Sort of, newish tank cycle?

N

Nick23

AC Members
Oct 5, 2004
26
0
0
Dallas, TX
I'm changing the tank, it has been running for over a year with a little turtle and some goldfish in it, so I'm sure the ammonia has been through the roof, and there are probably a lot of bacteria in the 50+ lbs of gravel I've been using. I rinsed the gravel to get rid of most of the waste, and put some granite pieces and some anacharis (sp?) and 4 black neon tetras in the tank after letting it sit for about 48 hrs. The ammonia was at 1 ppm, most likely leftover from the gravel. I used dechlorinator in the water, and I'm wanting to get this thing up and running with some tropical fish and lots of plants, java moss and java fern. It's a 33ish Gal long tank, 48"X12"X12" (I'm too lazy to find out how much volume those dimensions actually hold, i was told it was 33 gals when i bought it a long time ago though.)

So my question is, since i have a crapload of active gravel already running in a high ammonia environment just over a week ago, can I put some more fish in the tank to help maintain the ammonia levels so the bacteria doesen't all starve to death? or should I start over and let the cycle start new. I really want to just get going and have some fish... :p But I'd like to get some opinions from several people before I do much
 
If you currently have detectable ammonia, you do not have a large bacteria bed. Since you've already put fish in there, you need to be doing water changes to keep the ammonia below 1 ppm--especially with delicate fish like neons. Adding some fast growing plants will help the fish out--neither java moss nor ferns are really fast growing though. More anachris will help, if there's enough light to support it.
 
thanks

I'll check in on them here in a little while when i get back to the house, and do a water change and pick up some more anachris on the way home. Are there some different fish I could have put in there to help the tank get started? The tetras are very happy and cruising around. they are eating great whenever i feed them, no stress that i can see. In fact they ate a few minutes after I put them in the tank yesterday. :)
 
Unfortunately, eating isn't really a sign that the fish is in good health. By the time a fish quits eating, an illness is likely very far advanced. Ammonia levels affect the fishes ability to get oxygen out of the water by damaging the gills. Signs of stress include rapid breathing, surfacing, and lethargy. They likely will not show until the fish have been exposed for more than a few days.

Fishless cycling, using bottled ammonia, is the easiest way to establish a bacteria population. But, once the fish are in there, there really isn't an easy option short of doing frequent water changes to keep the levels low.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
AquariaCentral.com
Top Bottom