HELP!! Ammonia levels maxed!!

[moggbomber7]

I need some major help here if anyone is willing. I just got a 10 gallon tank (starter tank) 3 weeks ago. I've got one 2" black piranha in there right now. Lately the ammonia levels have been rising and rising and Rising. I did a 10% change last week to lower the ammonia level of 1.o ppm. The next day I tested the water and BAM!! 4.0 ammonia level. So I did a 25% change to delute it and started using "ammo lock" because i didn't want to kill the good bacteria. The next morning the tank was really foggy and the test indicated that the ammonia was off the charts 8.0 +!! I did an 80% water change and it deluted it back to 2.0. Yesterday it was back to 4.0. Today it's getting cloudy!! Despite the use of ammo lock, the fish seems to be hurting (just chillin on the bottom). What do I do!! SOS Mayday Mayday

Any advice would be appreciated.

P.S. My fish hasn't eaten in 2 days and I've got 2 plants in the tank.

 

[NGerdes]

With the fish already in there, you are kind of stuck for now. My advice is to do DAILY 25-35% (Maybe a little more depending on the Amm. levels) waterchanges to help the fish. I'm not sure, but the Ammo-Lock my hurt your benificial bacteria more than help it. You have to keep the Amm. levels down for the fish. It will take your tank longer to cycle this way, but you're going to have to do it if your fish will survive. I wouldn't go up to the 80% on the changes anymore on a cycling tank, you can kill off the good bacteria that way too...

After the ammonia goes down to 0, you will still have to keep up the testin on the NitrItes, which can be just as deadly. Basically keep up with the more frequent water changes, (the amount depends on how high the test reading) until both Ammonia and NitrItes are 0...

I'll let some one else tell you about fishless cycling...

 

[boyohboy]

Well I'm no expert, but have you used those water conditioner/dechlorination, like those AquaPlus, Cycle(bacteria) from Hagen?

I just started a tank, with those 2 stuffs added at the beginning with couple of plants for 2-3 days... then added 4 tetras for a few days, and now I have 18 fish in the tank for almost 2 weeks. I tested the water every day or 2, and I still haven't got any detectable ammonia reading so far (touch wood ). So I think the stuffs probably have worked well for me I guess!?

BTW, does those Ammo-lock thing interfere with some ammonia test kit?

 

[tomm10]

You have to keep the Amm. levels down for the fish. It will take your tank longer to cycle this way, but you're going to have to do it if your fish will survive. I wouldn't go up to the 80% on the changes anymore on a cycling tank, you can kill off the good bacteria that way too...

I don't know this to be the case. The bacteria colonize objects in the tank and filter that have water flowing past them rather than floating free in the water column.

My only concern with changing large amounts of water would be matching temperatures and water chemistry but you will need to change that water often. I would take it as a given that you'll need to change 25% a day until you start to get near zero readings.

I agree that ammo-lock won't help you. Let the cycle do what its supposed to do. One thing you could add is Bio Spira. If there is a shop near you that sells it, get it. Do a big water change then add it to the tank. It should cycle the tank in a day or two.