cajungrl81
Aquarium Advice Apprentice
I have a 10g planted tank with AC30 filter It had been cycled and running ok for about a year. In early December, the tank experienced a pH crash which stalled out my cycle. On the direction of my LFS & several others, I did multiple water changes to restore the pH...which in theory should have restarted the cycle.
However....
The ammonia will spike, sometimes as high as 2 ppm...then drop as low as .25 ppm...then spike again, and so on. As I understand it, once the cycle begins converting ammonia to nitrite and nitrates, the ammonia level should fall and KEEP falling...? Yet there's no sign of nitrites or nitrates, and ammonia levels are fluctuating every which-way with no discernible cause.
Short of breaking down the aquarium and starting over to purge it of some unknown contaminant, I'm at a loss of what else to try. Or even why my cycle (or lack thereof) is doing what it's doing.
Meanwhile, the fish from this tank have been confined to quarantine...and are very stressed out.
Readings since about midway through the pH debacle follow.
HELP!
12/15/2015 6.4 2 0 0
12/16/2015 6.6 1 0 0
12/17/2015 6.6 0.5 0 0
12/19/2015 6.6 0.25 0 0
12/21/2015 6 2 0 0
12/22/2015 6 0.5 0 0
12/23/2015 6.4 2 0 0
12/24/2015 7.4 0.25 0 0
12/26/2015 7.4 1 0 0
12/28/2015 7.4 0.5 0 0
12/29/2015 7.4 0.5 0 0
12/30/2015 7.4 0.25 0 0
12/31/2015 7.4 0.5 0 0
1/3/2015 7.4 1 0 0
1/4/2015 7.4 0.25 0 0
However....
The ammonia will spike, sometimes as high as 2 ppm...then drop as low as .25 ppm...then spike again, and so on. As I understand it, once the cycle begins converting ammonia to nitrite and nitrates, the ammonia level should fall and KEEP falling...? Yet there's no sign of nitrites or nitrates, and ammonia levels are fluctuating every which-way with no discernible cause.
Short of breaking down the aquarium and starting over to purge it of some unknown contaminant, I'm at a loss of what else to try. Or even why my cycle (or lack thereof) is doing what it's doing.
Meanwhile, the fish from this tank have been confined to quarantine...and are very stressed out.
Readings since about midway through the pH debacle follow.
HELP!
12/15/2015 6.4 2 0 0
12/16/2015 6.6 1 0 0
12/17/2015 6.6 0.5 0 0
12/19/2015 6.6 0.25 0 0
12/21/2015 6 2 0 0
12/22/2015 6 0.5 0 0
12/23/2015 6.4 2 0 0
12/24/2015 7.4 0.25 0 0
12/26/2015 7.4 1 0 0
12/28/2015 7.4 0.5 0 0
12/29/2015 7.4 0.5 0 0
12/30/2015 7.4 0.25 0 0
12/31/2015 7.4 0.5 0 0
1/3/2015 7.4 1 0 0
1/4/2015 7.4 0.25 0 0