cycling

[skimpy]

Hi

I am unfortunately not doing a fishless cycle because when I started i did not know of such a thing.

I instead followed the advice of the lfs and I am in 3rd week of cycling and on Saturday my water reading was PH 8 Ammonia 0 and Nitrite 1.0 mg. He advised me to do a 25% water change and bring in some water to retest on Wednesday.

I have done the 25% water change and my fish seems fine (1 only have one guppy).

My question is should I feed him or not. Some books say that if nitrite levels or ammonia levels are up do not feed fish. As i cant get my water test done till Wednesday i do not know what difference the 25% water change will have made.

I know he is hungry but I want to do whats right - Please help

 

[tstenback]

First, dont rely on the LFS for your testing. They may be reliable but they are not always available so you should get your own kits as soon as you can. Second, feed the fish sparingly but do feed it. If any food is left after a few minutes then scoop it out.
As mentioned above you should have your own test kits as this is often the first indication that something is going wrong in your tank, or if something goes wrong then you can test your water right away and take appropriate action or at least have the parameters to post with any questions. HTH

 

[skimpy]

Thanks Terry

I have intended to get my own test kit because it is not always easy to get across to the shop. I am getting one on Wednesday.

I go give my fish a little pinch of food now.

 

[gadazobe]

Hi and welcome.

Your 1 lonely guppy does not produce much waste in a 70 litre tank therefore not much beneficial bacteria will be produced so please remember that when you start to stock your tank - slowly slowly does it. 1 fish per week will give the bacteria sufficient time to deal with the extra waste. If you get too many fish at once your tank will start a full scale cycle again.