how often?

[kmlong]

I've yet some more questions. First, my ammonia is up, im assuming the best thing to do would be a water change. Nitrates and trites are fine though. Second, my filter is only about two weeks old so should i just rinse it a little bit in the old water i take out or in the new dechlorinated water or just leave it as is? Third, how often should i vaccum the gravel. It doesn't look dirty so i quess i'll just wait till dirt starts becoming visible. I think i really messed my cycle up. Started with no fish and put the crappy stress zyme in which they claim will start your tank cycling. Well i did it for 2-3 weeks. I'm new to all this and im reading that basically that stress zyme is crap. I waited 3 weeks and the water was terrible. So me not knowing, i took the filter out and rinsed under tap water. There was my first mistake!! but the water cleared up and reading were good and now i've got fish, did 4 a week. Well now im wondering cause of this amonia reading which is .5 currently if the tank ever really cycled if that stress zyme don't work. Or maybe it cycled and i ruined it by rinsing all the stuff i need out of the filter when i rinsed it under tap water. Problem is now i've got fish in there, 9 of them, small ones though. Will this tank ever cycle now with fish in it? When i change the water, will the filter that was running with ammonia in the water hurt anything if i put it back in? I have learned so much from this site, it really is great. I know some good soul will help me without laughing at my mistakes!! oh, the tank is a 20 gal. Also, what is the best thing to put in for waste and algae? thanks in advance

 

[loganj]

Keep a check on your ammonia...I would be surprised if the tank cycled with just stress zyme. Do water changes to keep the ammonia less than .5. If you start to see nitrite building, do the same thing except I'd try to keep the nitrite lower...maybe .2 or so. It's a bit more toxic than ammonia. Don't bother vacuuming the gravel yet...wait till the tank cycles. If you must rinse the filter cart, do it in tank water that you took out during a water change. You can use your current filter cart until it gets dirty enough to need replacement. Also, I would feed VERY sparingly until your tank has finished the cycle. No problem on the mistakes...we've all made them. The ones who didn't were just lucky.

 

[hashbaz]

If you already know how the ammonia cycle works, I am sorry - but here goes:

1. fish poop out ammonia which is toxic.
2. bacteria eat ammonia and produce nitrite which is also toxic.
3. other bacteria eat nitrite and produce nitrate which isn't cool but not toxic until it gets really high.

The point of cycling is to get the bacteria growing somewhere in your tank. The best place are in the filter, or the gravel. The bacteria don't live in open water and need a surface to live on. It is more effective if this surface has water moving over it. Lots of people hardly ever clean out the scum (beneficial bacteria) on their filters.

To start the cycle rolling you need a source of ammonia to feed the bacteria so they can multiply. Some people simply add ammonia daily. An easier way is to add fish. They will produce the ammonia you need. But you will want to start out with hardy fish that won't die from the ammonia.

For a tank to be cycled there needs to be enough bacteria to keep up with the fish. This is why you should add fish slowly, giving the bacteria time to catch up.

What does all this mean for you? As long as you have a good place for the bacteria to grow, your tank should cycle the way it is. The fish you have now will provide the ammonia and the bacteria will start to multiply. It will just take time. Be sure to do frequent water changes to keep the ammonia from getting too high.

When i change the water, will the filter that was running with ammonia in the water hurt anything if i put it back in?

No it won't hurt anything you should put it back.

Also, what is the best thing to put in for waste and algae?

Most people here say not to add ANYTHING to the water except declorinator and possibly plant food. Solid fish waste should occasionally be vacuumed up.

Fighting algae is a whole new can of worms. I'm not the one to ask either. The only way I can keep algae out of my tank is with a scrubber and a whole lot more elbow grease than I would expect. Sunlight will increase algae, so will leaving the aquarium light on for more than 12 hours a day. Live plants are supposed to help fight algae. Faster growing plants will suck the nutrients out of the water, starving the algae. The plant, hornwort, supposedly releases and algae toxin. But I think my algae must feed on the toxin.

We might be able to help even more with the cycling thing if we knew more about your tank. What kind of filter do you have? And what kind of fish are they?

I hope this helps!

 

[kmlong]

i got a starter kit from topfin. 20gal tank with topfin 20 filter with a nice oak cabinet to sit on top. I have 4 longfin danio's (aggressive buggers), they were the first in the tank. waited about a week and a half and put 3 tetra's in and 1 male guarmis. Also my girlfriend wanted a beta. I don't think the quarmis and the betta like eachother. I told her it was not a good idea to put him in there but she insisted and the guy at the shop said it would be ok but i don't think most of those people know what they are doing. the beta puts his gills out, or whatever puffs up around his head and chases the guarmis. I think im gonna wake up one day and one or the other will be dead! I would like one or two more fish yet, but don't want to go over my max for the size of the aquarium. I've got algae now too. i don't have any real plants, just artificial. Heard real plants are very hard to keep in aquariums. Can i just scrub the algae off the sides with a sponge or something and leave it in the water? Aquarium is not near sunlight, light is on at most 4-5 hours in the morning and same at night, it is off while we are at work. I had an air pump going, but it totally splattered up the underside of my hood so i took it out. The fish are doing great, very active, no weird looking fungi, and they all eats like pigs!! except the beta, he is picky, don't know what to feed him. all the info is great, keep up the great job.

 

[deli_conker]

Can i just scrub the algae off the sides with a sponge or something and leave it in the water?

If you have green algae, then reducing sunlight could help. I have brown algae; it needs no sun. Get a magnetic scaper. They are great. One side goes in the tank, the other outside the glass. I wouldn't use a sponge as they hold bacteria like crazy. In case you didn't know this by now, rinse everything you put into your tank regardless of what it is (aside from fish food). You never know what is on something and adding it to your tank could be disasterous.

Another option would be to invest in a diatom filter. It filters out all the micro particles (including the ones that create algae). There's a thread on this board with pictures of somebody's results with one here...

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/viewtopic.php?t=25468

You'll want a gravel vac for the fish waste. It's basically a siphon hose with filter/grate near one end. You should vac whenever you change water. In most cases you start the siphon and push the vac end into the gravel a bit. The lighter stuff (food/poop/etc.) will flow through the grate and into your bucket, the heavier stuff (gravel) will fall back down into the tank. You should probably vac one half the tank like this with each water change (I do 20% once a week). HOWEVER, since you are most likely starting the nitrogen cycle you do not want to disturb the gravel. This is where some of your bacteria are going to live and messing with it could kill them. Just hover the vac end above the gravel and pick up the stuff at the surface.

the beta puts his gills out, or whatever puffs up around his head and chases the guarmis. I think im gonna wake up one day and one or the other will be dead!

I don't have betta or gourami (yet), but I know from reading on this site that bettas freak out around other long-finned fish. They see the other fish as a threat.

Something to keep in mind is that the lfs is in business to make money and will try to sell you what they can. I know that some are bad about it and some aren't. But money is the bottom line. Your best bet is to research it your self. The internet has a wealth of info and people on this site are really good about sharing what they know.

Here is an article you will want to read...

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/showquestion.php?faq=2&fldAuto=21

It's kinda like Fishkeeping 101.

In the meantime, keep an eye on your ammonia levels. If they get high do a small (10%) water change to keep it under control. You may have to do this several times a week until the tank cycles.