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Isn't a large water change usually recommended after finishing a fishless cycle? Your nitrates are so low though that the only reason you'd want to do that is if you're suspicious of mystery ingredients in the ammonia you used. Then again.. you'd have used so little ammonia. Just a thought...

Good choice with the fishless cycle! Looks like you're right on track with everything as far as I can tell. Consider doing some water changes to get that nitrite down to a readable level. When it's that high it might stall things a bit. It could take multiple ~90% WCs before it's down to...

I like 1 the most, it looks very natural and would give the fish more hiding places anyway. The others look tacky with the "rock teepees" IMO. The plants will add a lot too.

What are you using as media? Generally you shouldn't change it unless it is literally falling apart or otherwise unusable.

I forgot to ask while I was there, but I believe they are Brachygobius xanthozona, because their stripes are very well defined. The next time I'm over there I'll ask. Either way it's alright though, I planned to keep the tank between 0.003 and 0.008 SG, letting it vary over the course of...

With the help of an active sponge from the angelfish website my tank has cycled in record time. I just added these little guys last night, and thankfully there is no trace of ammonia or nitrite. I'll keep an eye on it for a couple more days to make sure. I can't wait to give them their first...

About the only thing you can do is drain the tank and take as much of the water with you as you can, and keep your filter media, substrate, and decorations submerged during the trip. The bacteria living on them will survive without food until you get the tank set back up, but if they dry...

Well Chinese algae eaters are notorious for not actually eating algae, but I wouldn't know what species to recommend. Perhaps you could take a look at this thread, it might offer some insight into your problem. I learned a few things from it myself.. It appears phosphate in your water doesn't...

The bacteria that's supposed to live in your filter requires oxygen and food (ammonia and nitrite) to survive. It cannot live without food for more than ~48 hours, and I'm not sure about oxygen but I can't imagine it's very long either. So it stands to reason that the good, aerobic (oxygen...

The nitrate test was the one I was having the most trouble with actually. Has yours ever given a false negative? The first time I tested my nitrate (following the directions to the letter) it was 20, then the next day it said it was 0! I tested it three times with well-rinsed and dried tubes...

When you "clean" your tank, do you use any sort of soap? How long has the tank been established? Did anything change around the time you began to notice the algae? (did you add any new decorations, change to a different water source, change to a different food brand, get a different light...

If anything I'd say the coral would help prevent the cycle from stalling due to a pH crash, not really speed it up. Coral in your filter raises pH and kH. If you're not planning on doing any water changes during the fishless cycle it might be a good idea, but even a weekly water change would...

A while ago in a different thread (can't find it, unfortunately) I read that when you're battling a bacteria bloom you have to do daily or twice daily water changes from the top of the tank to clear it out. Don't vacuum the gravel, just take the water from as close to the top as you can. I...

You're pretty much limited to shrimp. I can't think of a fish that would be happy in a 1g. You could do a planted ghost shrimp or amano shrimp tank.

Thanks. I guess what I want to know is whether the color card is calibrated for the darker color or the lighter color. So you're saying it's the lighter color I should be going by. The directions are a little misleading when they say read the color "against" the white part of the card - it...

The other day I finally got an AP master test kit and tried it out. I noticed that there is a drastic difference in how the color looks when held touching the card and held in front but with space between. The lensing/shadow effect between the card and the tube when they're touching makes it...

So wait, does that mean it's not the impeller? Try removing the impeller completely and turning it on for a couple seconds and if it still makes the noise then (obviously) it can't be the impeller. As far as I know this won't hurt the filter (I tried it myself). If it is the impeller, and...

Sure looks like water mold to me. All you can do is wipe it off every once in a while so it doesn't take over your tank while you wait for your water parameters to stabilize. Another thing to consider if water flow. Mold has a hard time growing in clean, well-circulating water. Like I said...

The only reason to do a water change right now would be if your nitrites are so high that they're off the scale and unreadable because if they're extremely high it might stall or slow the cycle. The reason for the large water change at the end is to get rid of the massive amount of nitrate...

Sounds like you're on the right track. If you think it's still cycling, unstable water parameters could be the explanation for the mold (if that's what it is). Your tank might very well have enough of a bio-filter to handle the fish you have (remember, during fishless cycling an enormous...

It sounds like some kind of mold, but I couldn't know for sure without a picture or more information. You said it was new, so is the tank in the middle of cycling? How long have you had it? Is there anything in it yet?

My penguin 100 was loud like that when I first got it. Unless the impeller was in the "perfect spot" it made a grinding sound, and it rarely stayed in that spot. Eventually I put some pure, unscented vaseline on the impeller. It didn't have much effect to begin with but a day or so later it...

Although many aquarists (myself included) believe fishless cycling to be superior to fish-in for a number of reasons, it is an opinion and a choice. Since you're cycling with fish, the next step is to wait. It usually takes 6 to 8 weeks. Test your water often, and make sure you're doing...

MrPillow is right. You should replace your filter media only when it is basically destroyed and useless. The bio-wheel should never have to be replaced. Filter media should only be cleaned when your filter is noticeably clogged or discharging dirty water. If it's not dirty, don't clean it...

Yes, you do need a gravel vacuum so you can clean the bottom of your tank. What have you been doing water changes with?