Nothing in the tank but.......

[crazyred]

AMMONIA!!!! 8O I filled up my 55 last night, added dechlor, and I just tested the water and I have 1 ppm of ammonia. 8O There is nothing in there!! Just for the heck of it I treated some plain tap water with dechlor to see if it was the ammonia left behind by the breaking of the chloramine bond and it came up negative for ammonia!! What in the world can I do? I was going to move the platies from my 29 with some filter media this weekend in preparation for the blue parrots I'm getting next week, but I hate to put them into ammonia when the tank they're in now has none! If I put the filter media in there first and let it run for a while would it use up the ammonia? What should I do??? HELP!

 

[sir_dudeguy]

wait...you were going to put blue parrots in before its cycled? I'd wait till its cycled before putting anything in. And 1ppm for amonia isnt that high i dont think. What all was put in the tank? Food? anything used from other tanks? anything that was brought from another tank such as a rock or sand or even plastic plants for that matter can bring amonia in.

 

[rich311k]

Test again. If it still reads ammonia move your filter media over and get a jump start on the cycle. Very curious as to where it came from. I wouldn't move any fish yet.

Edited for bad typing.

 

[newfound77951]

When you get the plants I sent you....trust me....no more ammonia. That big floating water sprite is an ammonia sponge.

I would agree that there must be something organic in there, and also that 1ppm isn't that high. Keep testing, get the plants in there and check after that. Putting in some of the old filter media will help, obviously don't take all of the old stuff out of the old filter! Plus, with no bioload, you won't have enough waste material to support a lot of bacteria in the filter anyway.

 

[crazyred]

wait...you were going to put blue parrots in before its cycled? I'd wait till its cycled before putting anything in. And 1ppm for amonia isnt that high i dont think. What all was put in the tank? Food? anything used from other tanks? anything that was brought from another tank such as a rock or sand or even plastic plants for that matter can bring amonia in.

Nope, I was going to put the platies in my 29 into the 55 a lot of filter media......the blue parrots would go in my fully cycled 29 (they're just fancy platies).

Nothing in that tank from anywhere. The gravel is new and so is the driftwood....that's all that is in there. I haven't put any food or anything!!! I have no idea where that ammonia came from...totally stumped. I'll get the media in there and see if I can get it jump started.

When you get the plants I sent you....trust me....no more ammonia. That big floating water sprite is an ammonia sponge.

I would agree that there must be something organic in there, and also that 1ppm isn't that high. Keep testing, get the plants in there and check after that. Putting in some of the old filter media will help, obviously don't take all of the old stuff out of the old filter! Plus, with no bioload, you won't have enough waste material to support a lot of bacteria in the filter anyway.

True, good to know that water sprite is an ammonia sponge. I hope the plants beat the fish I ordered....I think they will. Fish aren't supposed to be here until Tuesday or Wednesday....I might just put those blue parrots in the 29 and leave the other platies in there until the plants get here and in the tank.

 

[Lonewolfblue]

Did you clean the tank with anything before filling, or did you just rinse it out well? If you had wiped it out with something that has ammmonia, there is enough surface area where that's where it could have come from.

 

[crazyred]

Nope, I just rinsed it out really well with plain water. I let it sit about half full of water for a while and it got really yukky & not smelling so good (thought i was getting plants, other stuff came up) so, I drained the tank and used a little vinegar water to get of the hard water marks that were left behind. Maybe some organic gunk settled into the gravel during that time? It sat empty and dry for a while after draining, but maybe something was brewing in the wet gravel? I'm at a loss!! I rested the tank water and got the same result right around 1 ppm ammonia.....heck fire, how does that even happen in an empty tank?

EDIT...Just for fun, here's a pic of the tank.....is the driftwood too much? Realize I'm going to heavily plant this thing thanks to several very nice AAers so the dritwood could actually get lost in a sea of plants. Any feedback so far?

 

[Jarred Darque]

that driftwood looks nice. I dont think it woudl be too mcuh. would look good with plants all around, and only seeing the occasional part of it and the higher points on it sticking out above the plants.

 

[newfound77951]

really nice driftwood! I just used the pieces from my 30 but am keeping my eyes open for a better piece. I like the horizontal pieces like the one you have.

 

[rich311k]

I like it. That is a very interesting piece. I think it will look great lost in a sea of plants, it is tall enough and large enough that some will always poke through.

 

[crazyred]

Thanks guys!! If you look close at the center you can see a little split.....it's actually two pieces, but they are the same kind of wood and match up pretty close there so it looks like one big log. LOL Is that cheating? Oh well.

I guess I'll let my water sit for a day or two more and decide what to do on Sunday or Monday. I think I just might go ahead and put the parrots in my 29.....I would get the other platies out in the next day or two, after my plants arrive so I think it will be okay. Wonder if I should transfer my filter media now or later? I'm not sure if 1 ppm ammonia is enough to keep the bacteria alive....certainly not ofr long I wouldn't think.

EDIT: Should I put something behind the lights in the back there to keep all that light from bleeding through? Gee, it looks like tons of light is going out the back and on to the wall.