

Like Essjay said the ammonia and nitrites are caused by things rotting in your aquarium which if there is nothing living in there could come from build up of waste in the gravel etc. The algae is then caused by the availability of these chemicals and nutrients and light.

Wills

Click to expand...

Its dried fern and then dyed I believe, but how would there be waste in the gravel?
Sorry haha I'm just trying to grasp everything

You said the tank is second hand - did you use second hand gravel or brand new gravel? If it's second hand gravel, there could be all sorts of stuff in there from the previous owner from uneaten fish food to decomposing fish poop. Even if you washed it, it might not have got rid of everything.


I've used that plant in the past - before long it began to shed bits.

Yep Essjay has said what I was thinking - if its old it will have a mix of things that can decompose. You could also have nutrients in your tap water which can cause algae.

Wills

Wills said:

Yep Essjay has said what I was thinking - if its old it will have a mix of things that can decompose. You could also have nutrients in your tap water which can cause algae.

Wills

Click to expand...

No, it was new gravel.

Ok, thanks

How long are the tank lights on for? If they are on too long, that can cause algae to grow.

essjay said:

How long are the tank lights on for? If they are on too long, that can cause algae to grow.

Click to expand...

I'm not very sure... probably a few hours. What can I do to correct it? Will the new media in the filter help?