Fish in cycle

[5andy]

I was doing a fishless cycle when my husband decided to put his bate minnows in the tank. So we have been doing a fish in cycle for a few weeks after a few weeks of a fishless cycle.

My ammonia is 0. Nitrites are 0. And nitrates are 0.

Are we ready to put keeper fish in?

 

[5andy]

I was doing a fishless cycle when my husband decided to put his bate minnows in the tank. So we have been doing a fish in cycle for a few weeks after a few weeks of a fishless cycle.

My ammonia is 0. Nitrites are 0. And nitrates are 0.

Are we ready to put keeper fish in?

Previously I did I did have ammonia of up to 8 and nitrites

 

[coralbandit]

Need to see nitrAtes..
Are you doing the test correctly and shaking the reagent bottle #2 before using drops...
Have you changed any water in the tank?

 

[V227]

Sandy, are the minnows still alive?

 

[Upstate TBarbs]

Frankly I'd be more worried about what those bait minnows could have brought with them into the tank. Bait shops are not known to have healthy tanks. Most I have seen are running them on untreated water straight from the tap.

 

[5andy]

Sandy, are the minnows still alive?

Yes they are still alive

 

[5andy]

Frankly I'd be more worried about what those bait minnows could have brought with them into the tank. Bait shops are not known to have healthy tanks. Most I have seen are running them on untreated water straight from the tap.

I feel worried about that too but unfortunately they were already there...

 

[5andy]

Need to see nitrAtes..
Are you doing the test correctly and shaking the reagent bottle #2 before using drops...
Have you changed any water in the tank?

Yes I have been shaking them. I thought that I would have nitrates. I'll run another test and see what I get. Maybe I didn't shake it enough?

 

[BBradbury]

Fish In Tank Cyling

Hello 5...

Just test the water for traces of ammonia and nitrite. Nitrates aren't a problem unless the level gets to 100 ppm and stays there. If you have a positive test for ammonia or nitrite, you remove 25 percent of the water and replace that with tap water treated with a product that removes chlorine and chloramine. Seachem's "Safe" is about the best.

Feed the fish a little every day or two to maintain a steady ammonia source. Keep testing daily and remove and replace the water when needed. When you have several daily tests with no traces of ammonia or nitrite, the tank is cycled. Then, just change half the tank water every few days to maintain good water conditions for the fish.

Easy peazee.

B

 

[V227]

Sandy, since you have been cycling your tank for what sounds like 6 weeks, have your husband net the minnows out and put them back in the minnow bucket. Go ahead and buy a few tough inexpensive entry level fish such as Tiger Barbs, Zebra Danios or a Few Buenos Aires Tetras. From what you have noted, your tank has probably already cycled. Follow the directions BBradbury provided for a few more weeks just to be sure. Keep us updated. Good luck.

 

[dalto]

The lack of any nitrates is concerning unless you have something absorbing nitrates. I agree with others that if you are using the API nitrate kit you need to pay special attention to ensure that you follow the instructions exactly. Alternatively, are you using any chemical filtration?

Nitrates aren't a problem unless the level gets to 100 ppm and stays there.

100ppm is a pretty high nitrate level. I would recommend keeping it below 20ppm. Honestly, if you can keep it lower than that, you should. Here is a link with some more reading on nitrate toxicity if you are interested.

I do agree with bbradbury that large water changes are the best solution for nitrate reduction in freshwater tanks.

 

[5andy]

I retested the water and everything is perfect! Nitrates are high so I'll be doing my partial water change and putting in fish! Minnows are gone by the way!