new aquarium owner

[steveyp]

Advice needed. My ammo is down to 1ppm for second time.
Nitrites off the chart. Nitrates close to 10 ppm and for the first time ph has dropped from 8 7.8 or less. Do I dose back to 4 ppm ? Is there anything else i should do. Waterchange yet or wait till nitrates go higher? Newbie.

[jlk]

Give your tank another day & lets see how your numbers look tomorrow!

[steveyp]

Ok. Dosed ammo back to 4ppm. Thx.

[mitchellstdnt08]

i just started out too and i got a ten gallon and filter and everything and they told me to have the filter go 24 hrs then come back and get three starter fish to get the bacteria and all that started and all this was told to me by a aquarium specialist at parrots of the world

[steveyp]

Yes. Same stuff they told me. Thanks for this website. Idve been lost without them. Doing a fishless cycle is so cool. Sure learn a lot about water. As much to learn about the fish too. Good luck.

[mitchellstdnt08]

well i wish u the best but as of now up to today i have a total of 5 serpae tetra and 2 Algae eaters what you thinking of getting in your tank?

[mongbean]

Watch out for those algae eaters mate they will start losing interest in your algae and become very aggressive. That's if they're Chinese algae eaters.

[steveyp]

Today's numbers for new tank are . Ammo dropped to 2 from 4 in 1 day. Nitrites still over 5. Nitrates at 10 . But ph is dropping now down less than 7.4. What do ya tink?

[steveyp]

The ph level is dropping fast.

[jlk]

Time for a big water change (90-100%). Make sure you temp match & properly condition the new water. Then just dose amm to 2ppm & let's see how things go. If the ph becomes a persistent issue, it can be addressed further. Keep us posted!

[steveyp]

Ok. Tonight I do my first big water change. I'll keep you posted.

[steveyp]

Made a big mistake. Hope I havent ruined my filter. Did big water change but didnt isolate or turn off filter. When I filled tank back up had to prime 15 minutes to get it going again. Did I wreck my bio filter*? Must have drained the fluval all kinds of air. It's going ok now.

[steveyp]

Everything seems ok. Anyway after 90% water change brought ammo up to 2. Ph back to 8. Nitrites closest to 2. Nitrates 5. Will test again tomorrow.
Question. Am I supposed to disconnect the air filter fluval 206 and turn off heater before water changes. Gee I must seem so dumb.lol.

[jlk]

Your biofilter should be ok. We will see how things look when you test but dont worry! The only dumb questions are those that you dont ask so keep asking questions! When you do water changes in the future, its always a good idea to turn off anything electrical before sticking your hands in the tank. Its a good safety precaution & will prevent your filter motor from being burned out from lack of water. Hang in there!!

[steveyp]

New tank numbers 14. Hrs after water change are.
Ammo to 1ppm down from 2. Nitrites over 5. Nitrates steady at 5.
Ph 7.8.

[jlk]

Skip the amm dose for today & lets see how things look tomorrow. If you already dosed, no big deal just skip it tomorrow.

[steveyp]

Ok haven't dosed. Do you think its getting close. What numbers are we looking for?

[jlk]

Your definitely progressing! Unfortuntaely, the nitrite>nitrate phase is by far the hardest to wait out and typically takes twice as long as the amm>nitrite phase. Once your tank is zeroing out amm & nitrite steadily in 24hrs, then its safe to safe your cycled. I know its hard looking at an empty tank but your cycle is doing really well for so early into the process. Just keep a close eye on your ph.

If your considering adding plants or adding more plants if you already have some, this is a good time to do so. Also take the time right now to research the fish your interested in and ask questions about stocking/compatibility/care/etc. If you are unsure where to start, start visiting your lfs's/looking online and make a list of the fish you may be interested in. Dont hesitate to ask questions about certain fish or stocking either!

[steveyp]

Top o the morning!! New tank numbers are ammo .5 nitrites off the chart. Nitrates over 20 close to 40. Ph steady at 8. Looks like things are moving. What should I do now? Redose ammo?

[jlk]

Skip the amm for another night. Lets see if those nitrates can jump up further. And, no, your bacteria wont starve so dont worry!