New tank questions

[kjm-rn]

I am in the beginning process of cycling a 10 gallon tank with 1 very small red telescope goldfish. I have been changing the water daily by at least 50%, sometimes twice a day. Today I purchased Prime to hopefully help with the ammonia levels, which are consistently at 0.25ppm, as well as Stability to try and help speed up the process. I have been testing with the API fresh water master kit.

Will I still test high for ammonia with this kit even after using Prime? If ammonia will still show as being high even though it's converted to the less toxic form, how will I know when I should be changing the tank water while cycling?

Is it normal for a red telescope goldfish to just sort of hang out at the top of the tank for a minute, then swim around, and then hang out again? Or is this the fish showing signs of stress?

Thanks for the help, I'm trying to do fish-in cycling correctly without killing my little guy.

 

[Mebbid]

Telescope goldfish aren't recommended for a beginner. They also need cooler temperatures of 65-75 degrees. I also wouldn't use a fish to cycle unless it's a fish you plan on keeping.

The prime will detoxify the ammonia for a few days which is usually enough for your biological filter to work out. It also won't change the ammonia reading of the tank at all. But in the case of a cycling tank the only reasonable way to remove excess ammonia is through a water change. I wouldn't do less than a 50% change.

 

[kjm-rn]

Telescope goldfish aren't recommended for a beginner. They also need cooler temperatures of 65-75 degrees. I also wouldn't use a fish to cycle unless it's a fish you plan on keeping.

The prime will detoxify the ammonia for a few days which is usually enough for your biological filter to work out. It also won't change the ammonia reading of the tank at all. But in the case of a cycling tank the only reasonable way to remove excess ammonia is through a water change. I wouldn't do less than a 50% change.

I asked questions at the fish shop before purchasing the telescope goldfish, so if its not good for beginners, I'm sorry, but I already own it and want to keep him alive. The temp of the tank is 68 degrees.

If my ammonia reading is not going to be accurate while using Prime, do I just do daily tank changes of 50% anyway, since I'm cycling? I will know the tank is done cycling when the ammonia stays at 0, nitrites are at 0, and nitrates go up? I'm just a little confused how to be accurate about this if my readings are going to be inaccurate from using Prime.

 

[Mebbid]

The ammonia readings are still accurate when using prime so there's nothing to worry about there.

 

[Rivercats]

I've kept various types of fancy goldfish over many years and Telescopes aren't overly hard to deal with. I strongly suggest getting a good sinking goldfish pellet such as Pro-Gold sinking pellets or one of the Hakari sinking pellets. I hope you have smaller grained gravel or sand as GF like to sift in the gravel looking for food. You want to feed sinking pellets because when fancy heavy bodied GF eat from the surface they ingest too much air which can lead to swim bladder issues which they are already prone to. Also feeding them cooked, deshelled peas once or twice a week helps keep them from getting constipated which is another problem these types of GF tend to have.

 

[kjm-rn]

Even after changing the water by more than 50% and adding the recommended amount of Prime, I am still at the same ammonia level as before; 0.25ppm. I've read that with some test kits even though the ammonia has been converted to a less toxic form it will still read as high because it technically is high, just not toxic. Am I incorrect in my research on this? Not sure how to get the ammonia down any further, or is this level not going to cause any harm and as the tank cycles it will regulate itself as long as I keep up with the daily water changes? Sorry for the run-on sentence.

Thanks for the goldfish advice, I actually purchased flakes, although they promptly sink to the bottom and that is the only way I have seen my goldfish eat. He moves all the gravel around (which is very tiny pieces ) searching out the pieces of flakes that fall. I'll get him the food that you suggested though if it's better for him. Feeding him peas sounds interesting, I'll definitely do that. Do you give peas instead of the food or in addition to it?

Thanks for all the help!

 

[Rivercats]

Something I totally forgot have you checked your Ph by chance? Since GF produce a lot of ammonia and make water acidic quickly Ph tends to fall. When your cycling a tank and ph falls below 6.5 biological activity slows and when ph falls to 6 or below biological activity stops. When this happens you usually start to see an ammonia reading. Also did you say you tested your tap water to see if ammonia was present? I used to keep Wonder Shell Mineral blocks in the GF tanks (I had 2) and they kept the Kh high, adding buffers into the water, which kept the ph stable.

 

[kjm-rn]

Just tested pH, it's reading 7.6, I think that's ok? Yes, I did check my tap water for ammonia and it read 0. Nitrites are 0, nitrates are 20ppm.

 

[Rivercats]

Then your tank is still building up the bacteria that process ammonia into nitrites. It should eventually go down to 0. And yes, your ph is fine.