Change and cleaned all filter media

[ramasidhu]

Hello Everyone,


So I think I messed up. I completely cleaned out my filter. So I made a mistake and rinse it all out in hot water maybe. Which means I may have killed all the good bacteria in my filter pump. I have now white floating particles. My concern is about the fish. I did not do any water change because I had done the 25% water change yesturday. My filter was super dirty so I cleaned it and returned all the water back to the tank that I took out. Am I going to loose my fish? is there soemthing I can do to.help filter now to grow back the good bacteria?

 

[ramasidhu]

picture as reference to what the particles looks like

This is what it looks like after changing all filters and adding a sponge filter. I am just praying my gravel and oranments and plants have enough good bacteria to help colonize the filter pump and sponge filter.

 

[Aiken Drum]

Its possible that you crashed your cycle. Overcleaning filters isnt a good idea. You should just periodically rinse off filter media and squeeze out sponges using either water taken from your tank or dechlorinated water. Clean off any moving parts like the impeller, impeller shaft and cap to help reduce wear and tear. I do this monthly.

The floating particles could just be debris thrown out of the filtration, which happens when you clean things, or if it looks more like cloudy water it could be a biological bloom which would indicate a nutrient imbalance because you lost your cycle.

Do you have a test kit? If not, get something that will measure the basics (pH, ammonia, nitrite and nitrate) and until you can test the water, daily water changes as a precaution. 30 to 50% water changes depending on how heavily stocked you are.

If you have a test kit, what are your water parameters?

Once you can test the water you may need to cycle the tank again. Do you know how to do this?

 

[ramasidhu]

yeah my cycle is messed up. please advise how I can fix it. My phone is 8.2. ammonia between 0 an 0.25 I can not tell Nitrite is 0. nitrate high at 160. please advise. I am going to do a 50 percent water change for now.

 

[m.j.gomez]

yeah my cycle is messed up. please advise how I can fix it. My phone is 8.2. ammonia between 0 an 0.25 I can not tell Nitrite is 0. nitrate high at 160. please advise. I am going to do a 50 percent water change for now.

Hello, your nitrate is very high. Be careful about doing large water changes. Nitrate shock can damage fish. I would do 25% every few hrs till your nitrates are about 20.0ppm or lower. This will allow you to do larger ones if needed during recycle. Hopefully this helps you!!!!!

 

[Aiken Drum]

yeah my cycle is messed up. please advise how I can fix it. My phone is 8.2. ammonia between 0 an 0.25 I can not tell Nitrite is 0. nitrate high at 160. please advise. I am going to do a 50 percent water change for now.

There is nothing there to suggest your cycle has crashed. High nitrate isnt a sign you have lost your cycle. The nitrogen cycle produces nitrate.

You are seeing zero nitrite, and the low levels of ammonia you see is essentially zero and might actually be zero. Nothing to worry about apart from the nitrate which is more a sign you historically havent been keeping up with water changes or you are overstocked.

Keep an eye on your water parameters for a week or two. If they dont elevate beyond what you are seeing for ammonia and nitrite you have nothing to worry about cycle wise. As MJ suggests a few water changes to get your nitrate down would be a good thing, and then continue monitor things to see if your ammonia and nitrite stay down.

 

[ramasidhu]

When I do they 25 percent change do I need to keep putting the conditioners like tap water, fish loss

 

[ramasidhu]

I will keep updating my values daily. please advise what all the levels should be at. my tank was overstocked cause the guppies kept having babies. currently I have 15 fish 7 tetras. and 7 guppies. and an algae eater . I feel it I still overstocked. I got this tank from a friend. I don't have any one to give the fishes to. so just trying to keep them alive.

 

[Aiken Drum]

Everytime you add water into the tank you should be adding water conditioner.

In a cycled tank ammonia and nitrite should be zero. If you are seeing any ammonia or nitrite you arent cycled. However low levels are safe, and 0.25ppm is essentially zero and of no risk to fishes health. Zero ammonia can often look like 0.25ppm as well. Test some bottled water which should be zero and compare it with your tank water test result.

Nitrate is the end product of the nitrogen cycle. So in a cycled tank all the ammonia and nitrite should will become nitrate. So in a cycled tank you would normally have some nitrate. The nitrogen cycle wont typically remove nitrate, and so your nitrate is removed when you change the tank water with clean water. Typically you want to keep nitrate no higher than 40ppm. If 50% weekly water changes doesnt keep nitrate below 40ppm you are overstocked and should consider removing some fish or getting a bigger tank.

So MJs suggestion of getting your nitrate down to 20ppm is a good target to be at after a water change. After a water change your nitrate will go back up until its time to do that weekly water change again. If over that week your nitrate goes up above 40ppm, then your 50% water change wont be enough to get back down to 20ppm and you know you have too many fish. As suggested do some water changes every hour or 2 until the nitrate is down to 20ppm then see how long it takes to go back up between water changes.

Back to ensuring you are cycled. Test daily, if your ammonia + nitrite combined is above 0.5ppm do a water change. If they are below this combined target no need for a water change. If they are consistently zero you are cycled.

 

[ramasidhu]

I checked water parketer again water change about ph is 8.0. ammonia 0.25, Nitrite 0 . and nitrate 20ppm.

 

[Aiken Drum]

Thats good. Check water again tomorrow.

 

[ramasidhu]

I checked yesturday and everything was still good no rise in ammonia. However I still have a lot of white particles. Anything I can do about that.

 

[ramasidhu]

the tank is not cloudy just has lots of white specks in it

 

[Aiken Drum]

If its stuff floating about in the water, then water changes should remove it. Look at getting some fine polishing pads in the filter. You might want to try a water clarifier like API accu-clear if removing it through water changes and some fine mechanical filtration doesnt clear it up.

Let us know how things progress.

 

[ramasidhu]

Hey so I bought and added accu clear and fine mechanical filter And it has not helped either. This all started since I did that change of all filter parts in my filter pump and added the foam filter. and now I cannot get ride of it.

 

[ramasidhu]

So still have to white particles, they seem to have increased in number. my water is clear not cloudy at all. not sure if it my old pump that I got from some one that is not working. so I bought aquaclear to run side by side. please help they are driving me nuts.

 

[Aiken Drum]

Are these particles being pulled into the filtration? Maybe you dont have enough flow to remove the particles.

 

[Jackamo]

You seem to have your levels now under control but your tank may be overstocked. Go to the garden store pick up a small pepper plant, rinse the roots and find a way to perch the plant so only the roots are submerged in the tank water. Put a cfl (Fluorescent) light on the plant and it will eat all of your nitrates up while it grows. Plus you get fresh peppers. I do this with all my tanks, keeps nitrates under control and I haven’t done a water change in years.

 

[ramasidhu]

Hello Aikem,

No it is not being sucked in. Because it tank I got from someone I thought maybe old one so it was not working efficiently so I have added second pump. But still same problem they are being sucked in. however I do have mechanical sponge on the intake tube on accaclear pump because I have small fish I feel that might flow inside while this new pump runs. But it or the old one is not sucking in particles.


Jackmo thanks for the idea. I will first need to install a florescent light fixture above my tank. then I do not mind adding the pepper plant. We have very light natural light in unit.

 

[ramasidhu]

So update,

I still have the strange particles. I am thinking of completely resetting my tank and getting a small tanks to transfer fish into while I cycle this 19 gallon tank. Can you please advise how long it will take to cycle this 19 gallon tank. If I use on of my current pumps or sponge filter in the new set up. I plan on adding new sand and decor in the set up. Or if there is quicker way to cycle?