Please help ...Ammonia levels...what to do? And a few other questions!

[wakijaki]

Hi
I have a juwel 190 corner tank, currently in its 11th week of running. I have followed the advice of my lfs so far on my fish keeping journey but now after I have had fish die each time I put fish in there I know not to follow their advice so I'm hoping someone out there will help me!
I currently have 4 neons, 3 lampeyes, 2 rosy tetras, 2 red honey guoramis, 2 platies, 1 guppy and 1 ram. The guppy and the ram where bought as a pair but the other died after a couple of days in the tank.

Anyway, on advice I have tested the water and I think the problem is the ammonia level as it seems to stay at 0.25. I was advised by the lfs to do 15% water changes every 2 weeks but am now concerned this isn't enough as since adding more fish there is a much more noticeable level of waste in the tank.
I really want to get the ammonia level to 0 so what would anyone recommend to me to do as water changes - ie how much and how often to sort this out?
Also I have noticed the 2 pipes on the external filter at the back are black with waste, they are right in the corner so I hadn't noticed til now - surely they shouldn't be so dirty? Would it be better to clean them?
Also how often should I be cleaning the filter out and is it correct to just wash the mechincal parts of the filter and not wash the sponges?
Sorry for asking so many questions! I had trusted my lfs til now but am getting most upset at losing fish and all the advice I have got so far seems to be wrong. For example I asked about the rams and said would it be better to wait for the tank to mature more before adding them and was told that they would be fine - 3 days later 1 was dead and that was just the final straw really in listening to the lfs as I have been told since I shouldn't have been sold them in the first place as a newbie with a new tank.
Thanks for reading and I would be really grateful for any advice.

 

[allaboutfish]

Hi
I have a juwel 190 corner tank, currently in its 11th week of running. I have followed the advice of my lfs so far on my fish keeping journey but now after I have had fish die each time I put fish in there I know not to follow their advice so I'm hoping someone out there will help me!
I currently have 4 neons, 3 lampeyes, 2 rosy tetras, 2 red honey guoramis, 2 platies, 1 guppy and 1 ram. The guppy and the ram where bought as a pair but the other died after a couple of days in the tank.

Anyway, on advice I have tested the water and I think the problem is the ammonia level as it seems to stay at 0.25. I was advised by the lfs to do 15% water changes every 2 weeks but am now concerned this isn't enough as since adding more fish there is a much more noticeable level of waste in the tank. dont listen to your lfs you need to do atleast a 25% water change weekly more if your nitrates get high
I really want to get the ammonia level to 0 so what would anyone recommend to me to do as water changes - ie how much and how often to sort this out?are you cycled and have you tested you tap water for ammonia?
Also I have noticed the 2 pipes on the external filter at the back are black with waste, they are right in the corner so I hadn't noticed til now - surely they shouldn't be so dirty? Would it be better to clean them?you can clean them if you want
Also how often should I be cleaning the filter out and is it correct to just wash the mechincal parts of the filter and not wash the sponges?wash everything in old tank water
Sorry for asking so many questions! I had trusted my lfs til now but am getting most upset at losing fish and all the advice I have got so far seems to be wrong. For example I asked about the rams and said would it be better to wait for the tank to mature more before adding them and was told that they would be fine - 3 days later 1 was dead and that was just the final straw really in listening to the lfs as I have been told since I shouldn't have been sold them in the first place as a newbie with a new tank.
Thanks for reading and I would be really grateful for any advice.

red is me

 

[wakijaki]

Thanks for such a quick reply!
I didn't do a fishless cycle although I have since learned I should have, my lfs said to wait 2 or 3 days but I waited 2 weeks before adding 4 neons and then the cycle of dying fish started. I wrongly assumed that they would correctly advise me and have gone along with all their suggestions of which and how many to add but each time I have lost one so I know despite them testing the water before I buy that something is wrong.
I have a tetra 6 in 1 test strip kit so I am testing weekly and all the other levels are fine - this didn't include an ammonia test so I got the Api drop test. Just tested my tap water now, have to admit this hadn't even occurred to me (doh!) and that is also at 0.25. So what do I do now? I assumed that when ading new water the 'Water safe' liquid I got would take care of this....
Thanks for the advice about the water changes as I was sure with the amount of waste in the tank that only taking water out every 2 weeks would be too long to leave all that waste in there.
So how often would you say to wash the filter out and how should I clean the sponges - just a quick swish in the water or a proper rinse?

 

[allaboutfish]

ok so first the best thing to do is get an api master kit. also pick up some seachem prime for the ammonia problem it'll make it harmless to fish. also do a water change when ammo or nitrites is above .25 and when nitrates are above 20. im thinking your doing a fish in cycle so your gonna have to test everything daily until you hit ammo-0, nitrites-0 and have a reading of nitrates.

 

[wakijaki]

Ok great! thanks for your advice. will get myself off to ebay to do some shopping!

 

[allaboutfish]

haha good luck and you can pm me anytime with questions

 

[Ant329]

Make sure you are vaccuming your gravel any waste that just sits can cause your ammo level to rise

 

[librarygirl]

First, stop listening to the LFS

Letting a tank "run" for x number of days doesn't cycle it.

You should get a liquid test kit ASAP, strips aren't accurate (if you can physically go to a store and buy it it would be faster than buying online).

When you get the kit, post your results for ammonia, nitrItes, and nitrAtes.

When cycling with fish you want to keep ammonia and nitrItes <0.25 at all times. Test the water every day. If either of those goes over 0.25 do a water change to bring them down (for example, if ammonia is 1.0, you would need to do two 50% water changes to get it down to 0.25). Be prepared to do at least one water change every day, depending on what the test kit says.

This article will help: I just learned about cycling but I already have fish. What now?!

 

[EGMono]

First, stop listening to the LFS

Letting a tank "run" for x number of days doesn't cycle it.

You should get a liquid test kit ASAP, strips aren't accurate (if you can physically go to a store and buy it it would be faster than buying online).

When you get the kit, post your results for ammonia, nitrItes, and nitrAtes.

When cycling with fish you want to keep ammonia and nitrItes <0.25 at all times. Test the water every day. If either of those goes over 0.25 do a water change to bring them down (for example, if ammonia is 1.0, you would need to do two 50% water changes to get it down to 0.25). Be prepared to do at least one water change every day, depending on what the test kit says.

This article will help: I just learned about cycling but I already have fish. What now?!

Why 2x 50% water changes and not 1x 75% water change?

 

[eco23]

Why 2x 50% water changes and not 1x 75% water change?

Either way is fine. A larger pwc can be more stressful for fish, and there's also a greater chance for a sudden fluctuation in temperature if not matched perfectly. Don't be afraid to do 75% pwc's in an emergency situation...but back to back with a short time in between is also an acceptable method.

 

[Scottishnewbie]

I'm in exactly the same boat as regards to the tank, ammonia levels and the advice from my lfs!!!
If it's ok with you - can we keep in touch?? I've only lost one neon the day after he went into the tank but I'm worried for the rest.

 

[wakijaki]

Thanks for all your advice! This is a great place!
Have done a 25% water change today and will test again tomorrow to check ammonia levels as the water from my tap is 0.25 also although I have added King British Safe Water to the fresh water. Also cleaned out my filter and that was pretty dirty so hopefully that will help.
Think after doing a bit of looking around on here that I might also be guilty of over feeding so far as I had a few fish that don't seem to want to feed with the others so I have been putting a bit of extra food in to make sure some gets to them - will definatly be more careful from now on with that also.
I have got a gravel cleaner so I do try to get as much waste out as I can with that and I also keep a close eye on my plants to make sure I remove any dead leaves.
Prime and an api master test kit are on my to buy asap list!
Thanks again for all the info!

 

[wakijaki]

Just thought to ask - Should I do another 25% tomorrow and every day after until I get the ammonia level down to 0?

 

[eco23]

Just thought to ask - Should I do another 25% tomorrow and every day after until I get the ammonia level down to 0?

Let your test kit dictate how often and how much water to change in order to keep ammo and no2 under .25 at all times. It really can't be measured on a time scale. If you are using a water conditioner (like Prime) which will neutralize ammonia, you will still see it appear on your API kit, but it will be rendered temporarily non toxic (for 24-36 hours). The goal is to have any ammonia the fish produce remain at 0, and any ammonia the tap water adds reduce to zero within 24 hours after the pwc