Cycling confusion

[skimpy]

Hi everyone, please can you help me with my confusion.

I have managed to cycle my main tank, without loss of fish it took 8 weeks and a lot of hard work (and advice from TFF) but I got there in the end.

Anyway not I am cycling a 2.6 gallon tank for my babies to go into. I put in water from my main tank and squeezed in some filter media. Within 24 hours my readings were Am 0 Nitrite 0.25 nitrate 20. Within 48 hours my readings are Am 0 Nitrite 0.5 and Nitrate 40.

Should I leave well alone to do it thing (there are no fish in tank) - or should I do a 50% water change (or even 100%) to reduce the Nitrites. I know I need to let nitrites bit happen to allow the Nitrates to grow but I was thinking that it the Nitrates are 40 they are already established.

I was not expecting such readings, my main tank has stayed the same
Am 0 Nitrite 0 Nitrate 20.

Does size acutally matter, when it comes to fish tanks, does it make a difference

Looking forward to your idea's

 

[clutterydrawer]

"Within 24 hours my readings were Am 0 Nitrite 0.25 nitrate 20. Within 48 hours my readings are Am 0 Nitrite 0.5 and Nitrate 40."



Are you feeding the bacteria? What with? and if not...why are your readings increasing?

 

[skimpy]

I did add a small pinch of fish food twice (once at the beginning and once after 24 hours but that is all I have done

 

[Chasing Puck]

Does this smaller tank have a source of ammonia? Introducing the bacteria from the media in your existing tank is good, but without some source of ammonia, those bacteria will quickly die off. Add a pinch or two of food--see what your readings are tomorrow.

And yes, size does matter. Not just in terms of what you can successfully keep, but in terms of maintenance. A smaller tank is less stable than a large tank, and will require closer attention. For example, in a large tank, a KH of 4 is stable, and weekly or bi-monthly water changes of 25% will likely be enough to maintain a stable pH. In a small tank, it takes less acidity to use up the low KH, and cause a serious pH swing. So, plan on stocking very lightly, and doing more frequent maintenance in a small tank. 2.6 is on the very fringe of what I would even attempt to keep--it will require almost daily monitoring until you establish the routine, and that's just for bare-bones maintenance.

 

[skimpy]

Thanks chasing puck

I did add a pinch of food twice, should I continue to add it daily, and is that once or twice a day ??

I will monitor it very closely, it is only tiny because I do not have room for one much bigger and I only intend to raise fry in it to the size that they will no longer get eaten, or the fish shop will take them as fish and not as food.




You say do maintenance more frequently, would twice a week 25% each time be enough or do you mean more often tham that. I do once a week 15% on my main tank. ???

 

[Chasing Puck]

A smidge of food once a day should be adequate to keep the bacteria population viable. More than that, and you run the risk of causing a serious spike.

When you have fry in there, you'll want to do changes at least that often--fry are much more sensitive to fluctuating water conditions than adult fish. But, if you keep the numbers reasonable, it will work for a while.

 

[skimpy]

Thanks chasing puck,

I am happy to do water changes as often as needed, its only tiny so its not a lot of trouble. Would it be better if i changed the water 3 times a week. What do you think.??

p.s. to anyone who can answer me.
(sorry to be a pain, but i still don't know wether to do a water change on the tank now or not ?)

Many thanks

 

[Chasing Puck]

If the nitrites are in the new tank, don't worry about doing a change--they are bacteria food. If you had fish in there, you'd want to do a water change, but as is, no real need.

Yep, more water changes will be better for the fry. Large scale breeders usually either do 100%+ changes daily, or have their grow out tanks setup as flow-through--ie, fresh water is constantly coming in and dirry water going out. The better the water, the better the survival and growth will be for your fry.

 

[skimpy]

Yep, more water changes will be better for the fry. Large scale breeders usually either do 100%+ changes daily, or have their grow out tanks setup as flow-through--ie, fresh water is constantly coming in and dirry water going out. The better the water, the better the survival and growth will be for your fry.

Gee never knew that, thanks a lot chasing puck