conflicting info from fish store!

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kelley

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Jan 26, 2004
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Okay, new dilemma...I know this probably belongs in the newbie area, but since you all know my story thus far...

Took the water in to see how the bacteria starter is doing and get an idea of where we're at. Ammonia is really high?! They say it's because of the water in this area and that I should use distilled...

Also told me that I do not need any bacteria starter and that I just need to dump all the water out, use distilled and can immediately get fish. I bought the freaking bacteria starter because another employee told me to! No, they will not take back the $10.00 bottle:mad:

So...the teen at the Petsmart is looking better all the time! He told me more about which fish get along (I came armed with a print out of your lists to test him!) and he was right on target there.

Now, here I am with too much ammonia. Do I really need to dump it all out and go with distilled?? Will I need to always use distilled when I do water changes?! argh...thought I was okay for now!

Kelley
 
First off, invest in a water test kit of your own as a good deal of fish stores dont test water right and dont really seem to care. Your ammonia will in time decrease as the good bacteria becomes more established in your tank...how long has it been cycling for?? Do a 25% water change every few days and it will help it go down too...making sure to use a good dechlorinator or gassing it off naturally(leaving the water in an open container with alot of surface area for 24 or more hours to gas off chlorine). You dont have to use dilstilled water, just be sure that the water you are putting in there is clean. Dont use the bacteria in a bottle stuff, in most cases it doesnt do much if anything...but it probably wont hurt anything if you do. If your ammonia is really high, hold off on the fish till it comes down a bit then slowly add a few.
 
I've heard of using distilled water and have never done it myself. I seem to remember reading somewhere not to use it but not sure on that.

Either way you still need bacteria to convert ammonia into nitrites, then into nitrates. The first two are very deadly for fish, nitrates not so much. What kind of "bacteria starter" did you buy? I've heard with bio-spira you can add fish almost right away, like the next day.
 
1) Distilled water lacks minerals necessary for your fish and/or plants to live, do not use only distilled water.
2) Most of the bacteria starters are snake oil, only good for lining companies pockets, Bio-Spira is for real, "Improved Cycle" is better than nothing, but a distant second. With Bio-Spira you need to add fish right away, without their waste products the live bacteria will die.
3) Many water municipalities add Chloramine to water, this is a chlorine/ammonia compound, you may need to use a treatment to break down the ammonia, Amquel does this-others may, check your labels.
4) If you are treating for Chloramines, your tester may be giving you false readings for ammonia-The Nesslar Reagent will show high ammonia when in fact you can be reading ammonium, this is harmless to fish and still accessable to plants for food and will not affect your cycle process.
HTH, Steve
 
First off, the LFS employee is 100% wrong. Adding fish immediatly into distilled water? Well, distilled water gets ammonia in it just like any other water. Distilled can also adversly affect your fish's health, so, I wouldn't use it.

Next, are you fishless cycling? If you are, it doesn't really matter if you have ammonia and nitrite readings off the scale, nobody's being hurt. Although, try to keep it around 5ppm so you can be certain how much ammonia is actually in there.

I pretty much agree with everything else said as well.
 
You all RULE!!!

First off, thanks for all the great info! Okay, so no distilled water...glad to hear that!

I'm in day four of fishless cycling...you may recall I took out goldfish (whom have since found new homes) and cleaned everything with oxy-clean. I added this: Proquatics Bacteria Starter, which they SAY does this:

"This item locks up ammonia in a non-toxic form and breaks the chloramine bond. It is for use in fresh or saltwater aquariums and helps eliminate stress and protects healthy gill function. Effectiveness proven by university laboratory studies"

It says to add it on day one, day seven and day fourteen.
This product says nothing about adding fish right away like the Bio-spira stuff---which I cannot find anywhere?! There is no ingredient list, either...800 number I can call on Monday, though.

I also put in the Tetra Safe stuff for tap water.

I took the water in to see how things were...they had told me that by this weekend I could get "starter" fish. I was just curous about the water, really...not too interested in fish we would grow to resent! The ammonia level was high--distilled water was the only thing mentioned.

I took the lid off of the tank to allow more surface exposed to air.
I have everything running, water heating to 78 degrees..

When should I check the water again? Should I forget about this bacteria starter??

again, you all are the best!!!

Kelley
 
I'm in day four of fishless cycling...
Click to expand...

Just to make sure you understand, fishless cycling is when you add pure ammonia (the household cleaner) into a tank a little every day for a few weeks. If you go the fishless cycling route, you won't be getting fish this weekend or the next. It takes a while. Just running the tank without ammonia or fish does not count as fishless cycling.

Petsmart does not carry BioSpira, but many of the better local fish stores do. It's expensive, but it means you can add all of your fish immediately without waiting for the bacteria to develop. I would discontinue use of this other Bacteria Starter product.

If you go the "starter fish" route, you will be doing what we call a "fishy" cycle. When using a fishy cycle, you can only add a few fish at a time, in order to give the bacteria a chance to respond to the increased levels of ammonia.
 
What buisness does someone who think fish should live in distilled water have being in an LFS? In the first place it makes no difference to the nitrogen cycle; furthermore it has no buffering capacity (very bad) and disrupts fishs' osmotic balance, causing acute kidney failure. Not to mention distilled water is expensive.
 
Also, to speed up your bacteria growth...if you have a tank going now, trim a peice off of the filter media and put it in your tank/or filter.
 
From a Pet Store employee myself...

You'd be surprised how little some employee's know about fish. Granted, an employee in the fish department of PetsMart should know more than a cashier. Whatever.

Do what I do. I fill the tank up with water and dump in about a capfull of clear ammonia. Not much at all. I add some rocks from another tank I keep in a plastic bag, (although this may not be applicable to you; I give the stuff out at work to customers with new tanks and you may see if PetsMart will do this for you as well.) In a day or two (with the rocks) the tank is cycled. You don't need to change your water or add any chemicals, just relax and test your ammonia and nitrites in a few days.
 
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