Fish In Cycle?

[Ifti]

After my fishless cycle got nowhere after almost 2 months or so, I decided to do a large water change and added a single Betta and 3 Albino Cory's to see how I got on.

All seems to be well and they have settled fine, and are eating OK (the Betta didnt eat for 2 days, but is eating well now).

Anyway, Ive been checking the water daily, and have performed several 20% water changes.

I havent dont a water change for 2 days now, and whenever I have tested my readings are as follows:

Ammonia - 0.25ppm
Nitrite - 0ppm
Nitrate - 10ppm

Considering Ive not done anything to the water or changed it for a few days now - shouldnt these be rising? Or is my filter actually housing some bacteria now that are processing the ammonia/Nitrite? I was expecting to see this readings quite high, meaning daily water changes but even though I haven't changed the water for 2 days they are still low??

I did add some Tetra EasyBalance on Sunday - only a very small amount though (and 2 20% water changes since) - nowhere near the recommended dosage, but other then that, nothing else has been added.

 

[Randi]

A fish-in cycle can be very slow. The bacteria that processes ammonia generally grow first so if you are not showing any nitrites I'd say that nothing is happening in your tank yet. Keep monitoring your levels and doing water changes to keep the fish safe. Good luck!

 

[Ifti]

Should I continue daily water changes (20-25%) even with the above readings, to be on the safe side?

 

[eaglesaquarium]

Should I continue daily water changes (20-25%) even with the above readings, to be on the safe side?

The ammonia reading is NOT safe. If the reading must be kept UNDER 0.25ppm (basically zero) for both ammonia and nitrites to be considered safe. So, yes you must do a water change (probably close to 50%) to make the levels safe for the fish.

It might also benefit you to use a dechlorinator like Prime during this cycle. Prime helps in reducing the toxicity of ammonia. Good luck, and remember that when in doubt, do a water change. The fish will feel far better with a water change than they will with even low levels of ammonia or nitrite.

 

[Ifti]

Ive never had my ammonia below 0.25ppm - I think my tapwater is like this also.
Nevertheless, Ive just done a 50% water change.
The Betta wasnt scared at all - seemed very intrigued by the gravel cleaner! lol
Will continue to monitor and see how things progress....

 

[eaglesaquarium]

What is your dechlorinator? Prime will take care of that issue.

 

[Gelt]

+1 for Prime, great at locking ammonia

Hang in there Ifti it will happen!
G

 

[Ifti]

What is your dechlorinator? Prime will take care of that issue.

I use Tetra AquaSafe as my de-chlorinator.
I will take a look for Prime - which company is it from?

So I should use Prime instead of the Tetra Aquasafe whenever I change water?

 

[KISSfn]

Seachem makes Prime. Prime removes chlorine, chloramine, converts ammonia to less toxic ammonium, detoxifies nitrite and nitrates and provides slime coat. 5ml of Prime treats 50 gallons so it goes a long way. I think Prime is a superior product and Tetra sells junk.

 

[eaglesaquarium]

What is your dechlorinator? Prime will take care of that issue.

I use Tetra AquaSafe as my de-chlorinator.
I will take a look for Prime - which company is it from?

So I should use Prime instead of the Tetra Aquasafe whenever I change water?

If your tap water already has some ammonia, and you have fish in your tank, you don't want to introduce MORE ammonia to it, while you are trying to take it out. (For example, if you have 0.25ppm in your tap, and your tank also has 0.25 ppm, doing a water change will do nothing to help your fish. You'd be replacing 0.25ppm with 0.25ppm, so the water change does you no good. However, if you added water with Prime in it, the ammonia would be zero, which would allow the water change to actually lower the ammonia and create a less toxic environment for the fish.)


I'm not saying that you HAVE to use Prime instead, but it is a superior product in terms of neutralizing toxic ammonia in your tap water.

 

[maisy12345]

Hi ,where would the cheapest stockist of this be as i`m doing 60 percent daily water changes and my ammonia reading is always 0. 25,and my tap water is also 0.25.Thanks

 

[eaglesaquarium]

Hi ,where would the cheapest stockist of this be as i`m doing 60 percent daily water changes and my ammonia reading is always 0. 25,and my tap water is also 0.25.Thanks

The cheapest I've found is fosterandsmith, but that involves a delay and shipping costs. (Although if you buy $49 or more worth of stuff, shipping is free right now.) That is where I got all my supplies thus far for a new tank. Great prices, free shipping, and it arrived rather quickly (5 days).

 

[maisy12345]

Thanks for that,i`ll look on their website

 

[OldMan47]

Do not expect Prime, or any other dechlorinator, to remove ammonia. The statement that all of these companies use is carefully crafted. The Prime eliminates the danger of ammonia from chloramine in new water.
In essence what they are saying is that the dechlorinator will convert the ammonia temporarily to a less toxic form so that you need not worry too much about the traces that you get with your water change. The conversion is temporary since the form that ammonia takes depends more on the water's pH than anything else. Over the day or two following a water change, any remaining ammonia will assume the form dictated by the tank water pH.
For me that makes Prime a key to safe water changes because my filter will eliminate that ammonia before it has a chance to change back. For a filter that is not capable of converting the ammonia to nitrites then to nitrates, the benefit of Prime or any other dechlorinator is very short lived. Water changes are still the only way to effectively control ammonia or nitrites in a new tank, especially one going through a fish-in cycle.

 

[Ifti]

Thanks