prob with ammo-chips

[buggsmarinetank]

Just wanted to share.....
I recently set up a new 20 gallon tank about a month ago... i currently have about 7 small fish in it, and a whitish cloudy tint to the water has been bugging me for a few days now. I think that the ammo chips that i am using (too much) is restricting the N cycle from completing. Just incase you have the same problem, check how much ammo carbs your suppose to be using, chances are too much :0)

 

[Mazdaman]

could it be dust from the ammo chips that you added? Did you rinse them at all? Did you soak them in old tank water before using them. I've found with almost all of those "ammo-packs" for filters are pretty dusty at first. I rinse them untill the dust stops and then soak them in tank water that was removed during pwc for 20-30 minutes and then there ready to go.

 

[buggsmarinetank]

the cloudiness appeared days after I had cleaned my tank... actually a full week to be correct. I think that It has something to do with too many chips added, causeing the n cycle to be sort of "haulted" at one point. Ammonia is Oppm, Nitrites are high, as well as nitrates. Well see what happens

 

[bzbee]

Hi, I'm new at this hobby, but I think I read somewhere that adding too much stuff that absorbs ammonia actually starves the beneficial bacteria and causes a die off, and the tank takes a long time to cycle as a result. Could that be what's happening?

 

[TankGirl]

Hi, I'm new at this hobby, but I think I read somewhere that adding too much stuff that absorbs ammonia actually starves the beneficial bacteria and causes a die off, and the tank takes a long time to cycle as a result. Could that be what's happening?

Yes.

I'd remove all ammonia absorbing media and get the tank cycled. If there is a toxic level of ammonia do water changes to lower it, and wait for the cycle to complete. If you use the chips then the tank will not be able to finish its cycle.

 

[RoK]

My 20 gal cycled with ammo-chips in the filter. I don't remember how long it took or anything like that though, I was a newb back then.

 

[TankGirl]

I am sure that after a while they no longer bind the ammonia, so if they are in there and you leave them they will no longer really remove ammonia.

Also, depending on your fish load, they may not remove enough ammonia to halt the cycle, depending also on how much of the stuff you put in the filter. I can't really think of any instance when I would use ammo-chips, since ammonia is so important to the health of the bacteria that comprise your tank's biofilter.

Healthy, vigorously growing plants will uptake ammonia also, and so does algae, but plants also uptake NO3 and oxygenate the water, which is more than you can say for ammo-chips.

The point that I am trying (eventually) to make is that when someone is having one of those mysteriuosly long cycles and they can't figure out why, and are frustrated, you try to look for anything that might be holding things back. Low temps, cleaning of the tank and/or filter, too light of a bioload, and ammo-chips are some common issues that will delay things.

 

[AR15 guy]

I would not use them. Eventually your tank will cycle and the bacteria will remove the ammonia. By using those chips you are just delaying what is going to happen anyways. If you keep using them the tank will not cycle correctly and you will be battling ammonia problems until it cycles.

I did the same thing when I first started. I used to add way to many fish. Heck when I first started we used to dump the entire tank and clean the gravel and everything out. That was years ago tho.

 

[TankGirl]

Heck when I first started we used to dump the entire tank and clean the gravel and everything out. That was years ago tho.

That is exactly how I "maintained" my tanks when I started 20-some years ago! I had no idea, there was no Aquarium Advice, and nobody at the LFS was going to bother telling me about the nitrogen cycle

 

[AR15 guy]

When I was about 13 I started researching fish again. Because I wanted tanks again but my mom wouldn't let me. Because of the "cleaning" was to hard. Then I found out about the nitrogen cycle and the magical siphons and the rest is history.

I was 13 and had 1 75 gallon, 1 55gallon, 2 30 gals, 1 29 and 2 10's. All in my room. It was amazing. It sounded like a waterfall in there. At the time they were all freshwater. After a few years I made a huge mistake and sold everything for money towards a car. Which I totalled in 2 months. I was paying for a car that I couldn't drive for almost a year. I guess thats life.