Trace of Ammonia, Cycle was complete..

[Gundy]

Well I started my 20 gallon up with 5 tiger barbs around June 10th. And with some seed media from the LFS I ended up getting totally cycled by the end of June(30th to be exact). I went through the Ammonia and Nitrite spike between those dates, and ended up with around 10-20 Nitrates and 0 Ammonia & Nitrites by the time June 30th rolled around.

Well this past week I left to visit my parents over the weekend, and I came back and as usual I tested all the water for every level just to make sure everything is alright.

I came back to find a small trace of ammonia in my 20 gallon with 5 tiger barbs and 2 otos. 0.25 is what its measuring. I haven't touched anything, only thing I could think of was maybe the zucchini I had put in for the otos did something to the water. So I took it out and did a 50% water change, and the next day I checked it again - and 0.25 registered again.

I am at a loss for what the problem could be, the only thing that changed has been a die off of Anacharis when I was doing the heat treatment for ick. But I still have a couple of stems in good shape. Other then that, nothing has changed.

Any idea what this could be? I was planning on doing a huge water change this afternoon to see if I can rid the ammonia.

Readings as of now:

Ammonia: 0.25
Nitrite: 0
Nitrate: 10-20
pH: 7.4

 

[theotheragentm]

It could be in your tapwater. Let some sit out for a 24 hours and test it.

 

[Gundy]

Yeah but I've got 3 other tanks that use the same tap and everything that are cycled because of the seed filter media I used out of this tank on them.

By the way, I feed the tiger barbs once a day. And a very little pinch at that. And usually every other night I throw a zucchini in on a veggie clip for the otos.

 

[theotheragentm]

Try not feeding for a day after a water change and see if your levels are still increasing. You might just not be able to keep up with the food and fish bioloads.

 

[Gundy]

Ok, I just did a rather large water change. I will wait till tomorrow to feed them and then test it before I do.

7 Fish is the max bioload for a 20 gallon?

I do water changes every thursday.

 

[7Enigma]

Gundy check my info button for my 20 gallon stocking list (sorry I meant profile). A 20 gallon tank that is established can handle a LOT of fish with proper water changes (to keep the nitrAte down). Could you post what type/model your filter is?

The veggies can definitely cause problems if they are allowed to rot in the tank. Also check for plant debris in your filter, and obviously do a thorough count of your fish. Tiger barbs are a pain to count since they always seem to zip around when taking stock. With plants it makes it even harder since you might count the same barb twice.

Otherwise keep monitoring and doing water changes. 0.25ppm of ammonia is not good, but it definitely isn't an extremely dangerous situation. I'd do a double dose of Prime at your next water change (if you use it) and it will take care of any residual ammonia that you can't get rid of with the water change.

Remove any leaves/plants that don't look great, do you have any driftwood? How about snails? These things can rot/die and you won't easily be able to figure out what the problem is.

 

[Gundy]

Well I tested my water today after doing a huge water change yesterday and not feeding anyone. Still got a trace amount 0.25. Not sure whats up, at this point I pretty much give up. I used a pretty large dose of Prime to make sure I got the chlorine in the water.

EDIT:

I seemed to have edit right when you posted! I will check the filter when I get home for plant debris, its a Whisper Power filter (20). I usually leave the zucchini in for about a day, until I see the middle eaten out of it and then take it out and wait a few more days before I toss another one in.

And yes I've got 5 barbs and 2 otos. No driftwood, just a bubble wand, and a decoration cave.

I've got alot of Anacharis that died off when doing the heat treatment for ick a couple weeks back. I will go through and toss them all and pick up some new bundles tonight. And remove some debris from my filter.

 

[7Enigma]

If you plan on getting a QT tank (say a cheap 10 gallon) I'd think about upgrading your filter. It is probably not adequate for a fully stocked 20 gallon (from my personal experience). I'm a huge fan of filtration capable of much larger then the rated tank size. I use an AquaClear50 (meant for a 50 gallon tank) on my 20 gallon with great success. It has a variable flow adjustment so you can have the larger filter but lower the flow if you have sensitive plants/fish.

I wouldn't chuck all of your plants, just those that don't look really healthy. They have bacteria coating the leaves which will help remove ammonia along with the plant itself.

Pull that cave! I'm willing to bet you might have a clump of rotting poo or plant debris hidden in/under it. My anubias is the harborer of all things ick in my tank (where the rhizome meets the substrate), I always make sure to heavily gravel vac around it.

And make sure if you are rinsing/cleaning the filter of debris ONLY use used tank water, not tap water!

 

[Gundy]

Well I usually move the cave and make sure to really gravel-vac the area, as thats where my barbs hang out. I switched out one of my filters today and put in a new cartridge. The old one was falling apart, shooting carbon pieces all over my tank, not to mention the dead crap galore from my anacharis.

I kept the old bio-foam and just slapped in a new Bio-Max filter I had picked up a couple days ago. Will let it get through a couple of days and then test, and do another water change and report back. I don't really want to get a bigger filter, but will take alook next time I am at work.

 

[Gundy]

Well I've been ontop of water changes, and just been observing the new filter cartridge I placed in the tank. And my ammonia is out of wack. Now reading 1-2ppm. Not sure whats up, and its getting super annoying - enough to just completely shut this tank down.

I've tried double doses of prime, I even bought alot more plants to soak up the ammonia and still no luck.

Any ideas I can try to lower this before I lose more fish?