ok so this is the end...

[Jbsmomto1]

I think my cycle has come to an end, the ammonia and nitrItes have been 0 for nearly 2 weeks and the nitrAtes between 10-20 . Am I safe to assume the cycle is complete? I have cut back on water changes during the last 2 weeks only performing my weekly care. The fish are now being fed 2x a day with no ammonia spike at all.

So now I am left with questions;;;;;

1) Is my cycle complete? Is it just weekly maintance now?

2) My cartridge is almost 5 weeks old now, is it ok to change it or will I end up in trouble if I do so? when should it be changed?

3) I have 6 mollies in a 20g brackish tank with a sg of 0.008 working on getting up to 0.010 shoudl be there in my water change tommorow I hope.
Is it ok to add 2 balloon mollies? or 2 swords or 2 platy's?

4) I am thinking I don't like this gravel to much, if I change it will I have to cycle all over again?

5) should I ever need to take the plastic plants out and scrub them or will that be destroying all my hard cycling work?

6) Is there a reason I have not grown any algae, I'm not complaining just kinda surprised is all. My lights are on 13 hrs a day and my house is bright. I know mollies like to eat it so I was kinda hoping to get some for them to eat, but for now I am giving tablets a few times a week.

7) with my ammonia reading at 0 shoudl I still use prime at water changes or should I just go to stress coat and stress zyme for that now?


I think thats all but Im sure I will be back with more. TYIA

[ct-death]

1) Is my cycle complete? Is it just weekly maintance now?

2) My cartridge is almost 5 weeks old now, is it ok to change it or will I end up in trouble if I do so? when should it be changed?

3) I have 6 mollies in a 20g brackish tank with a sg of 0.008 working on getting up to 0.010 shoudl be there in my water change tommorow I hope.
Is it ok to add 2 balloon mollies? or 2 swords or 2 platy's?

4) I am thinking I don't like this gravel to much, if I change it will I have to cycle all over again?

5) should I ever need to take the plastic plants out and scrub them or will that be destroying all my hard cycling work?

6) Is there a reason I have not grown any algae, I'm not complaining just kinda surprised is all. My lights are on 13 hrs a day and my house is bright. I know mollies like to eat it so I was kinda hoping to get some for them to eat, but for now I am giving tablets a few times a week.

7) with my ammonia reading at 0 shoudl I still use prime at water changes or should I just go to stress coat and stress zyme for that now?

Okay, here it goes:

1) I would say yes. If your Ammonia and nitrItes are reading 0.0 with fish and ur nitrAtes are at 10-20, and it has bene like this for a few weeks I would say yes. BTW - How long did this take? You mentioned that your filter is only 5 weeks old!?! That's impressive.

2) Normally the maintenance on a cartridge is 4-6 weeks. Being that this is your 1st cartridge, it really hasn't had the time to accumulate the amount of buildup normally associated with a fully running aged aquarium. I would hold off until 6-7 weeks and as an added precaution I would squeeze the filter a bit behind the new one (this will help to 'seed' the new one), but be mindful of a mini spike, although you should be more than okay at this point. Just don't gunk up the new one ;)

3) I assume that this is the same tank we are talking about here? If so, I would first ask why the salt, although this is fine (I just think it's more effort and another variable to work with) you should be fine to add 2-3 fish every 2 weeks or so. Again just keep an eye out for any mini-spikes, but you shouldn't experience any. With the salt in your tank currently, I would acclimate your new additions slowly by adding a bit of your own water to their baggy.

4) Chnaging ur gravel now is not something I would advize until ur tank has stabalized and is aged a bit. It may be cycled, but it is still fragile. This is also why we need to add fishly slowly and watch for changes in the tank parameters. After it has aged, this can be done. You will loose some of the bacteria by doing this.

5) Again, I would caution against this ATM, but you certainly cna if you wish. It is good practice to clean your decorations periodically, but as your tank is SO new, why push it?

6) Just be mindful that Mollies require a plant-based diet. As to the algae, post back in a month and tell us what u think! Careful what u wish for! :D

7) Prime is my 1st coice, but Stress Coat is fine as well. Zyme is not a conditioner I didn't think?

I hope I helped...

[Just5398]

I don't believe stress zyme is intended for dechlorinating water, I think it's supposed to add bacteria. I've been using AquaSafe and it says right on it "makes tap water safe for fish".
Good Luck!!!

[Jaysn]

With an SG of 1.010 you'll probably have to acclimate any fish that you're going to put in there, as most mollys are kept in fresh water at the stores.

[Pallen81]

4) I am thinking I don't like this gravel to much, if I change it will I have to cycle all over again?

5) should I ever need to take the plastic plants out and scrub them or will that be destroying all my hard cycling work?

Chances are if you change your gravel, you'll start your cycle again or at least a mini cycle. On those rocks is alot of your surface area for beneficial bacteria. You'd have to expect to be set back by doing this, may not be safe for your fish since the tank is so new. It's debatable.

You won't need to scrub your plant unless they are covered in algae and you don't want algae. There is also beneficial bacteria on there as well. So lets say 3 months down the line your plants are getting some algae growth on them. Here's what you do.

Do a standard water change. Leave the "dirty" water you just siphoned out of your tank in your bucket. Take out your plants and gently brush off algae in the bucket of old water with a new toothbrush. This will clean off your algae while minimizing the loss of good bacteria. Never clean your plants or filter in untreated or newly treated tap water. the chlorine will probably kill off some or much of your good bacteria.

another tidbit: Use that old water also to clean off your filter media pads as well. gets rid of excess gunk in a safe way.

and continue to use a dechlorinator for your tap water. doesn't matter a whole lot if its prime, stress coat, or tap water conditioner. just make sure you use one when added new tap water to the tank.

hope that helped. :)