cycled now trace ammonia 0-.25

[jpchin]

hi i have a 45 gal coffee table aquarium. 53 inches long 23" wide at widest point, 11 inches deep. came with a custom ugf system consisting of a grid of pvc pipe with holes. 2 160 gph pumps. 10 live plants 2 moss balls. 6 glo fish, 4 mm platys, 3 dwarf gourami's 3 x-ray tetras, and 2 blue rams. all fish are doing great. ph 6-6.5, 0 nitrite, <20pp nitrate, 0-.25 ammonia. tank is cycled about 2.5 months. took 5 weeks to cycle so tank has been up and running for approx. 3 months. added the last 5 fish (the tetras and the dwarf gourami's) about 2 weeks ago. that's when the slight elevation in ammonia began. does the tank need to catch up to the fish load or maybe feeding too much although i feed only for a few minutes? i also feed black worms every other day. the fish LOVE them. as i said all the fish are doing well. just worried that this could be the start of a bad situation. i do small water changes every 3rd day to keep the ammonia at 0. maybe i should clean gravel? did small gravel clean 3 days ago but maybe should do more thorough cleaning? any advice would be greatly appreciated. thanks sue

 

[rich311k]

I would cut back on the feedings, that sounds like quite a bit. Mine get a smidgen once a day and they are doing just fine. The tank is probably adjusting to the bio levels. You may want to get your readings double checked just to be sure your test is still good.

 

[jpchin]

thanks alot rich i appreciate your answer. i was thinking along the same lines so i didn't feed at all today and my ammonia is still at 0. i did water change yesterday. if i'm still at 0 tomorrow that will be good. will feed a small amount tomorrow. again thanks for the response. sue