Ammonia Issue

[DavidA]

Hi, I have a 10g tank and I'm having an ammonia problem. I'm sort of a newbie in the sense that I never really approached the aquarium process in a professional manner. In fact I only ever had a 29g freshwater community tank that did great but I never really changed the water or even knew about the nitrogen cycle. I had duo filters on it though which probably helped me out in the long run. Anyway, I work at PetCo and before I get ripped a new one, I know, PetCo really isn't the best place to seek advice on anything. I asked the fish department head on the proper way to set up a tank since I have had the 10g since last month, he said to run the filter about a week and treat the water. I did such and tested the water and it was okay to add fish apparently. I don't know if it was because of ammonia in the water or too much fish introduced but out of the original 7 fish I bought for that tank(4 guppies, 2 platies, 1 pleco) only 2 still love to this day. Now I had the tank water tested and it was the worst ammonia the guy had ever seen. He said only to do a 50% water change one day and then wait one day and change it again the same amount, then weekly water changes. I've done that and just tested the water today and it's bad still. I have a couple of live plants in the tank as well. I also plan to set up a 55g and want to do it the right way, if someone could set me on the right path, I would appreciate it.
-David

 

[DavidA]

*Forgot to mention that I haven't tested my tap water individually either and as well when I do water changes I put water conditioner into the bucket and swish it around for a few seconds and just put it in the tank. Not sure if that's the right approach. Please help this mongrel.

 

[Rbishop]

read this first...

http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/threads/freshwater-cycling.84598/

 

[Rbishop]

Who ever told you to run the tank a week, treat water and add fish isn't someone to rely on at all. Of course your water would test okay since the test kits don't test for active bacteria. They test for certain waste levels. No fish... no waste. How old is this whole set up?

 

[DavidA]

Who ever told you to run the tank a week, treat water and add fish isn't someone to rely on at all. Of course your water would test okay since the test kits don't test for active bacteria. They test for certain waste levels. No fish... no waste. How old is this whole set up?

Should have known better, all he does is go in the break room anyway. As I said misinformation caused me to believe that the whole setup was ammonia free, etc after running the filter for a week. The tank is close to a month old if not already.

 

[DavidA]

Who ever told you to run the tank a week, treat water and add fish isn't someone to rely on at all. Of course your water would test okay since the test kits don't test for active bacteria. They test for certain waste levels. No fish... no waste. How old is this whole set up?

I appreciate the link as well. Thank you for that, still new to the site.

 

[Rbishop]

at that age you need not worry about old tank syndrome. Make 50% water changes, using Prime as the dechlor 2-3 times a day until the ammonia is undetectable. What kind/size of filter is on the 10 Gallon?

 

[sumthin fishy]

That article is pure gold. If you plan on keeping the fish you currently have alive, you will need to act fast. Cycling with fish is outlined well in the article. You will need daily water changes until the cycle is established. You will see ammonia decrease, and nitrItes increase, and then nitrites will decrease and you will start to see nitrAtes. When you have 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite, and some nitrates, it shows the beneficial bacteria have established and are processing down the waste. I am surprised you are not seeing anything like that yet. Make sure you are using a dechlorinator since chlorine will kill off the bacteria you need. Also, avoid washing your filter media. During a water change, drain the old water in a bucket and gently swish the filter pad in the old water. A good majority of your bacteria live there, so don't fall victim to the idea it needs to ever be replaced as part of regular maintenance (there are reasons to replace it having to do with using certain medications, but that's not a concern for now.) Glad to see you are on the right track, and welcome to the forums

 

[DavidA]

at that age you need not worry about old tank syndrome. Make 50% water changes, using Prime as the dechlor 2-3 times a day until the ammonia is undetectable. What kind/size of filter is on the 10 Gallon?

Well actually, it is indeed an old tank, it's not new. I did clean it out though with water but it was used only to keep some mice in. The filter is just a tetra 10 gallon filter, I think it's a whisper not sure.

 

[DavidA]

That article is pure gold. If you plan on keeping the fish you currently have alive, you will need to act fast. A huge 50% water change could be potentially harmful at first, as the sudden change in water quality, even for the good could cause shock. You need to get the ammonia down to "safe" levels quickly however. I would recommend a few smaller changes a day until you get there rather than all at once. Cycling with fish is outlined well in the article. You will need daily water changes until the cycle is established. You will see ammonia decrease, and nitrItes increase, and then nitrites will decrease and you will start to see nitrAtes. When you have 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite, and some nitrates, it shows the beneficial bacteria have established and are processing down the waste. I am surprised you are not seeing anything like that yet. Make sure you are using a dechlorinator since chlorine will kill off the bacteria you need. Also, avoid washing your filter media. During a water change, drain the old water in a bucket and gently swish the filter pad in the old water. A good majority of your bacteria live there, so don't fall victim to the idea it needs to ever be replaced as part of regular maintenance (there are reasons to replace it having to do with using certain medications, but that's not a concern for now.) Glad to see you are on the right track, and welcome to the forums

So a 50% water change today wouldn't be good then? And so 2x a day, 10% water changes? I washed the filter cat ridge it's in own tank water last time so that wasn't the issue. So to clarify as well, I can still cycle with fish but just do 2x water changes or so a day?