Help!!! Pet shop said ammonia and recommended ammonia remover & now things seem wors

[Tezhar]

Help!!! Pet shop said ammonia and recommended ammonia remover & now things seem wors

Hi,

I'm very new as in joined 5 mins ago. I've had a tank for about a month now n was doing ok. I had a male dwarf gourami n he was fine yesterday but dead today!! Pet shop checked my water n said the ammonia was too high. They sold me Interpet Amonia Remover and Nutrafin Cycle. I've added this and now things seem worse! Most of my other fish except albino Corey's seem to be at the top of the tank looking for air. And my two female dwarf gouramis look like their fins look spikey??


Please help!!

 

[severum mama]

Welcome! Glad you found us.

When you have a new aquarium (which it sounds like you have), it generally takes about 6-8 weeks to complete what is known as the nitrogen cycle. Sometimes it takes longer. Simply put, your fish produce ammonia (toxic to fish), some good bacteria grow in your tank to break down the ammonia into nitrite (also toxic to fish), and then some more good bacteria grow to break down the nitrite into nitrate (not toxic to fish unless a lot is present). The nitrate is the end result of the nitrogen cycle, and what we dilute through our weekly water changes.

It sounds like your tank doesn't yet have the good bacteria it needs to break down the ammonia. It takes some time for this to grow. In the meantime, the ammonia is building up in the tank and poisoning the fish. I'm assuming you do not know exact numbers for ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate, so I would recommend doing a large (50-60%) water change. Don't forget your dechlorinator! I'd also suggest that you don't use the ammonia remover or the Nutrafin Cycle. IMO products like these may interfere with the process. If you are able, you should go ahead and pick up a water testing kit. Look for one with liquid reagents, not test strips. You'll need to be able to test your own water to see where you are in the cycling process. Do not change your filter cartridges/sponges/etc. while your tank is cycling.

If you have any other questions, just let us know.

 

[Tezhar]

Thanks for your help. I will do a 50% water change. Will this slow down the cycling process at all though?

 

[severum mama]

In my experience, no. And your fish will be a lot better off for it.

 

[Tezhar]

Thanks so much for all your help. The water change has made my fish a lot happier! They are now swimming around and no longer hovering at the top. Instant solution! I was planning on a quarter water change on Sunday as I do every Sunday. Do I still do this? Or leave til next week? Also do I feed them at all or wait a couple of days? I was feeding flakes and pellets on one meal time. The pellets were for my corys. What do you suggest instead feeding wise?

 

[Jmunroe]

You should probably do 50% changes every couple days for a few more weeks until the tank gets good and cycled. Pick up API master freshwater test kit. It's cheap easy to use and will tell you exactly what's going on in your tank.

 

[Rivercats]

Here's a great AA article on fish in cycling... I just learned about cycling but I already have fish. What now?! - Aquarium Advice.

Also since you don't have a test kit to monitor ammonia and nitrites I personally would do a small WC daily, maybe 10-20% to keep any ammonia or nitrite levels diluted. This will really help your fish.

Also welcome to AA.