hazy water in new tank

[rjl420]

ok. I'm not sure that "donating" the fish when it gets too big is best for the long term, but I don't want to get into that matter

first you will need a test kit. at least one for ammonia and nitrIte. i'd also pick up a nitrAte but it's not as neccessary. basically, all you need to do is go to something like a hardware store that sells ammonium hydroxide. it's basically ammonia and water at a 10% concentration. then add it directly to your tank, little by little until your ammonia test kit reads 5.0 ppm (a little more a litle less is ok, it's just ballpark). once you get the ammonia holding around 5.0 ppm, add just enough ammonia everyday to keep the bacteria fed (I'd guess about 1/4 capfull every day would do good, but YMMV). then monitor your ammonia until it reads 0 ppm. continue adding ammonia at least every other day and begin monitoring your nitrIte level. it will probablly go off the charts or as high as your chart goes. typically, I've found the nitrIte cycle takes almost twice aslong as the ammonia cycle, so be patient and keep monitoring you nitrIte levels. after a little while it will drop like a rock, I've seen it be off the chart one day, and 0 the next.

when you can add ammonia to the tank (somewhat alot) and the next day ammonia and nitrIte test at 0 ppm, your cycle is complete, and all that is neccessary is a LARGE water change to dilute the nitrAtes. then you can add all the proposed inhabitants to your tank at once.

I really wish you'd reconsider your stocking and/or tank choice. it will only be a problem down the line, and I'm just trying to prevent a possible disaster.

 

[amuro129]

thanks for the help jrl... I wish I could afford a bigger tank but this one already cleared out my pocket. Which inhabitants would you consider me getting?

again thanks for your help. i have a question.

i put the test kit in the water while i'm adding the ammonia? or do i test it after the ammonia has settled in for a while?

also, when am i supposed to add the amquel?

 

[rjl420]

there is a lot you can do with a 60 gallon tank, you can post a topic in general freshwater for stocking ideas but I prefer to pick a fish that you REALLY like and build around it.

I'm sorry, i should have mentioned that you should wait at least 4 hours before testing the water to give the amminia a chance to disipate. otherwise you may get false readings. good question.

as for the AmQuel. i'm not a big fan of it, I prefer straight chlorine/chloramine remover. if it's all you have, treat the tank before adding the ammonia to remove the chlorine and/or chloramine. you shouldn't need it again until the fishless cycle is complete and then treat the water before you add it to your tank during the final water change (and any other water changes in the future).

 

[famman]

rjl is giving you some good advice. As for fish for your awesome 60 gal, the PH of your local water can make that choice easier. Changing the ph of your tank water is a real hassle. A ph test kit is pretty cheap even though you only use it once in a while.
For example, if you have high ph certain african lake chiclids are quite spectacular and within your tank size.
If you have lower ph (say 6 ish), that might give you an opportunity to do discus, a somewhat difficult but highly prized fish.
good luck

 

[amuro129]

Originally posted by rjl420
there is a lot you can do with a 60 gallon tank, you can post a topic in general freshwater for stocking ideas but I prefer to pick a fish that you REALLY like and build around it.

I'm sorry, i should have mentioned that you should wait at least 4 hours before testing the water to give the amminia a chance to disipate. otherwise you may get false readings. good question.

as for the AmQuel. i'm not a big fan of it, I prefer straight chlorine/chloramine remover. if it's all you have, treat the tank before adding the ammonia to remove the chlorine and/or chloramine. you shouldn't need it again until the fishless cycle is complete and then treat the water before you add it to your tank during the final water change (and any other water changes in the future).

i REALLY REALLY like arowanas


as for discus I don't think i'm ready for those yet.

i was thinking i could get a few schools of smaller fish.. but i'll worry about the fishes after my tank has been cycled. I'm going out to buy a test kit and ammonia today. thanks for you help guys.

i

 

[JSchmidt]

I think Amquel is fine, but it can confuse things a bit when your cycling the tank, because it will produce false readings on certain types of ammonia tests. For general use, Amquel is great if you have water than has chloramines added. Chloramines are formed by combining chlorine and ammonia, and when a standard dechlorinator/dechloriminator is used, the chlorine is neutralized but the ammonia is freed. Some people don't think the amount of ammonia is worth worrying about -- in my water, I get readings of 1 ppm or so after dechlorimating. If you prefer to not expose your fish to any ammonia, then Amquel or similar products are fine for treating tap water.

If your tap water is only treated with chlorine, any dechlorinator will do the trick.

Here's how I fishless cycle.

I add enough ammonia to bring the tank concentration to about 5 ppm. (You need to experiment with that to figure out how much is needed. As noted, give the ammonia time to dissipate after adding it, or stir vigorously. It diffuses quite quickly in water.)

Every day at about the same time, I measure the ammonia concentration and add enough to bring it back up to 5 ppm.

I then continue that until no ammonia or nitrites show up after 24 hours. Any tank that can process 5 ppm ammonia to zero ammonia/nitrites in 24 hours has a big enough biofilter to handle just about any stocking level.

After that, I do a 99% water change, adjust the heater and check it in 24 hours, then add fish.

Some things that can speed up the process:
- Add bacteria by getting filter squeezings, gravel, etc. from known-healthy tanks. The more frequently you innoculate the tank, the shorter the cycle. (Don't worry if you're also adding fish poop or crud; you can do a thorough vacuuming after the cycle is finished, before you add fish.)
- Crank up the heat to 85 degrees or so; you'll accelerate the bacteria's metabolism, including reproduction.
- Don't clean the filter or change media for a while. Most of your beneficial bacteria will be clinging to them.

HTH,
Jim

 

[amuro129]

Is it okay if i use hose water to do the water change after the cycle? Will the chlorine kill all my good bacteria?

 

[rjl420]

for the water change after your cycle finishes, I would take extra care not to introduce chlorine/chloramine. since you going to be doing such a large water change, use a bucket the first time. the water from the hose is fine, but the chlorine/chrloramine needs to be removed/neutralized before being added to the tank so that you don't disturb the new benificial bacteria (BB).

after that, you can use the hose and just add chlorine remover a little before, during and after.

and one more word of advice. when cleaning/changing your filter pads, try to clean/remove only one at a time; or use 2 seperate filters and clean only one at a time so that you don't dont disturb you BB bed. just remembered you had a fluval. I would recomend adding a HOB filter down the line (something like an AC200) for mechanical filtration, or add a sponge over the intake of the fluval for added mechanical so that you don't need to tear apart your canister too often.

 

[amuro129]

okay so i put the hose water into a bucket, add a little amquel and mix it up a bit then dump it into the tank correct?


and for the water changes thereafter i just add amquel into the tank before i put hose water in the tank, use the amquel again during i'm filling the tank with water, and add even more amquel after i'm done.

did i get that right? sorry i just want to be sure.

 

[rjl420]

yea, you got it. the only reason your taking extra care for the first water change is because your changing SO MUCH water, that you don't want to risk damaging the BB bed. after that you should only be changing 20-30% at a time so it won't be as drastic.