Irish girl needing more advice !

[jetajockey]

 

[donna541]

Hey sorry for late reply ...50% water change done earlier 7 hours later results are ammonia 0, nitrite 0, nitrates 0.. ??? Ph always seems to be 7.6 and high ph is 7.8 - 8.0 ...

 

[Mr. Limpet]

Hey sorry for late reply ...50% water change done earlier 7 hours later results are ammonia 0, nitrite 0, nitrates 0.. ??? Ph always seems to be 7.6 and high ph is 7.8 - 8.0 ...

Don't worry about all the zeros, it's part of what to expect with a fish in cycle. If you can keep the ammo <.25ppm and no2 near 0ppm, your fish won't suffer any.

What's is the pH out of your tap? If you haven't already, I'd suggest testing it, then let a bucket of cured water sit for a couple hours and test that. Like me, you might be better off having water sit for a bit so the pH stabilizes and your fish don't get hit with a high pH during a PWC.

 

[donna541]

The water from the tap is also ph 7.6... I will let some water sit tmor and test it to see the difference... Why is my tank behaving this way wit fish in ?? I'm losing the will :-(

 

[Mr. Limpet]

The water from the tap is also ph 7.6... I will let some water sit tmor and test it to see the difference... Why is my tank behaving this way wit fish in ?? I'm losing the will :-(

It's kind of a double edged sword, you need the ammo and no2 to get the bacteria, but at the same time they can do serious damage to the fish if allowed to rise too high.

Did you get a chance to read this: I just learned about cycling but I already have fish. What now?!

If you're inclined, you might consider returning them and do a fishless cycle, it's certainly a lot less stressful.

 

[WendiDell]

Hey sorry for late reply ...50% water change done earlier 7 hours later results are ammonia 0, nitrite 0, nitrates 0.. ??? Ph always seems to be 7.6 and high pH is 7.8 - 8.0 ...

It's difficult to tell for sure, but it looks like you have a smidgen of nitrAtes. If it were 0ppm it would be the same shade as your ammonia yellow and it's not. There is a hint of orange in it.

Leave your tank alone for 24hrs and then test again. Don't worry to much about the pH, yet. Let's get the other parameters under control first.
After you test the water tomorrow take another photo of the tubes with the card. It really helps for us to be able to see the results.

Don't stress , your tank will finish cycling and these seemingly endless days of PWC and ammonia/nitrIte spikes, will end. And you'll be able to sit back and just enjoy your fish.

 

[donna541]

Results from today no water change done from yesterday afternoon (29 hours ago) i make ammonia 0-0.25, nitrItes 0 and nitrAtes 0, as it's not yellow but certainly not orange ??

 

[BeavisMom62]

I just thinking I have a goldfish tank 13l with one fancy goldfish in it with a filter gravel decorations etc and the nitrAte readings in it are 40ppm .. Can I place the decorations into my tank that Is cycling 2 speed the cycle up ??

Are your ammo and nitrIte 0? And nitrAtes are 40? How long has it been that way? I would say that you are overstocked. A goldfish needs at least 20 gal for one fish. If this tank is cycled, you have high nitrates because you are overstocked. You need a bigger tank.

 

[donna541]

I could find the product prime tat was mentioned but I found this product king British which says it removes harmful ammonia and nitrites and tat it contains millions of specially selected live bacteria!! It also says
step 1 bacillus bacteria breaks down organic matter in the filter and at the bottom of the aquarium.
Step 2 nitrifying bacteria convert ammonia and nitrites into nitrates.
Step 3 nitrates is a relatively harmless substance that can be absorbed by plants as food and is easily removed by regular pwc's.
Different types of nitrifying and bacillus bacteria are included to maximise performance in all types of water conditions.

Is it the same type of product as prime?? Should I use it or just stick with wat I'm doing ?? Thanks

 

[donna541]

Sorry couldn't find the product prime lol

 

[donna541]

Are your ammo and nitrIte 0? And nitrAtes are 40? How long has it been that way? I would say that you are overstocked. A goldfish needs at least 20 gal for one fish. If this tank is cycled, you have high nitrates because you are overstocked. You need a bigger tank.

I only have the one fancy goldfish in that tank and he was tiny when I got him 3+ years ago .. Thanks I will look into upgrading his tank!

 

[Mr. Limpet]

I could find the product prime tat was mentioned but I found this product king British which says it removes harmful ammonia and nitrites and tat it contains millions of specially selected live bacteria!! It also says
step 1 bacillus bacteria breaks down organic matter in the filter and at the bottom of the aquarium.
Step 2 nitrifying bacteria convert ammonia and nitrites into nitrates.
Step 3 nitrates is a relatively harmless substance that can be absorbed by plants as food and is easily removed by regular pwc's.
Different types of nitrifying and bacillus bacteria are included to maximise performance in all types of water conditions.

Is it the same type of product as prime?? Should I use it or just stick with wat I'm doing ?? Thanks

Sounds like a water treatment product (like Prime, et al) with bacteria built in it to me. Can't say I put much faith in the BB products that I tried years ago, but they're generally a natural product. oes it say don't use with fish or anything like that (warnings in general)? It may not help (bacteria wise), but it can't hurt is my opinion about those kinds of products. Others may have a different take on it though.

 

[donna541]

It says that it's for use in tropical aquariums but nothing about fish in or out !!

 

[Mr. Limpet]

It says that it's for use in tropical aquariums but nothing about fish in or out !!

If it doesn't have a warning, then IMO, it doesn't matter. I have some meds that warn about using with inverts and what not, so I heed those warning.

EDIT: Finally found it and it does not neutralize tap water. If you want to use it, you'll want to use your dechlorinator first.

King British Aquarium Safe Water | Aquarium Water Treatment | KB Safewater

Here's their tap water dechlorinator and it has a clear indicator of curing tap water, the one you have does not.

King British Aquarium Safe Guard | Aquarium Water Treatment | KB Safeguard

 

[donna541]

Is there much point in adding it tho if I'm happy enough doing the pwc's ?? The lfs guy said I should add some to the filter also ?? Would this be right ?? I know they aren't so reliable haha

 

[Mr. Limpet]

Is there much point in adding it tho if I'm happy enough doing the pwc's ?? The lfs guy said I should add some to the filter also ?? Would this be right ?? I know they aren't so reliable haha

It sounds like it's the kind of stuff that fills the shelves here and I consider them more quick fixers, than functional products. Like I said, most are natural based and the ones I've read up on don't have anything harmful, but questionable results.

 

[donna541]

Thanks mr limpet I have the api water treatment for use with my tap water ... I'm just wondering will this king British stuff help wit my cycle ??

 

[Mr. Limpet]

Thanks mr limpet I have the api water treatment for use with my tap water ... I'm just wondering will this king British stuff help wit my cycle ??

I can't find any credible reviews or info on it, other than it's a natural product containing BB (beneficial bacteria) to help process waste, oxidizes ammo/no2 into no3. IMO it "might" help, but if it doesn't, I don't think it's going to be harmful either. You'll have to decide if it's worth trying or getting a refund on it.

How are your water parameters looking?

 

[eco23]

I'm personally not a fan of any bottled bacteria or cycling products. Ive heard too many stories of crashed bio-filters that we've linked back to one of the "instant cycling" products. I think the best two items for a successful fish-in cycle are a bucket and a bottle of Prime.

Here's a good article you can check out though...it's a bit long winded, but gives some great info and also reviews many of the cycling products.
http://www.americanaquariumproducts.com/Nitrogen_Cycle.html

 

[jetajockey]

I wouldn't use it unless you can find some decent scientific data/reviews on it.

I've *heard* of some of these products having the ability to outcompete naturally occuring nitrifiers but I haven't seen any actual evidence of it.