Overly ambitious new girl tanks her first fishless cycle?

[Sirena]

Hello fellow fish friendly forum folks! So if I got anyone's attention I'm hoping you can answer my question! My local aquarium store people intimidate me so I wasn't able to articulate my problem there and just bought some alkaline buffer because i was anxous.

My setup: 3 gallon (i know, 2 smol) Back to the Roots Water Garden
filtration is aquaponic- wheat grass roots SHOULD eat the nasties that choke fish and stuff, there is a little pump and a heater, and some gravel substrate.

I put an anubias plant in the tank too.


My problem: I'm trying to fishless cycle before adding a beta (because i am a soft person who cannot deal with stressed fish).

I have been dosing per Dr Tim's Aquatics fishless cycle instructions using their Amonium Chloride product and have been testing my levels with API freshwater test kit. Things were going well about 3 months ago... until I realized that the "zym-bac" I used was messing with the cycling (nitrite and nitrate levels were affected). My filtering plants died, and I had to start over. I did a massive water change, cleaned stuff, and started over, but my PH levels refuse to budge above 6 (WTH y so acidic?) and there is just... stuff floating everywhere, which is a mystery to me since there are no fish. The most obvious sludge is the stuff under the gravel, but it seems to settle on every surface of the tank! Is it just really ugly algae or is there like... dust in my tank? what is happening? :'(

At this point, with quite a lot of money spent on the setup, test kits and accessories, I'm wondering why didn't I just choose a normal tank?! Anyone have thoughts or suggestions?

 

[Toad]

Not really sure what the right way is to use an aquaponics set up is, but that stuff floating around and dirt is poop. In a normal aquarium that would be vacumned out during water changes

 

[UntimelyLord]

What is the pH of your source water? You can use crushed coral to naturally raise pH. If it is below 6 it can be difficult for the nitrogen cycle to get going. I'm not sure how adding a "bacteria in a bottle" product like zym-bac would have hurt your tank, although it may not help much. What are your current water parameters?
Look up diatom algae and see if that looks like the "dust" in your tank.

 

[Sirena]

Not really sure what the right way is to use an aquaponics set up is, but that stuff floating around and dirt is poop. In a normal aquarium that would be vacumned out during water changes

from the bacteria I assume? (since there are no fish as of yet) I didn't realize they generated so much waste on their own! this has been quite the learning experience.

 

[Sirena]

What is the pH of your source water? You can use crushed coral to naturally raise pH. If it is below 6 it can be difficult for the nitrogen cycle to get going. I'm not sure how adding a "bacteria in a bottle" product like zym-bac would have hurt your tank, although it may not help much. What are your current water parameters?
Look up diatom algae and see if that looks like the "dust" in your tank.

MY tap water tests at 7 straight out the tap; I havent let it sit out and retested, though the aquarium store said that it's typically right at 7 within my neighborhood (close to the treatment plant). The zym-bac only messed up my readings because it had ammonia binders in case one wanted to cycle with a fish and have it survive (I guess?). I do think you're right that the dusty junk could be algae in early growth stages, it's just so brown looking I'm not used to seeing it look so... not chlorophyll-ed. will try the coral! Just wondering what i did to make it so acidic? perhaps when my first plants died they just... got really funky in there. I wonder if I'm fiddling with it too much at the wrong times, and disturbing the bacteria.

 

[pradeepcec]

The pH of the tank going to 6 is normal during the cycling process as lots of acidic waste is produced by the bacteria. Like you already told, get some crushed corals, get a small filter bag (You should find it in FS) add the corals after washing and that should keep your pH stable. Also if you see that your nitrates are too high (around 100+) then do a partial water change. In case of pH drop you can do a partial water change as well. While you add water back into the tank make sure to add any declorinator like Seachem prime, API stress coat or tetra aquasafe.
Not sure how the aquaponic tank work, but for me the dust in the tank looks like the rotten roots from the plants that you said died.

 

[Floop123]

Do a water change

 

[UntimelyLord]

How is it going? Do you have ammonia/nitrite/nitrate readings?

I don't know how aquaponics systems work but most filters have a constant flow of water through mechanical and biological filter media (sponge, filter floss, ceramic rings/porous stones, etc.) where beneficial bacteria grow. Does your system have something akin to this? It is possible to cycle a tank without a filter but it will take longer and I'm not sure of the stability of the system.

Yes, sometimes the nitrification process itself can lower pH, though I haven't experienced that personally. Are the plants in some sort of substrate? Dirt can lower pH.
Beneficial bacteria does not produce visible waste that I'm aware of. Diatoms are brown and dusty. Or could there be decomposed pieces of the plants you had that died in there?
Just re-read your post and saw you purchased alkaline buffer; that will work to raise pH too, although since it was designed for RO water it might take a little trial and error to see what dosing works with your tap. I'm hesitant to recommend something I don't have experience with because messing with pH can lead to pH swings and you'll need a steady pH for your eventual livestock.

(I don't know about zym-bac but Prime (a water conditioner) for example binds ammonia so it is temporarily not toxic to fish, but is still available​ to the beneficial bacteria, so that wouldn't affect your cycle.)