Ammonia Escalating
- Thread starter landshark
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How high is the ammonia? If ammonia is elevated, you should do a PWC, not add buffer. Buffer will help the pH, not lower ammonia.
TheTodd
Aquarium Advice Addict
And what is bringing the ammonia up? Are you doing a fish-in cycle?
phishfriend
Aquarium Advice Addict
He has two clowns in the tank..
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TheTodd
Aquarium Advice Addict
I saw that he had two clowns. If the tank is cycled, there should not be any ammonia. If he is cycling his tank with the clowns as his ammonia source, then that is one scenario. If the tank was cycled already and he is getting ammonia, then something else is going on.
Been measuring my ammonia.everyday...its not high...I was just asking for a worse case scenerio....Dont want my clownfish to die. I guess you could say Im cycling my tank with my 2 clowns in it.....Just wanted to know if I should take them out if it happens to get too high....
baron1282
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If your tank is not cycled than you might lose your Clown fish. I would suggest taking back to the pet store and ask for some credit. You might not get the full amount back but you will get something.
After you get your fish back to the store, go to the grocery store and buy some uncooked shrimp and and clean panty hose. Put shrimp into hose and put into your tank to let nature take it's course. Do some water testing and in three to six weeks your tank should be fully cycled. It could take longer, but once your tank has 0 ammonia and 0 nitrite you should be good to go. Good luck!!
After you get your fish back to the store, go to the grocery store and buy some uncooked shrimp and and clean panty hose. Put shrimp into hose and put into your tank to let nature take it's course. Do some water testing and in three to six weeks your tank should be fully cycled. It could take longer, but once your tank has 0 ammonia and 0 nitrite you should be good to go. Good luck!!
Ok baron...I snagged my wifes new stocking ,put some dead shrimp in it,,,should I leave my water filter running and once its recycled will I have to do this again in this same tank?I left my live rock in the tank and took out the Clownfish.
baron1282
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Your tank should be up and running with everything running as if you had fish in it when you cycle your tank. Once your tank is cycled you should be fine, you shouldn't have to cycle your tank again.
When you cycle your tank your letting the good bacteria build up on the live rock and sponges of your filter. You should never replace a sponge in your filter unless it's about to disintegrate, at which point you just put another sponge in in front for a few weeks to let the new sponge get seeded by the old. Your carbon filter is fine for keeping the water clean, but you need some kind of sponge for your good Bactria to cling on too. that is behind your carbon filter. Only the carbon filter should be replaced every few weeks. You clean the sponge with old tank water, just a quick swish in the bucket of old tank water you took out of the tank that day to do a PWC. Never squeeze the sponge out, just enough swishing to get the big stuff off. Than put back into your filter.
Again when it comes to cycling your tank, you are letting the ammonia build up, which in turn turns into nitrites and than nitrates. You want 0 ammonia and 0 nitrites. Once your test read that (Should take 3 to 6 weeks), do a 90% water change and add back your Clowns. The good Bactria is in the rocks and sand and filter, so the water change is not going to effect the Bactria colonies.
The only reason I said to use the stocking is because the shrimp is going to get nasty. I didn't use the stocking and I nearly puked when I pulled it out with my hands.
Also if you have anything in the tank that is alive they might die. So good luck, cycling the tank is never fun, but once it's cycled it will save you a lot of money and fishes lives. Oh and while the tank is cycling, don't do water changes!
What do you mean again in the same tank? Once the tank is cycled the Bactria colonies should be stable unless you do something. You could add too much fish at once and shock the bio-load and it will do a mini cycle, but once you cycle the tank it should be cycled. Just go slow and add fish in slowly!! Once you have it cycled, 2 Clowns should be fine. My first fish were 2 clowns and nothing spiked for me. You should wait at least 2 weeks after before putting any more fish in!! Every fish you put into your tank, you want to wait at least a week to add another so the good Bactria can catch up.
Just make sure any fish you buy you do your research on before putting into your 29 gallon tank. I have a 29 gallon tank and only have 4 fish in it, not a lot!! You can do maybe more depending on the fish you get, but not much more.
I did this only once and what I told you is my experience! I hope more people chip in and help. I have had good results and no fish death due to poor water conditions. I had one jump out. :-/ Only death I had. Other than that, 2 and half months and no issues.
When you cycle your tank your letting the good bacteria build up on the live rock and sponges of your filter. You should never replace a sponge in your filter unless it's about to disintegrate, at which point you just put another sponge in in front for a few weeks to let the new sponge get seeded by the old. Your carbon filter is fine for keeping the water clean, but you need some kind of sponge for your good Bactria to cling on too. that is behind your carbon filter. Only the carbon filter should be replaced every few weeks. You clean the sponge with old tank water, just a quick swish in the bucket of old tank water you took out of the tank that day to do a PWC. Never squeeze the sponge out, just enough swishing to get the big stuff off. Than put back into your filter.
Again when it comes to cycling your tank, you are letting the ammonia build up, which in turn turns into nitrites and than nitrates. You want 0 ammonia and 0 nitrites. Once your test read that (Should take 3 to 6 weeks), do a 90% water change and add back your Clowns. The good Bactria is in the rocks and sand and filter, so the water change is not going to effect the Bactria colonies.
The only reason I said to use the stocking is because the shrimp is going to get nasty. I didn't use the stocking and I nearly puked when I pulled it out with my hands.
Also if you have anything in the tank that is alive they might die. So good luck, cycling the tank is never fun, but once it's cycled it will save you a lot of money and fishes lives. Oh and while the tank is cycling, don't do water changes! What do you mean again in the same tank? Once the tank is cycled the Bactria colonies should be stable unless you do something. You could add too much fish at once and shock the bio-load and it will do a mini cycle, but once you cycle the tank it should be cycled. Just go slow and add fish in slowly!! Once you have it cycled, 2 Clowns should be fine. My first fish were 2 clowns and nothing spiked for me. You should wait at least 2 weeks after before putting any more fish in!! Every fish you put into your tank, you want to wait at least a week to add another so the good Bactria can catch up.
Just make sure any fish you buy you do your research on before putting into your 29 gallon tank. I have a 29 gallon tank and only have 4 fish in it, not a lot!! You can do maybe more depending on the fish you get, but not much more.
I did this only once and what I told you is my experience! I hope more people chip in and help. I have had good results and no fish death due to poor water conditions. I had one jump out. :-/ Only death I had. Other than that, 2 and half months and no issues.
baron1282
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You should have your tank set up where you want it. If you move the tank once it's cycled you could cause a mini cycle as all the stuff will be shifted around.
Yea but what about the bad smell?? I got my grave,sand ,and live rock in it right now.I dont want to pollute the whole house with dead shrimp..lol. I read online to do partial water changes to speed up the process. So it wouldnt be a good idea to carry it from the backyard patio to the den??
Moving a tank with water in it isn't a great idea. You could stir up the sand and cause an ammonia spike. Then there's the fact that water is very heavy and a tank with water is difficult to move without having some sort of twisting action happening and that can cause great stress on the seams and lead to leakin later.
The smell isn't great, I agree. I did my reef tank with a shrimp, and then did my FOWLR with liquid ammonia instead, which smelled much better.
baron1282
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Liquid Ammonia is what I call advanced.
The smell is not to bad, I never really had an issue with smell. You can do it outside, but honestly once you move it (If you can), your looking at another two weeks of extra time. A mini cycle will happen, plus gases might be trapped in your sand bed that will escape when you move. I don't know how long it takes for the gasses to develop. It might take longer than 3 to 6 weeks.
I would set it up where you want it, and vent the area with an open window if the smell gets bad. Again, I did mine in a basement apartment and honestly didn't smell anything.
The smell is not to bad, I never really had an issue with smell. You can do it outside, but honestly once you move it (If you can), your looking at another two weeks of extra time. A mini cycle will happen, plus gases might be trapped in your sand bed that will escape when you move. I don't know how long it takes for the gasses to develop. It might take longer than 3 to 6 weeks.
I would set it up where you want it, and vent the area with an open window if the smell gets bad. Again, I did mine in a basement apartment and honestly didn't smell anything.
bonniewoodruff
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I did the fishless cycle with shrimp in my living room and never had a problem with the smell. I kept the filter running and it took a while. Everything in salt water is a slow, but well worth the effort and patience. I have had this tank running now with fish(2 clowns, a diamond goby and a foxface) for a few months with 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite, and my nitrates usually fun about 5. A 65 gallon tank and I do about a 8 gallon water change and clean the filter once a week. Good Luck!!!!
