The ever favorite Ammonia!!

[butch]

First I have a African Lung fish. She, or so I believe, has not been eating,
is very listless and constantly stays on the bottom of the tank. I have been having problems with ammonia, and have not been able to level it out. I have done 20%, 30% and am ready to try a 40-50% water change if necessary to correct this ongoing problem. My lady is hardly eating anything, Since she is over 3 feet long (!!!) there are few other places I can put her. I have used "Ammo lock", just to make the water seem nicer. I know it does absolutely nothing except wreck havoc on the natural cycle, but she was really sick, and that seemed to help at the time. However it has been almost 3 weeks since that last treatment, and the water is still really high with ammonia. Somebody out there has to know a solution to my problem. Please believe me, she is like a family member, and has the most amazing personality!! If you can believe that! When she is well and comfortable she will come up to the surface to visit and let "hands" she knows pet her and hand feed her. She pouts when she doesn't get to visit with people!!! I am really at a loss as what to do to help my lady out. Any suggestions or advise will be greatly appreciated.
thanks
Butch

[Maillis]

If the ammmonia is really high I'd do 50% water changes every day for a few days until you get it down to almost zero and then test every day and change the water to keep the ammonia at 1 ppm or below. Large water changes will stress your fish out less than ammonia in it's water so don't be worried to do larger water changes to get the levels down. Also, how big is this tank and how long has it been set up?

[TankGirl]

Excellent advice - get the ammonia level down. Don't use the ammonia removing product, use your water changes instead, and the ammonia that is present will still be available to support the cycle. This is going to be tough, but it might take 20-30% water changes every day, every other day to keep it down. It is a pain but might be necessary. You'll have to hover over this tank for a couple of weeks to get past it, but it sounds like you are dedicated to this fish, so I'm sure you are up to it! Once ammonia is down to zero then you will have to battle nitrite, so keep us posted.

[butch]

Thanks, I will try a major 50% water change tomorrow. The tank is a 100 gallon and it has been set up for about 7 months. It took me about 1-2 months to get the tank set up with the proper water settings, matching the older/smaller tank.
Tonight she seems a little more active since the 30 % water change. She actually has the energy to come up to the top of the tank and take the "spirulina discs" from my hand. I am also going to add a few feeder fish tomorrow to see if she will eat them, but the last time the ammonia was so high, they died before she could eat them. (A matter of hours). When healthy, she just gobbles a dozen in a few days.
Yes, TankGirl, it will be tough to change 40-50 gallons a day for a few days, but it will be well worth the trouble seeing her happy and healthy again. And I will keep you posted about the progress.
Thank you both for all your help
Butch

[BrianNY]

Butch, I agree with the 50% water changes. If it were my tank I would do a few more things to speed up the process.

1. Cut down on the feeding. Especially feeder fish. This is more than likely where your troubles stemmed from in the first place. The more you feed, the more waste your fish will produce.

2. Add a couple of large sponge filters powered by an air pump. Because sponges are so porous, there's lots of room for the nitrifying bacteria to live.

HTH, and I'd love to see a pic of that fish.

[butch]

Brian NY, You could be right about the feeder fish, but, when she is healthy, she is also pretty regular, and I usually clean up very soon after she has "found her
spot Since she has not been eating, and seems very hesitant to even come up to the top and take the spirulina discs from my hand, there seems to be very little waste. I have an air pump that I have been using to aurate the tank, she likes to lie on the bubbles, but I will get some large sponge filters and try that along with the mega water change. As for a picture, perhaps when she is feeling better and less camera shy!!!
Thanks,
Butch

[BrianNY]

Butch, I'm pulling for you and your fish.

Good Luck and please keep us posted.

[butch]

BrianNY
I have checked my local pet store (PetGoods), where I purchase most of my supplies. The only thing I can find are sponge filters to put in my Cascade 1000 filter. Is this what you are talking about?? If not, would you please be a little more specific, or recommend a web site that I may visit to see what you are talking about and/or perhaps order from?
I have been doing a 40% water change every other day. Although not herself, she seems a bit more comfortable. I am still feeding her the spirulina pellets, since she has nothing else to eat, and one must keep their strength up , Her color seems improving also...hopefully a good sign.

Thanks again BrianNY for your help, and I will continue to keep you (all) posted on my progress.
Butch

[Menagerie]

Brian is talking about sponge filters that can be seen here. That is what he uses for his discuss.

[TankGirl]

Exactly. These are the same kind of filters I use for my Q-tank. I run them with an air pump in my main tanks and when I need to run quarrantine or hospital I just move them over - they can hold tons of bacteria and can really kick-start a cycle. They are almost always very inexpensive.

[BrianNY]

Check out the stock at Jehmco.com I bought 10 of them on sale for $30.00

[butch]

TG, Thank you. Upon further investigation I also found different types of "sponge filters" that run off a separate air supply. Marvel Air Flow sponge or Hydro V sponge filter. Have you heard of any of these? Do they do the same thing? Just to keep you filled on my progress...I caught my lady swimming around the tank last night for the first time in weeks!! Maybe she needed the excercize Tonight is another water change, which I am starting to really believe is doing some good.
Than you TG.
Butch

[butch]

BrianNY, Whoops, I missed your suggestion and site. Yes that is exactly what I was asking/talking about. And they just hook up to a separate air supply?? No fancy gadgets or hook-ups?? Does everything I need come with the product? I will order a few. I love my lady, but she is certainly a high maintenance kind of girl But well worth everything.
Butch

[BrianNY]

That's right Butch. Everything comes with them. The Hydros are a main stay in my fish room. For a 100gal tank and a fish that size, I'd run at least 2. Just so you know, I run 5 plus 2 Penguin 330 biowheels on my 125 gal discus tank.

[butch]

BrianNY...First Happy Birthday
I found this sponge filter at my loca; pet store. I find it very noisy. It isn't the air pump, it is the sponge filter that actually looks like a piece of cheese, and the bubbles it creates are like blowing air through a straw in a glass of water. That is the only way I can describe it. Are your filters this noisy? If that is the way they are, well I will get used to the noise. If they are supposed to be quieter, I will order from the website you recommended. The major water changes seem to be helping, she has her color back and is actually coming to the surface for the pellets and is letting me pet her!(a first in weeks). So I will continue with the water changes and the sponge filter, whether it is the one I already have or new ones that I order.
I was at a loss as to what to do until I found this website and all of you that have answered and helped me. I am not sure where all the "Kudo's" come from, but all of you deserve them.

Butch

[TankGirl]

Do you mean Swiss cheese? Like there are large holes in the sponge?

Sponge filters "gurgle" a lot but that's about it - they should not be particularly noisy. I guess it is similar to when you blow into your beverage straw, since that is exactly the action that is produced, which draws water through the sponge, so it might take getting used to.

I'm so glad your girl is improving - I am such a big fan of water changes that I often do them several times a week even on healthy established tanks - I don't think they are ever a bad idea, unless the tank has been sitting for a while without water changes, then you have to be careful. Keep up the good work!

[BrianNY]

Hey Butch, so glad your girl is showing improvement. I'm with TG on the water changes. In fact, if changing water were an olympic event, I'd be considered in training.

BTW, you might want to cut down the air supply to the sponge filters and reduce the bubbling by using a valve with an adjustable screw.

[butch]

TG, The sponge reminds me of the Greenbay "Cheese Heads" As far as the holes, more like an Alpine Lace only yellow. Not huge holes, but holes none the less. And Brian, watch out, I am right behind you...with changing 50 gallons of water every other day, I am beginning to develop muscles where I didn't know I had them!! The amonia level is still high, but no where near where it used to be. I couldn't tell you what it was because it was off the chart, I'd say carrot orange , but now it is 6.5 ppm and keeps going down PH is still low, but going up..so things are looking better and better all the time. I will do another major change tomarrow and am thinking about getting a few feeder fish to see if she eats them. Although she is not real active, it is very obvious she is hungry. Everytime I walk into the room, she goes for the top of the tank wanting to be fed. I don't want her to starve, or get too spoiled and lazy either. If she doesn't go for the feeder fish after a day or two, I will remove them. I have not seen any signs or indications that she has "done her business"...I am keeping a very keen eye on that...I am not worried, but not sure that is a good thing either. I am hoping it is because everything she is eating she is burning up...and there is nothing left to "deposit" in the water I do have an air line that has a valve and will put the sponge filter on that air supply to hopefully cut down the noise. Being the "novice" that I am, I am asking you whether the bubbles go back through the other air hose or are they supposed to come out of the sponge filter?? Because if they are supposed to go out the sponge, I have definately done someting wrong
Thanks again for your words of encouragement and advise.
Butch

[BrianNY]

I think your sponge filter is set up correctly. I still wouldn't be too fast to introduce feeder fish though. Is she eating any dried or frozen food?

You might want to invest in a python to do water changes. It connects directly to your sink and really cuts down the labor in a large tank that.

[butch]

Brian,
She is eating "Spirulina Discs" which she has always enjoyed and takes them from
my hand. Any other food suggestions? Since all of your advise has been very sound, I will delay in getting any feeder fish for a while, thank you. I have a water python, but it won't go on the kitchen sink as it has a sprayer nozzle. I guess I could get a longer hose and hook it up to the bathroom sink. But then again the excercize is good! And until it starts to freeze up my driveway it isn't too much of a bother just to dump it right out side the door, and fill the 5 gallon container, or the bottled water containers.

Butch