Looking for input/advice from veterans

[dwhit13]

I have a 55 gallon freshwater. two filters, one emperor 400 and one Penguin 350. I have had it running for about 3.5 weeks now. by not knowing what I was doing and following advice from petsmart I got in over my head. I currently have 5 whitefin (4glofish) tetra. Three black skirt tetra, three dalmation mollies, two clown pecos. I ve been using the api master test kit per advice here. Ive been doing daily 50 % water changes and my ammonia readings have been steadily but slowly decling. Tonight after 36 hours since my last water change my readings were less than .25 ammonia and .50 nitrite with .40 nitrate. I just did a 50 % water change again. Am I going about this correctly? and am I making progress at getting this thing cycled? From my limited understanding with the ammonia going down as quickly as they are now and my nitrites and nitrates showing up I think I am getting there? I know the nitrites are just as dangerous but I believe somewhere I read that once the ammonia comes under control there is usually one huge nitrite spike. My nitrites before tonight had been reading much lower after just showing up a few nights ago.

 

[BBradbury]

Fish In Tank Cycling

Hello d...

You should be testing the tank water daily for traces of ammonia or nitrite. If you have a positive test for either, change out 25 to 30 percent of the tank water and replace it with pure, treated tap water.

If you change more water, you'll remove the food the good bacteria need to reproduce to a level where they can take over more of the job of keeping the tank clean. You're growing a living filtration system.

You simply test the water and change it when needed. After a few weeks, when several daily tests show no traces of ammonia or nitrite, the tank is cycled. From this point forward, you change half the tank water every week or two to maintain stable water conditions.

If you add some floating plants, they'll help keep the water a bit cleaner during the cycle.

B

 

[Dallascowboys16]

Hello d...

You should be testing the tank water daily for traces of ammonia or nitrite. If you have a positive test for either, change out 25 to 30 percent of the tank water and replace it with pure, treated tap water.

If you change more water, you'll remove the food the good bacteria need to reproduce to a level where they can take over more of the job of keeping the tank clean. You're growing a living filtration system.

You simply test the water and change it when needed. After a few weeks, when several daily tests show no traces of ammonia or nitrite, the tank is cycled. From this point forward, you change half the tank water every week or two to maintain stable water conditions.

If you add some floating plants, they'll help keep the water a bit cleaner during the cycle.

B

+1, when cycling fish in (I'm assuming this tank isn't cycled) water changes are essential when you get traces of ammonia and nitrite. Also the floating plants like hornwort are awesome for using up some of the toxins while cycling.

 

[dwhit13]

thank you to both of you for replying. that means alot to me to have experienced people willing to help. I pretty much fully understand what you are saying and that is very close to what Ive been doing. The big difference i see is that it looks like I have been taking out too much water on my changes. I have read and read worrying about this and everything said it was ok to change 50% at this junctior. i did reduce my amount this morning to 30% per your advice. I also have avoided over feeding and vacuuming my gravel. My main question here though is do you think (or can you even tell ) with my most recent readings on my water does that mean i am getting close to finishing the cycle? Oh and Dallas Cowboy? is that a plant I can purchase at petsmart? I actually had plants in there until a few days ago but when I realized I needed co 2 and fertilizer I took them out so they didnt contribute to my problem.