Cycling a new tank help

[jetajockey]

It's possible that there might still be some but who knows.

 

[Steo the great]

Hi my mates tank is 0 ammonia and nitrites but 20 ppm in nitrates. Will I use this filter??

 

[librarygirl]

Hi my mates tank is 0 ammonia and nitrites but 20 ppm in nitrates. Will I use this filter??

You could try it, but the nitrates could just be leftover from when there were fish in there. Without the bacteria being fed a source of ammonia (like fish waste, decaying fish food etc) it's likely they are all dead. It might not hurt to try although I don't know about anything sitting in stagnant water for a while, could be moldy/icky if that's possible. I'd try another source if you can find one, but if you want to try it it's up to you.

 

[Steo the great]

You could try it, but the nitrates could just be leftover from when there were fish in there. Without the bacteria being fed a source of ammonia (like fish waste, decaying fish food etc) it's likely they are all dead. It might not hurt to try although I don't know about anything sitting in stagnant water for a while, could be moldy/icky if that's possible. I'd try another source if you can find one, but if you want to try it it's up to you.

Alright perfect thanks for the comment. I stuck it below my filter anyway. Can't be too bad I suppose. Day 6 today and no change in anything hopefully tomorrow will be better.

 

[Deckape]

Hello there, if the lfs has any marimo balls, IMO they have a bunch of BB in them. Especially if they are in a tank with fish. It wouldn't hurt to give them a try. Plus they look nice.

 

[Steo the great]

Hi I got a used filter from local shop. Should I rinse it with clean water or just pop it straight in my tank. Thanks.

 

[jetajockey]

Hi I got a used filter from local shop. Should I rinse it with clean water or just pop it straight in my tank. Thanks.

Put it straight in.

 

[Deckape]

Hi I got a used filter from local shop. Should I rinse it with clean water or just pop it straight in my tank. Thanks.

Rinsing would defeat the purpose. You want the yuckies now. And you should really think about doing buisness with that shop. Most wont give up old filter media. You are the exception. Very lucky to get it

 

[jetajockey]

Agreed with that, sounds like they are going the extra mile that most LFS would just laugh at.

 

[Deckape]

Agreed with that, sounds like they are going the extra mile that most LFS would just laugh at.

That is one good LFS

 

[Steo the great]

Yeah they were very good in there didn't even want any money for it or anything. I was just lookin at my water conditioner there and realised that it night not w water conditioner. It's called. Tetra easy balance. Do you think this could be inhibiting my bacteria. Please give me good news.
Thanks

 

[eco23]

Yeah they were very good in there didn't even want any money for it or anything. I was just lookin at my water conditioner there and realised that it night not w water conditioner. It's called. Tetra easy balance. Do you think this could be inhibiting my bacteria. Please give me good news.
Thanks

Not good news unfortunately. It doesn't seem to dechlorinate, and is one of those shortcut products that claims to do everything...and IMO isn't a good idea. They say the product only requires 50% pwc's every 6 months! That is a BAD idea on many levels.

It doesn't seem like there's anything in there which will cause problems now...but I suggest you discontinue using it in the future. Also, if you haven't been using a dechlorinator and you're on city water...that's potential trouble. Chlorine and bacteria don't play nicely together

 

[Steo the great]

Not good news unfortunately. It doesn't seem to dechlorinate, and is one of those shortcut products that claims to do everything...and IMO isn't a good idea. They say the product only requires 50% pwc's every 6 months! That is a BAD idea on many levels.

It doesn't seem like there's anything in there which will cause problems now...but I suggest you discontinue using it in the future. Also, if you haven't been using a dechlorinator and you're on city water...that's potential trouble. Chlorine and bacteria don't play nicely together

**** **** ****. Lol. Ok well I've just changed my water to lower the ammonia and only realised when I was adding it back in and my tank is down to about 20% water. Could I leave this over night or should I just add the water with the conditioner in it. And do a full water change tomorrow. I hate pet shops.
Thanks

 

[eco23]

**** **** ****. Lol. Ok well I've just changed my water to lower the ammonia and only realised when I was adding it back in and my tank is down to about 20% water. Could I leave this over night or should I just add the water with the conditioner in it. And do a full water change tomorrow. I hate pet shops.
Thanks

It's 6 of one, half dozen of the other. If you leave the tank dry, the bacteria will dry out and die...if you fill and run it with water full of chlorine, it could nuke the bacteria. I wish I had an answer...do you have bottled water you could stick the filter media in to keep it wet for now in water that doesn't have chlorine in it? (on the off-chance the bacteria hasn't already taken a major shot )

 

[Steo the great]

It's 6 of one, half dozen of the other. If you leave the tank dry, the bacteria will dry out and die...if you fill and run it with water full of chlorine, it could nuke the bacteria. I wish I had an answer...do you have bottled water you could stick the filter media in to keep it wet for now in water that doesn't have chlorine in it? (on the off-chance the bacteria hasn't already taken a major shot )

I've had this product in it from the start so it's probably not even started yet. And I do have bottled water though might just use that. Only good thing I've seen on the Internet is that I've hears ireland doesn't have alot of chlorine in it's water in certain areas. But. Worse thing worse I'll jistsyart it all again tomorrow at least I noticed tonight?

 

[eco23]

Definitely better to discover it now than a month down the road when we can't figure out why things aren't happening.

Personally, I'd take out the filter media, stick it in a bag or bowl of bottled water to keep it wet, fill the tank back up to keep the walls wet (hoping some bacteria survives), then when you get a dechlorinator go ahead and continue on like nothing happened .

 

[Steo the great]

Definitely better to discover it now than a month down the road when we can't figure out why things aren't happening.

Personally, I'd take out the filter media, stick it in a bag or bowl of bottled water to keep it wet, fill the tank back up to keep the walls wet (hoping some bacteria survives), then when you get a dechlorinator go ahead and continue on like nothing happened .

Ok. I'll pour this crap water in there and take out the filter media. Lol. And hopefully I can start again tomorrow hut it's probably ruined the filter I got from that pet shop today so I'm going to murder a pet shop owner by the end of this hahaha.

 

[eco23]

I'm not certain how quickly chlorine works on bacteria...but the chlorine is added to water specifically to kill bacteria...so, not a good mix. I guess we'll find out soon enough unfortunately. You could always go back to the place who told you that stuff was dechlorinator and demand new media, lol. Luckily you caught it before you had fish...fish and chlorine don't mix either.

 

[Steo the great]

I'm not certain how quickly chlorine works on bacteria...but the chlorine is added to water specifically to kill bacteria...so, not a good mix. I guess we'll find out soon enough unfortunately. You could always go back to the place who told you that stuff was dechlorinator and demand new media, lol. Luckily you caught it before you had fish...fish and chlorine don't mix either.

Ok perfect. And the this easy balance kills off nitrates aswell I think. So more good news haha. The wierd thing is they don't even know what media is. So I can't even demand it off them hahaha. Well thanks anyways I'll start again tomorrow and I'll be back posting on the forum hopefully of good news lol

 

[Deckape]

Darn. That is unfortunate. When you get th dechlorinator, I would get Seachem Prime. It is simply the best.