ammonia?

[Japola44]

So my 55 gal tank for a week read 0ppms for ammonia. So, I slowly added the fish making sure the ammonia stayed at 0ppms. However, the last 2 days its read at .25ppms and thats after moving one fish to my 20 gal for fin repair. I also moved my powder blue gourami in there today, because the other one nipped off a peice of fin. Is there any way i could lower the amount of ammonia? There are only 2 fish and a snail in the tank right now. Do you think if i added some bacteria starter it owuld help? Nitrates and Nitrites read out 0ppms and my pH is 7.6. I added the bio bag from my 20 gal into the 55gal, but i think the melafix would have killed all the bacteria in it :?

edit- i want to clarify that the melafix is being used only in my 20gal aquarium.

 

[Guest]

you have an uncycled tank

The Nitrogen Cycle
http://www.aquariumadvice.com/showquestion.php?faq=2&fldAuto=21


A saltwater article, but still useful for Fishless cycling guidline
http://www.aquariumadvice.com/showquestion.php?faq=2&fldAuto=15

 

[Japola44]

blarg.. i know about cycling.... It was cycled trust me i wouldn't add fish if i wasn't. I used my 20 gal filter to seed the tank, and gravel from my 20 gal to seed it. I added one fish at a time. I did everythign ur supposed to do. blah i'm so fustrated.

Could it be something in my tap water? I just did a water change the day before the ammonia levels rose? I can't figure it out. I take out a fish and my ammonia levels rise... :x

 

[Guest]

but you don't have any nitrates??? If it was cycled you would have nitrates.. even with the plants you should hav e some trace of nitrates in there.

If it is cycled then you can do small daily water changes to reduce the ammonia.