Uggghhh... Cycle is nothing but DEAD bacteria. It's like adding fish poop to an already taxed biological system that just started to be able to keep up with the fish you have in there now.
Adding instant ocean to a 90 gallon tank question
- Thread starter tedwagner
- Start date
Glad I didnt put it all in there. I hate the LFS's the all sell crap! That is all I could find at petsmart and the wife was with me saying its all the same... bla bla bla. I will check it this afternoon and get back to ya. ### of @ %%%%%. I know what you told me and you told me in the article not to guy nothing else. My fault again. THEY STILL ARE WAY CALMED DOWN LAST NIGHT AND TODAY SO THATS A GOOD SIGN. TTYL. Hopefully be at the tank by lunch at least to check AMMON IA again, Dag nabbit! Actually I did not put in much of that stuff just 100 ml for 100 gallons to start. I also threw in a old ammonia remover bag from my GOOD tank that probally is not removing ammonia any more because it has been in the aquaclear 110 for more than 2 months. If I have any probllems with ammonia when I test it at lunch I will just take the sponge out of the aquaclear in the GOOD tank and put it in the bottom of my PRO CLEAR 75. Should be end of problem then correct? Maybe that ammonia bag I sould have listened to the IM where it told me to use the sponge out of the other tank. The more I think about it, I know its not going to hurt it. Just put a new sponge in the bottom of the aquaclear. (BTW I LOVE THAT FILTER) Maybe the ammonia bag will compensate for the CYCLE JUNK I added?
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Hopefully, all that ammonia bag contained at this point is good bacteria & not ammonia-removing product, because you will never get that tank cycled that way. The bacteria you need to establish your tank feeds on ammonia. If you remove it by way of chemistry (rather then just water changes) you will never establish enough bacteria to support your fish. You could take the sponge from your other filter & rinse it well into a bucket & pour that over the sponge of the newer tank.
I love AC filters too!
I love AC filters too!
That is what I will do tonight when I get home. It seems like the safest thing and take the amm remover bag out of there. I think they only work for a month or so? Get back at you in a few with lunch time readings.
OK here is today readings
Ammo .25
Nitrate 10
Nitrite 0
pH 7.6
SG 1.001 to 1.002 MAX
I have read about cycling and the nitrogen cycle till I am blue in the face. I dont see anything wrong with the readings today? Am I mistaken?
OK here is today readings
Ammo .25
Nitrate 10
Nitrite 0
pH 7.6
SG 1.001 to 1.002 MAX
I have read about cycling and the nitrogen cycle till I am blue in the face. I dont see anything wrong with the readings today? Am I mistaken?
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I am using API that has liquid test bottles for Nitrate, Nitrate, ph Hi and LOW and ammonia. I am gong to test again right now. Sorry I went to bed early last night and t oday will be the same because I have to retile a bathtub tommorow.
OK here are my readiings for today.
Ammonia between 2 and .25
Nitrate 5
Nitrite 0
pH 7.6
SG 1.002
I would imagine theh AMMONIA IS UP because of the CYCLE CRAP i put in there the other day?
I have to say they really look content now insted of going all over the place and trying to jump out of the water! OOPS!
Only 5 minnows left this morninig!
OK I just squeezed the sponge out of the established tank into the new tanks Pro Clear Filter. WOW THAT STUFF LOOKED BLACK? Whats up with that. The tank clowded up immeidatly and now I am goinig to remove the ammo pad that I stuck in the back of it the other day and put it back in the other tank. After it clears up in a few hours I will test the water again.
OK here are my readiings for today.
Ammonia between 2 and .25
Nitrate 5
Nitrite 0
pH 7.6
SG 1.002
I would imagine theh AMMONIA IS UP because of the CYCLE CRAP i put in there the other day?
I have to say they really look content now insted of going all over the place and trying to jump out of the water! OOPS!
Only 5 minnows left this morninig!
OK I just squeezed the sponge out of the established tank into the new tanks Pro Clear Filter. WOW THAT STUFF LOOKED BLACK? Whats up with that. The tank clowded up immeidatly and now I am goinig to remove the ammo pad that I stuck in the back of it the other day and put it back in the other tank. After it clears up in a few hours I will test the water again.
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Hey Puff the Magic Dragon! Heres some more answers and questions for you. Thanks for all the help! Wow maybe three tanks are just overloading my brain. I will post some photos of the other two tanks tonight for your enjoyment of what I am getting help with I know we are in the brackish area here but these are getting posted on my page for you right now.
The shark tank looks great and they are hanging out on the bottom, swimming back and forth, BUT when I squeezed the sponge into the dish and then dumped it into the filter of the shark tank they seemed to instantly start going nutzo again like the other day. The reaings of the tank are the same(really cole to the ones below) from the barb tank.
The shark tank ammonia reading today - it is betwwen the green and no color change of yellow. WOW since I have been letting the wife feed (her little piggies) in the other tanks, I just tested the water in them and had blow out nitrate reading so I just finished 1/2 water changes on them two tanks. SHE WAY OVERFEEDS THESE GUYS, and the proof is in the GRAVEL. I dumped the 5 gallon buckets of fresh water back into the G0000 D000mn Tiger Barb tank and its like its SNOWING DECAYING FOOD in there. Wait till she gets home and I am going to make her drink some of the water and ask her how she likes it, LOL just kidding. She needs to STOP feeding these little guys so much. The concern with me is it is a hanging magnum filter on the back of that tank and I gurannnnnnnteee it will be pluged tommorow and stop pumping making me rinse out the polyfilter, ACTUALLY if I just squezze it out and put it back in I will not really upset the tank and force it to recycle like I would by rinsing out the filter media CORRECT?
Any way both my other tank readings looked the same today so here is the reading from the barb tank before the water change, THIS IS TELLING ME TO CHANGE THE WATER NOOOOOWWWWW correct?
Ammonia .50
NITRATE 80 yes 80
Nitate 0
pH 7.6
The Nitrates are getting rid of the ammonia and that consists of the poop and decaying food that has not been ate that has been sucked down into the gravel and that is what I flushed up when I dumped in the water into the Barb tank, AND THAT IS AFTER A QUICK GRAVEL VAC!!!!
Just FYI these are my other two tanks, both 45 gallon fresh, one with tiger barbs only in the tank and thats the tank that was just mentioned with the water readings, PLUS I just added 12 baby tiger barbs last week. This is the old catfish tank, the cats were in with the barbs but my barbs kept disappearing. Thats why I added more last week because the tank is well established and all my little barbs were gone by the time I got the cats moved over. That is why I was rushing to get them into the new tank and now that I am thinking about it, what was the rush? They ate all the tiger barbs in the tank and I c ould have let this monster tank cycle for a while? I know me and everyone else just think we can throw fish into a tank after there is water in there. Oh yea I found the 6th minnow today he was not yet eaten and he was sucked into the tank on the back with the pre filter in it. I am surprised they have not all been eaten yet.
All I have to say is these two columbian shark catfish are AWESOME to watch in their new home. I will do another water change on it tommorow because of the trace of ammonia.
Why is the Nitrates elevated SO HIGH in my other two fresh tanks. Because of OVER FEEDING to bring down AMMONIA in the waste from the fish and the food decaying in the gravel? I know read again about nitrogen cycle. Am I just stupid, hell no I am a college grad in Science?? I dont understand so maybe I need to look it all over again and take more time to figure it out like you said.
Thanks Puffer.
Ted
The shark tank looks great and they are hanging out on the bottom, swimming back and forth, BUT when I squeezed the sponge into the dish and then dumped it into the filter of the shark tank they seemed to instantly start going nutzo again like the other day. The reaings of the tank are the same(really cole to the ones below) from the barb tank.
The shark tank ammonia reading today - it is betwwen the green and no color change of yellow. WOW since I have been letting the wife feed (her little piggies) in the other tanks, I just tested the water in them and had blow out nitrate reading so I just finished 1/2 water changes on them two tanks. SHE WAY OVERFEEDS THESE GUYS, and the proof is in the GRAVEL. I dumped the 5 gallon buckets of fresh water back into the G0000 D000mn Tiger Barb tank and its like its SNOWING DECAYING FOOD in there. Wait till she gets home and I am going to make her drink some of the water and ask her how she likes it, LOL just kidding. She needs to STOP feeding these little guys so much. The concern with me is it is a hanging magnum filter on the back of that tank and I gurannnnnnnteee it will be pluged tommorow and stop pumping making me rinse out the polyfilter, ACTUALLY if I just squezze it out and put it back in I will not really upset the tank and force it to recycle like I would by rinsing out the filter media CORRECT?
Any way both my other tank readings looked the same today so here is the reading from the barb tank before the water change, THIS IS TELLING ME TO CHANGE THE WATER NOOOOOWWWWW correct?
Ammonia .50
NITRATE 80 yes 80
Nitate 0
pH 7.6
The Nitrates are getting rid of the ammonia and that consists of the poop and decaying food that has not been ate that has been sucked down into the gravel and that is what I flushed up when I dumped in the water into the Barb tank, AND THAT IS AFTER A QUICK GRAVEL VAC!!!!
Just FYI these are my other two tanks, both 45 gallon fresh, one with tiger barbs only in the tank and thats the tank that was just mentioned with the water readings, PLUS I just added 12 baby tiger barbs last week. This is the old catfish tank, the cats were in with the barbs but my barbs kept disappearing. Thats why I added more last week because the tank is well established and all my little barbs were gone by the time I got the cats moved over. That is why I was rushing to get them into the new tank and now that I am thinking about it, what was the rush? They ate all the tiger barbs in the tank and I c ould have let this monster tank cycle for a while? I know me and everyone else just think we can throw fish into a tank after there is water in there. Oh yea I found the 6th minnow today he was not yet eaten and he was sucked into the tank on the back with the pre filter in it. I am surprised they have not all been eaten yet.
All I have to say is these two columbian shark catfish are AWESOME to watch in their new home. I will do another water change on it tommorow because of the trace of ammonia.
Why is the Nitrates elevated SO HIGH in my other two fresh tanks. Because of OVER FEEDING to bring down AMMONIA in the waste from the fish and the food decaying in the gravel? I know read again about nitrogen cycle. Am I just stupid, hell no I am a college grad in Science?? I dont understand so maybe I need to look it all over again and take more time to figure it out like you said.
Thanks Puffer.
Ted
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There's some emerging evidence that shows these cans may be completely unsuitable for water mixing and storage. I may end up changing mine soon.
