cant get my tank right

[walah]

i have been having trouble with my tank and getting it cycled. Its been set up since 21/3/03 and i prob added too many fish (pet shop said amount would be ok) the levels of ammonia have been all over the place, first high then back down to 0.5 then went to 4.0 again all within a week, i have cut back on feeding to every other day and added ammo-lok 2 (10ml as i have a 20 gall tank) after last high reading. Nitrite was 0.25 and nitrate was 0, ph is 7.0, i was just wondering if my tank is still not cycled and how long should it take? i also add stress zyme to the water to kick start bacteria,

also water has a tinge of yellow which occured after i added ammo-lok is this due to ammonia?

i feel like getting rid of my tank as it seems like its all going wrong

 

[Kryten]

It would be a shame to have to get rid of the tank, I had problems but overcame them to have a beautiful tank

Did you add fish as soon as you turned the pump and heater on. It is not recommended to carry out a cycle with fish. Just keep checking everything daily

It would help if you can tell us how many fish and the types that you have, this will help us guage what pressure the current population is having on the tank

As for the yellow tinge, do you have any bogwood in the tank. If so, this will fade after a time. If you have a pump that you can adjust the power on such as a fluval, you can increase this significantly, which should filter the water

Fincannly, do one water change of about two gallons today. This will help to dilute the ammonia down and will make sure that the water doesn't go stagnant, also helping to reduce the yellow tinge

Good luck and let us know how you get on later

 

[walah]

hi,

i waited a week before adding fish i have in my 20 gallon: 4 zebra danios, 5 neons, 4 red eye tetras and 1 yo-yo loach.

i have no bogwood in the tank either.

the fish seem to be ok and not affected by the ammonia so far.....fingers crossed

 

[Fishsmurf]

Walah,

The hardest part about cycling the tank is patience (can last 6 odd weeks) and I am one of the least patient people on the planet ...... having said that.....

Don't give up !! We will get there !! Honestly !! And it is worth the wait !!

People have diff views on chems to help cycling, start bacteria etc etc. My advice (and this is JMO) would be cut the chems all apart from something to remove the chlorine / chloramine from your tap water. This then gives you a true picture of what is going on in the tank with the ammonia / nitrIte / and eventually nitrAte levels etc.

Short term keep the ammonia levels down with frequent water changes.....

HTH a bit but if you got anymore questions shout.....

Keep smiling......

 

[Kryten]

Fishsmurf is right, but I must point out that smaller tanks do cycle quicker. My tank parameters were all spot on for adding fish at less than two weeks

I use a weekly treatment of Safe Water, which is a natural bacteria liquid treatment, which helps to speed up the cycling process. When treated weekly afterwards, it will give the filter a good bacteria boost and help to break down fish and food waste quicker, getting rid of increased ammonia

 

[catman]

Just to reinforce whats been said...

If you keep adding the ammo lock, then you remove the ammonia. This stops the filter developing the bacteria colonies required to convert the ammonia into nitrite.. This then means there is no nitrite, so the bvacteria that converts the nitrite to nitrate is not developed.. And hence, the time to cycle increases!!

My advice would be to stop using ammo lock, add a bio start (to help cycle the tank) and monitor the ammonia/ nitrite. You will need to perform partial water changes to keep these down to safe levels...

 

[sgtbirch]

I 100% agree with catman. small water changes , no ammolock. Do not vacuum the gravel when doing water changes as the beneficial bateria start thier growth here also try not to let any food get to the bottom of the tank. Your nitrates show zero. Is a sure sign the cycling process is still in full effect. eventually your ammoinia will stabilize then your nitrites will climb. As for bio-start I have never believed in chems of any sort. But I think next time I'm gonna try since I have only heard positive effects.

steve

 

[Cindywindy]

Good call, Fishsmurf !

I would disagree with the above suggestion not to vacuum the substrate, however. It is not good practice to avoid cleaning of the substrate during the cycling process, for several reasons. The first reason is, that the accumulation of waste matter in your substrate is never a good idea. There is harmful bacteria that feed on waste material and can create a breeding ground for disease-causing organisms.

Remember that your fish's immune system is being challenged by the increased stress of ammonia and nitrIte. The idea is to strengthen it as much as possible by keeping the water quality and living conditions as clean as possible during this time. Allowing decaying food and detritus to accumulate in the substrate deteriorates water quality further, opening up the door to disease conditions.

 

[bigfish]

I agree buy bio start a fab product!!! you will notice the different in readings of ammonnia and nitrite in 2-3 days but keep adding it every day until all levels are zero and then just add it once a week from then on. But keep your water changes going to keep water fresh.

Don't give the giving up game not yet