The new 55g project (56k warning)

[cbk.o4]

So i got a new 55g (first tank i have had since a kid, and definately the biggest). I just learned about the whole cycling thing and all that. It is going to be a planted tank with some nice driftwood and i dont know what kind of fish yet. But im going to use this thread to track my test readings and track the development of the tank with pictures and other things. (Sorry in advance for the quality of some of the pictures, new camera and im not all that familiar with all the settings and everthing yet.)

4/21/06

Day 1:

Night i got the tank and got it set up and everything.

Tank all set up and sittin there waiting for to get filled for a leak check.



Using Python to fill up my tank (love that thing, filled it up alot quicker than 5g bucket trips would have)



Tank filled with hood light on.



Close up of tank filled with hood light on.



Close up of tank filled with hood light on and room lights off.



4-24 (filling of tank with eco and water):

Left side of tank, showing eco slope.



Right side of tank, showing eco slope.



Cloudy water while filling the tank back up.



Tank filled up again.



4-25:

Starting of cycle. Water much clearer than yesterday. No leaks so far.



Test results:

pH: 8.0
Ammonia: 0
Nitrate: 0
Nitrite: 0

Added 10mL of ammonia a little bit ago, will check around 4 to see what the new ammonia reading is.

 

[TomK2]

Nice looking stand and canopy. thats the 4ft by 1 ft 55 gal version? I have one myself. Ahhhh... that new tank feeling!

 

[cbk.o4]

yeah 48x12x18

 

[Guest]

i agree ..nice setup

 

[Jaybird]

My girlfriend and I were looking at a tank almost exactly like that one. They had a 55G version and a 90G version.

I'm still trying to convince her on the 90G

 

[cbk.o4]

lol actually i was going to get the 90 but i had already gotten only enough eco for the 55 so i just stuck with it. i liked the 90 cuz it wasnt much longer but was wider. i dont really have enough space in my room for the 90 anyways the 55 fits perfect so im glad i stuck with the 55. if u two have the space though go with the 90, very very nice stand and canopy imo

 

[TomK2]

Yep, that 6 inches or so of extra depth really makes the tank stick out into a room, so the 90 gal is larger to fit in a room. I have the 4 ft 55 gal precisely because it fits so close to the wall that it doesn't take over a room. Especially small rooms. But it sure is hard to walk away from extra capacity!

 

[Zagz]

My girlfriend and I were looking at a tank almost exactly like that one. They had a 55G version and a 90G version.

I'm still trying to convince her on the 90G

Explain to her a bigger tank is easier to care for as far as stable parameters and water changes go.

 

[cbk.o4]

4-26:

pH:8.0
Ammonia: 4-8ppm (test kit is awesome with that nice big range there)
Nitrite:0ppm
Nitrate:0ppm

 

[cbk.o4]

4-28:

pH:8.0
Ammonia: 1.0 (didnt dose any yesterday..and i didnt do a test either..was preoccupied)
Nitrite: 2.0ppm
Nitrate:5-10ppm (more orange than yellow but not as dark an orange as 10ppm)

so i been dosing ammonia for a few days..thought it would take longer to see nitrates show up..which makes me think i may have done the test wrong...

nitirites seem kind of high to me, but since there are no fish i guess it isnt a problem

pH is still high but im going to be adding some driftwood soon and i hope that will drop it a lil bit so i have a wider selection of fish to choose from other than just chichlids (sp?)

im going to dose 5mL of ammonia in a few minutes and then update with the new result.

 

[joannde]

Wow - great progress and I love the tank. Can't wait to see it decorated

Did you bio-load with anything (established tank gravel, etc etc). It only took 5 days for nitrites to show in my 29 gallon and I didn't bio-load so the timing looks about right to me (but what do I know - I'm a newbie). I can't comment on nitrates since I put Nitraban in the tank when I filled it (newbie error - see what I mean about not knowing much ? LOL).

Keep it going and keep us posted !

JoAnn

 

[cbk.o4]

4-30:

pH:8.4 (it was 8.0 the first couple tests now a .4 jump?....WHAT HAPPEN?!?! lol)
Ammonia: 0ppm
Nitrite: 5ppm
Nitrate:5-10ppm

so..more nitrites, and a pH swing... im going to dose the ammonia back to only 2ppm. idk what happen with the pH, the only thing that changed is i added some more water yesterday cuz the level was lower than i wanted, added prime for the whole tank not just the two gallons i added..idk why it would go up that much though...

hopefully my driftwood gets here this week. prolly go to go buy some slate and makes some caves too this week.

so is there anything i need to do for the water parameters? (pwc, condition with something else, anything like that)

TIA

 

[ryan]

sometimes high ph will give you different readings then low ph so when you put it down you wont have those same readings.but your tank could also be cycling quick that happen to mine i dont dose with ammonia i cant find any so i just did the dead shrimp thingy.i had nitrates in the next day or 2 but my tank was seeeded and was on cycle.

 

[cbk.o4]

5-2:

pH:8.2-8.4
Ammonia: 0ppm (been dosing 1-2ppm, tank can get rid of it in about ~16hrs or less)
Nitrite: 5ppm
Nitrate:~5ppm (definately more yellow than orange like it used to be)

 

[Thebluyak]

you said you dose the whole tank with prime instead of just the water change portion, Is that bad for the fish to have that much prime dumped in there at one time? Do you put it in there before you start adding new water or after your tank is completely done?

 

[cbk.o4]

idk there are no fish in there. i put it in when im done addin new water.

 

[cbk.o4]

5-4:

pH:8.2-8.4
Ammonia: 0ppm (been dosing 1-2ppm, tank can get rid of it in about ~16hrs or less)
Nitrite: 5ppm
Nitrate:~5ppm (definately more yellow than orange like it used to be)

 

[cbk.o4]

5-6:

pH:8.0
Ammonia: 0ppm (been dosing 1-2ppm, tank can get rid of it in about ~16hrs or less)
Nitrite: 5ppm
Nitrate:~40ppm (thats a BIG jump..)

well im lost on where i am at in my cycle or what needs to happen next, so any input is appreciated. im just going to keep doin the 1-2ppm dose i guess.

5-6 (noon):
pH:8.0
Ammonia: 0ppm (been dosing 1-2ppm, tank can get rid of it in about ~12hrs or less)
Nitrite: 5ppm
Nitrate:~160ppm (its a pretty dark red)

 

[cbk.o4]

5-8:

pH:8.0
Ammonia: 0ppm (been dosing 1-2ppm, tank can get rid of it in about ~10hrs or less, pretty good progress)
Nitrite: 5ppm (still...friggin slow bacteria. )

 

[Lonewolfblue]

you said you dose the whole tank with prime instead of just the water change portion, Is that bad for the fish to have that much prime dumped in there at one time? Do you put it in there before you start adding new water or after your tank is completely done?

Even with fish, dumping that much Prime in won't hurt anything. When I do 50% PWC's, I just add enough Prime for the whole tank right after I start filling. Have had no problems.