So mad at my local petco!!!!!!!!

[t27countryboy]

I am steaming mad at my local petco personal.They told me that after I filled my tank with water to let it run for two days and then add fish.I did what they said and then I found this site and have been learning about cycling and my poor fish have been suffering so badly.I have had my oscars in an uncycled tank for about 6 weeks now.They have shown signs of skin deteriation and lose of color.After I found this site I went out and bought a test kit and I have high readings of ammonia.I tested my tap waterr and it has a reading of a little past 1ppm.I am a little upset because I have been doing 25% water chabges everyday for a week now and my ammonia is still high.I have a 55gallon with two emperor 400.Lots of airation.What can I do to relieve my oscars from the burning ammonia?I am so hurt by watching the effects of it on my beautiful oscars.I will never do a cycle with fish ever,ever again.I did not know about cycling at first because of the wondertful people of petco.I trusted what they said and now I( am paying the price.Rather my fish are paying the price.

 

[asaint]

Sorry to hear of your troubles. It's always a let down to hear a local fish store has given bad advice.

Good news is Oscars are some hardy fish. It takes a lot to kill them off.

Continue your water changes and monitor your test readings. You don't want to wipe out the ammonia or else the biological filter won't cycle.

Buy a bottle of one of the various biological cycle boosters. Your Petco (if you can stand to go back) stocks "Cycle". It's basically good bacteria in a bottle. It will (hopefully) shorten your cycle time.

best of luck,
asaint

 

[Jchillin]

Sorry to hear about this unfortunate circumstance. I know from experience what you are going through.

What are your exact levels (NH3, NO2, NO3 and ph)? Depending on the levels, you can adjust your PWC's to keep these in check.

Although I don't recommend "Cycle" as a bacteria source, it does have other ingredients to relieve some of the stress your fish have.

HTH

 

[soccerstud652]

My local PetSmart also told me two days, but one of my friends who has a fish tank came over to see my tank, and he told me I was crazy if I got fish now. He said to wait at least two weeks. I also read alot over the internet about how to get a good cycle going. I think like any other hobby, you should really research everything before you dive in, especially when it comes to living creatures.

 

[mr86mister]

just remember though, in order to get your tank to start cycling a bit, you can either use a special chemical or start with a hardy fish, maybe a platy....your choice....but in order to get a good cycle started you have to have something to get those beneficial bacteria growing......look for a local fish store instead of a chain pet store....you'll get more information that way....good luck!

 

[FMJnaX]

I think like any other hobby, you should really research everything before you dive in, especially when it comes to living creatures.

In defense of every new person to the hobby, when you go to a store that is supposed to specialize in "Pets", you expect/assume that they have good knowledge and wouldn't lead you [too far] astray. If you've never owned an aquarium, then you wouldn't really know that 2 days was bad advice and you wouldn't really have a reason to do research... until the first fish got sick/died/etc. I'm naturally a researcher so I got lucky, but not everybody is (or as skeptical as I am about "big box" employees).

I agree with going to a LFS for tips before the "big box", but even then, you're not guaranteed anything.

 

[TankGirl]

I also do not think it is wrong to expect the person selling you the fish knows about fish - there is no reason to think otherwise - but as (just about all of us) have learned that is not the case. When I go to Sears for a dishwasher I assume the sales person knows about dishwashers, but knowing what I know now, I research just about every purchase.

I am really baffled here by the presence of ammonia in your tap water. Can this be true? It is NOT supposed to be there, and if you are testing positive for it straight out of the tap (no dechlorinator added) then I'd bring a sample in to the LFS or get another kit and double-check. This is not healthy and your municipality needs to be contacted. I would not drink water that has even a trace of it.

Let's say, however, that your tap water does not contain ammonia and your test kit is outdated or otherwise the test is wrong. Your approach to daily PWC is right on, and that will solve the problem. You need to avoid cleaning the tank or the filter during the cycle, because these new bacteria that you are growing (ammonia feeds the bacteria so you do need fish or other source of ammonia to cycle) are very delicate and can easily become disturbed in the early stages. Be very careful about not overfeeding, and your oscars should pull through - as mentioned, if any fish can handle it, oscars can.

Your dechlorinator can cause a false positive reading for ammonia, as well, so it might be wise to replace your kit with a salicylate test kit (two reagent bottles) instead of a Nessler (single stage test) since the former does not react with dechlorinators. You may already have a salicylate test kit, but check the date on it, either way.

 

[patagonia]

i believe countryboy's tap water has chloramines like mine...so if the dechlorinator ur using claims to neutralize chloramines you shouldnt have a problem...i use the aquarium pharmaceutical master test kit and it shows positive ammonia before and after dechlor has been added...BUT...after the dechlor its added its supposed to be in a non toxic form...as far as water changes...if ur tank water is...lets say 2ppm...then you (and your fish) would benefit from a water change...i cycled both my tanks with my tap water with no problems and no casualties...and i know how you feel about those "fish experts" at petco....i went through the same thing...i guess most of us are meant to learn the hard way huh?....HTH...

 

[dogspot]

I wouldn't buy fish front Petco, let alone get advice from them... There is much more informed info on this site. For future reference

Silly story about my local Petco. I was buying a dog collar there the other day, and walked over to the fish just to see what they had. The girl who worked there was talking to a customer and was telling him about one of the fish... It was a cichlid of some kind... But she was pronouncing it "kick sa lid I". It was driving me crazy to her her say it over and over...

 

[t27countryboy]

I have two test kits that I have been using.One is a Red Sea Deluxe master test kit that uses regeant a and regeant b for ammonia.Regeant a being powder and regeant b being liquid.The other test kit that I use is A FastestMaster Kit.Anyone use these?I think that they are good ones are'nt they?

 

[TankGirl]

Your Red Sea test should be good, provided it is not out of date.