some help appreciated

[Rick W.]

Hi all, new to the forum.

I have been keeping aquariums for 16 years, I set up a 20 gallon tall freshwater tank at work beginning of May.

It has a Aqua clear 50 HOB with Chemi Pure and Bio Max and Bio balls which were seeded from my aquariums at home, it also has a top fin brand HOB which i added Bio Matrix seeded from a tank at home along with a Bio Ball.
it also has a Bio Sponge, i did also add java moss ball. stocking level at the present is 6 pristella tetras.

i am confused by the fact that i am still getting ammonia readings,ph is 6.5 and i have added sea chem neutral regulator for that. i am doing a 10-20 percent change every 2 weeks, i have added Start Right and Prime along with Stress Coat. i am not adding anything else until the ammonia drops,
My question is did i possibly overlook something or is it just that the water here sucks and should i consider RO water or buying Spring Water.

Thanks in advance for any advice

[ImACoolguy]

Originally Posted by Rick W.

Hi all, new to the forum.

I have been keeping aquariums for 16 years, I set up a 20 gallon tall freshwater tank at work beginning of May.

It has a Aqua clear 50 HOB with Chemi Pure and Bio Max and Bio balls which were seeded from my aquariums at home, it also has a top fin brand HOB which i added Bio Matrix seeded from a tank at home along with a Bio Ball.
it also has a Bio Sponge, i did also add java moss ball. stocking level at the present is 6 pristella tetras.

i am confused by the fact that i am still getting ammonia readings,ph is 6.5 and i have added sea chem neutral regulator for that. i am doing a 10-20 percent change every 2 weeks, i have added Start Right and Prime along with Stress Coat. i am not adding anything else until the ammonia drops,
My question is did i possibly overlook something or is it just that the water here sucks and should i consider RO water or buying Spring Water.

Thanks in advance for any advice

Hello!

Obviously you are not new to the hobby and know how cycling a tank works.

Do you have a liquid test Kit? If so, test your water straight out of the tap.

Seeded media certainly helps a cycle go much quicker but doesn't always mean it will finish the cycle. Bacteria supplements are a game of chance. Some have had success others have had nothing happen at all.


Caleb

[jarrod0987]

Water is some parts of the country are acidic. Test your tap water. Add a handful of crushed coral to your filter. Or oyster grit from a farm supply. Rinse it first. Over a period of about 2 weeks it will get your ph and alkalinity up as well as your calcium. It is fine to use Seachem regulator with it if you still need to. You will just need less of it to get the reading you want. To help with ammonia, remove any filter floss or sponges and add some bacteria starter product every day until your tank cycles. Many people make those now. Sometimes you do get a dead bottle. I like Dr. Tim's One and Only but it is expensive compared to the others. Tetra safe start is pretty cheap.

BTW how much ammonia do you have? Do water changes and try to keep it under 1ppm. If it gets supper high it can shut down the cycle.

[biondoa]

I would suggest doing your water changes every week instead of every 2 weeks, and I would go up to 20-30% each time.

[Rick W.]

i am using an API liquid test kit for the Ammonia, the other tests i have API 5 in 1 dip strips.

I forgot all about doing a test on the tap, i will get that done today and post back.

Thanks again for the help so far.

[Reygan2]

I've had cycles that seemed to slow down when my ph hit 6.5. It will stall if it drops closer to 6ppm. If your tap water has a higher ph, then up your water changes. That alone should add the buffers needed to help get things moving again, that is if you opt out of trying to raise it in the tank as jarrod suggested.

[Rick W.]

Ran a test on the Tap,

I am showing
GH 180
KH 80
PH 6.0
Nitrite is 0
Nitrate is 0.
Ammonia 0

current tank readings
GH 0
KH 0
PH 6.0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 20
Ammonia 2

i will try to get a change in today, the tap water here obviously sucks.

I had been filling up gallon jugs of water and adding stress coat and prime to that and using those to fill up when i did my water changes.

[LayzorBeams]

At a ph of 6 doesnt nitrification stop? I know the basics of cycling but im no expert, im sure someone will chime in.

Ive read on this forum that at a low ph some of the bad things (amonnia, nitrite, etc) arent being processed by bacteria because there is no bacteria there, due to it not being able to grow in a low ph.

Not sure how good my facts are...


Sent from my iPod touch using Aquarium Advice

[ImACoolguy]

Originally Posted by LayzorBeams

At a ph of 6 doesnt nitrification stop? I know the basics of cycling but im no expert, im sure someone will chime in.

Ive read on this forum that at a low ph some of the bad things (amonnia, nitrite, etc) arent being processed by bacteria because there is no bacteria there, due to it not being able to grow in a low ph.

Not sure how good my facts are...


Sent from my iPod touch using Aquarium Advice

Yes at 6.0 ammonia and below the nitrification process can stall.


Caleb

[LayzorBeams]

So he might be having ghis due to a low ph?


Sent from my iPod touch using Aquarium Advice

[jarrod0987]

Originally Posted by LayzorBeams

At a ph of 6 doesnt nitrification stop? I know the basics of cycling but im no expert, im sure someone will chime in.

Ive read on this forum that at a low ph some of the bad things (amonnia, nitrite, etc) arent being processed by bacteria because there is no bacteria there, due to it not being able to grow in a low ph.

Not sure how good my facts are...


Sent from my iPod touch using Aquarium Advice

I have heard the same thing. Probably better if you get used to using some kind of buffer but you also need to acclimate the fish slowly.

[sinibotia]

That KH is fairly low. I'd use some crushed coral and see if you can raise your KH/pH. Shouldn't be a problem unless you're trying to breed south american fish.

[Rick W.]

i want to thank everyone for the Advice i will get add some crushed corral to the filter and hopefully buffer the ph up and get the cycle going.

it's amazing sometimes just how tough some of our fish are, the pristella tetras have weathered this fairly well.

No Breeding will occur, just wanted the tank at the office to kinda be a mood enhancer.

Once again thank you all for the time and advice.

[jarrod0987]

Originally Posted by sinibotia

That KH is fairly low. I'd use some crushed coral and see if you can raise your KH/pH. Shouldn't be a problem unless you're trying to breed south american fish.

I'm a fan of crushed coral or oyster grit (from hardware/farm store) too. Just rinse it first