AlanofSmith
Aquarium Advice Newbie
I am three and a half weeks into cycling (fish-in) my children's new 20 gallon freshwater aquarium. We have an Aqueon 20 gallon deluxe aquarium which included a 24" lighting hood, QuietFlow power filtration, and 100 watt submersible heater. The substrate is a mix of black and tan, pea sized stone. There are three ceramic decorative pieces including a large and small coral reef in bright blue, yellow, and pink as well as a medium sized piece of off-white coral. We have two plants which are not looking good (giant hygrophila and subulata) as well as a Japanese moss ball. The tank is currently stocked with four Glofish (2 pink & 2 yellow) which are genetically altered Zebra Danio.
My son is in Kindergarten and has been testing the water every three days for Ammonia, pH, Hardness, Alkalinity, Nitrates, and Nitrites and recording the data. My (almost) 2 year old daughter loves to help do the drops for the tests. We have been doing a 20-50% water change every Sunday. This past week the Ammonia finally spiked up to .5 ppm. As of this evening the Ammonia is back down to zero and the Nitrites have risen to .5 ppm. Everything seems to be going as expected.
I have four questions:
1. Should I do regular water changes while the Nitrogen process is initially occurring? There seems to be differing opinions online. I did not do a water change yesterday for fear of messing things up.
2. Knowing that I have a 20 gallon tank and four Zebra Danio, how long can I expect the Nitrites to last, when will the Nitrates develop, and how long will they last?
3. I have a brown film developing on the glass and all over the substrate and decorations. Is that something I should worry about while the tank is cycling? If so what recommendations do you have? (water changes, brushing everything off, washing the decorations in tap water which is chlorinated, etc)
4. My plants look terrible (except the moss ball). From what I understand the plants used during the cycling process should be considered disposable. Is that true or am I doing something wrong?
My children and I are very excited to continue (slowly) stocking our tank once the initial cycling has completed. The advise on this forum has helped us in avoiding many beginner mistakes.
Thank you for your advise,
Alan Smith
Wallingford, Connecticut
My son is in Kindergarten and has been testing the water every three days for Ammonia, pH, Hardness, Alkalinity, Nitrates, and Nitrites and recording the data. My (almost) 2 year old daughter loves to help do the drops for the tests. We have been doing a 20-50% water change every Sunday. This past week the Ammonia finally spiked up to .5 ppm. As of this evening the Ammonia is back down to zero and the Nitrites have risen to .5 ppm. Everything seems to be going as expected.
I have four questions:
1. Should I do regular water changes while the Nitrogen process is initially occurring? There seems to be differing opinions online. I did not do a water change yesterday for fear of messing things up.
2. Knowing that I have a 20 gallon tank and four Zebra Danio, how long can I expect the Nitrites to last, when will the Nitrates develop, and how long will they last?
3. I have a brown film developing on the glass and all over the substrate and decorations. Is that something I should worry about while the tank is cycling? If so what recommendations do you have? (water changes, brushing everything off, washing the decorations in tap water which is chlorinated, etc)
4. My plants look terrible (except the moss ball). From what I understand the plants used during the cycling process should be considered disposable. Is that true or am I doing something wrong?
My children and I are very excited to continue (slowly) stocking our tank once the initial cycling has completed. The advise on this forum has helped us in avoiding many beginner mistakes.
Thank you for your advise,
Alan Smith
Wallingford, Connecticut