Fish in cycle first water test?!

[Malisa_]

My test kit FINALLY came today and I got unexpected results so I thought I'd ask someone more experienced for advice.

Tank history:
20 high, tetra 40i filter, 100 watt heater, tetra 20g air pump, pool sand substrate, small lace rock cave, 4 tall grass looking live plants, 3 fake plants, small piece of what appears to be mopani root wood, odd rocks, pvc pipe for future pleco.
Nov. 17th- set up
Nov. 19th- added 2 male guppies from a breeder, 5 gallons water from his cichlid tank-hoping for any tiny bit of bacteria-he didn't offer filter media =( and this is when the plants were added-they were from the guppies tank.
Nov. 21st- PWC 30%
Nov. 23rd- PWC 30%
Nov. 25th- PWC 30%

Then today(Nov. 27th)- My API master test kit arrives. First test results:
pH: 8.0 (depressing)
ammonia: 0.25 ppm
nitrite: 0.25 ppm
nitrate: 20-40 ppm. (It looked closer to 20 though IMO)

I thought this warranted testing my tap water.
TAP WATER results:
pH: 8.2
ammonia: 0
nitrite: 0
nitrate: 5.0 ppm

I did a partial water change over 50% after the test.

QUESTIONS:
1. Should I change over more water every two days(50% instead of 30%)? or switch to PWCs daily at 30%? or any other suggestions?
2. Is it odd to have so many nitrates already? I was secretly hoping for some evidence of the cycle being on its way but shocked at the nitrate findings. I timed the shaking and waiting so I'm confident the test was done accurately. Could the used water and algae covered plants make that much difference? Do nitrates spike too?
3. My pH level is depressing. I REALLY want a dwarf cichlid or two.Is there some way to correct this? If I get a fish from a local petstore that is used to the city water would that be okay? We also have hard water. So not ideal. Would more wood make a big enough difference?
4. Stocking. I only have a 20H so I know my stocking options are limited but I was hoping to end up with these 2 guppies, an albino bristlenose pleco, and then wanted a couple dwarf cichlids that hopefully won't make lunch of my guppies. I'm not looking to breed (for space reasons!) Can I get 2 females of different apistos? Or an apisto and/or GBR and/or bol. ram? Is there any way to make this work?
5. Is there a floating plant that I can add to diffuse the light? One that requires little or no effort? I don't put anything in the water for the grass looking plants. The previous owner said he didn't do anything for them. They seem happy.

THANKS to anyone who makes it through my novel. Sorry about that. I've been lurking for a couple weeks but figured there was no point in posting til I had some test results!

-Mel

 

[Malisa_]

attempting to attach a tank pic...

The pvc pipe is under the filter, disguised by rocks.

 

[Mrs.h2012]

My test kit FINALLY came today and I got unexpected results so I thought I'd ask someone more experienced for advice.

Tank history:
20 high, tetra 40i filter, 100 watt heater, tetra 20g air pump, pool sand substrate, small lace rock cave, 4 tall grass looking live plants, 3 fake plants, small piece of what appears to be mopani root wood, odd rocks, pvc pipe for future pleco.
Nov. 17th- set up
Nov. 19th- added 2 male guppies from a breeder, 5 gallons water from his cichlid tank-hoping for any tiny bit of bacteria-he didn't offer filter media =( and this is when the plants were added-they were from the guppies tank.
Nov. 21st- PWC 30%
Nov. 23rd- PWC 30%
Nov. 25th- PWC 30%

Then today(Nov. 27th)- My API master test kit arrives. First test results:
pH: 8.0 (depressing)
ammonia: 0.25 ppm
nitrite: 0.25 ppm
nitrate: 20-40 ppm. (It looked closer to 20 though IMO)

I thought this warranted testing my tap water.
TAP WATER results:
pH: 8.2
ammonia: 0
nitrite: 0
nitrate: 5.0 ppm

I did a partial water change over 50% after the test.

QUESTIONS:
1. Should I change over more water every two days(50% instead of 30%)? or switch to PWCs daily at 30%? or any other suggestions?
2. Is it odd to have so many nitrates already? I was secretly hoping for some evidence of the cycle being on its way but shocked at the nitrate findings. I timed the shaking and waiting so I'm confident the test was done accurately. Could the used water and algae covered plants make that much difference? Do nitrates spike too?
3. My pH level is depressing. I REALLY want a dwarf cichlid or two.Is there some way to correct this? If I get a fish from a local petstore that is used to the city water would that be okay? We also have hard water. So not ideal. Would more wood make a big enough difference?
4. Stocking. I only have a 20H so I know my stocking options are limited but I was hoping to end up with these 2 guppies, an albino bristlenose pleco, and then wanted a couple dwarf cichlids that hopefully won't make lunch of my guppies. I'm not looking to breed (for space reasons!) Can I get 2 females of different apistos? Or an apisto and/or GBR and/or bol. ram? Is there any way to make this work?
5. Is there a floating plant that I can add to diffuse the light? One that requires little or no effort? I don't put anything in the water for the grass looking plants. The previous owner said he didn't do anything for them. They seem happy.

THANKS to anyone who makes it through my novel. Sorry about that. I've been lurking for a couple weeks but figured there was no point in posting til I had some test results!

-Mel

There is a member from here that I keep in constant contact with through email, we both did fish in cycles and ironically started our cycles on the same day and we've compared our cycles, and she had nitrates show up before nitrites. As long as your able to keep levels at .25 and below on ammonia and nitrite you will be fine. Just do your water changes based on your water params. Your not that far into your cycle yet, you still have a ways to go. When your ammonia zeros out that means your halfway there! I think things are going fine!

 

[librarygirl]

My replies below in blue....

My test kit FINALLY came today and I got unexpected results so I thought I'd ask someone more experienced for advice.

Tank history:
20 high, tetra 40i filter, 100 watt heater, tetra 20g air pump, pool sand substrate, small lace rock cave, 4 tall grass looking live plants, 3 fake plants, small piece of what appears to be mopani root wood, odd rocks, pvc pipe for future pleco.
Nov. 17th- set up
Nov. 19th- added 2 male guppies from a breeder, 5 gallons water from his cichlid tank-hoping for any tiny bit of bacteria-he didn't offer filter media =( and this is when the plants were added-they were from the guppies tank.
Nov. 21st- PWC 30%
Nov. 23rd- PWC 30%
Nov. 25th- PWC 30%

Then today(Nov. 27th)- My API master test kit arrives. First test results:
pH: 8.0 (depressing)
ammonia: 0.25 ppm
nitrite: 0.25 ppm
nitrate: 20-40 ppm. (It looked closer to 20 though IMO)

I thought this warranted testing my tap water.
TAP WATER results:
pH: 8.2
ammonia: 0
nitrite: 0
nitrate: 5.0 ppm

I did a partial water change over 50% after the test.

QUESTIONS:
1. Should I change over more water every two days(50% instead of 30%)? or switch to PWCs daily at 30%? or any other suggestions? Right now let the test kit be your guide to how much water to change and when. Just try to keep ammonia and/or nitrite at .25 max. So, if ammonia is .5 and nitrite is .5, a 50% water change will bring both down to .25. Once the tank cycles then a maintenance schedule of changing 50% weekly is good practice but until then let the test kit tell you when to do a water change.
2. Is it odd to have so many nitrates already? I was secretly hoping for some evidence of the cycle being on its way but shocked at the nitrate findings. I timed the shaking and waiting so I'm confident the test was done accurately. Could the used water and algae covered plants make that much difference? Do nitrates spike too? I too think it's odd that nitrates are so high with just two guppies in an uncycled tank with your tap water only reading 5. I suspect it could be the used water from the breeder's tank and/or from the plants. Nitrates aren't as terribly toxic as ammonia or nitrite but still nitrates should be kept as low as you can as well; <40 is recommended, under 20 is better.
3. My pH level is depressing. I REALLY want a dwarf cichlid or two.Is there some way to correct this? If I get a fish from a local petstore that is used to the city water would that be okay? We also have hard water. So not ideal. Would more wood make a big enough difference?
Most fish will adapt to your PH as long as it's stable. I wouldn't worry too much about it. Most fish can live in a range of PH. Some driftwood might lower it a bit, but it's usually temporary and would depend on the type of wood. You can add some peat to lower it but again I've read this is only temporary. I wouldn't worry about the PH too much as it is.
4. Stocking. I only have a 20H so I know my stocking options are limited but I was hoping to end up with these 2 guppies, an albino bristlenose pleco, and then wanted a couple dwarf cichlids that hopefully won't make lunch of my guppies. I'm not looking to breed (for space reasons!) Can I get 2 females of different apistos? Or an apisto and/or GBR and/or bol. ram? Is there any way to make this work? Unfortunately I think a brislenose can potentially be too large for a 20 as they can get up to 4"; they're also messy fish so it'll add a lot to your bioload. You might want to look into a school of Corys or a small trio of Otoclinus which are a little like small plecos. With that said, the Corys mostly stay along the bottom and so do dwarf cichlids so it could be a bit crowded.
5. Is there a floating plant that I can add to diffuse the light? One that requires little or no effort? I don't put anything in the water for the grass looking plants. The previous owner said he didn't do anything for them. They seem happy. Water lettuce, duckweed, frogbit, root floaters, water spangles can be floated on top to minimize light.

THANKS to anyone who makes it through my novel. Sorry about that. I've been lurking for a couple weeks but figured there was no point in posting til I had some test results!

-Mel

 

[Malisa_]

I looked into the plants. It looks like any would be good! I need something that'll grow like a weed. I figure that means even I would have luck with it. I'm guessing these are ones I can find at Petco/Petsmart? I saw their packaged plants but didn't look too closely at what else they had.

I guess I'll look into the pleco/algae eater options some more. I'm staring at the tank trying to picture a 4-5 inch fish in it and agree it's probably not a good fit.(reading about their waste kinda turns me off to them too. it would probably be really obvious with my sand substrate) I'm hesitant to get any other ground dwellers because I really have my heart set on a cichlid and don't want them competing for space. I guess I can find out if an apisto or two is an option before deciding on what else to stock.

Thanks so much for the replies!!