i cant take the wait any longer

well i've come back and read what has happened since i got off angry, and some of the 3rd person views of the matter ring true. everyone does have their own opinion, and right to contribute their advice here, i just wish they would do it without slander. this isn't a message to continue the dispute, because i too was guilty of slinging mud. i find it helpful to come here and hear opinions of all sides... As long as i'm keeping fish, i'll be frequenting the forum. Plus, i can't go out like that!

anyway, let's steer this back in between the yellow lines...

I went to my LFS and had a long talk with the notorious Ed today. His whole ration is to add a few fish each week and test the water when i come down for more. He says either way you do it, the tank will eventually cycle. (i had him test my water today so I can show off my nitrates, i'm not gonna lie) but i'll be testing at least once a day and after any needed water changes anyhow. He also put me on to a different ammonia test kit. it's the hagen nutrifin brand. i like this one because i always found it hard to read api's ammonia readings. (and it makes me think i did a hell of a lot more water changes then needed... i tested myself before going down and thought there was a trace of green, not .25 but some.. turns out there wasn't). this one displays clear fluid if there is no ammonia, so clear or not vs. yellow or yellow green will be much easier IMO. plus it came with a plastic eye dropper which will be more handy for dosing ammonia in my 3g when it comes time.
 
Ditto! Keep this updated with your progress on this and your other tanks. It will be valuable for others in the future. By the way, I just realized.... any thread over 100 posts is supposed to come with pics. ;)
 
Just your average thread creeper here... following the thread as it has developed. I am only here to add to hooked newbie's sentiments. Pics are demanded for this much-talked about tank, regardless of how your aquarium photography skills are!
 
yes, finally things are looking up for me. more good news, my 20 gal upstairs which i used the in-tank driftwood from my LFS about 4 days ago is now showing a definite 5.0 on nitrates! (more defined of a 5.0 than the 46g!) ammonia on both tanks is under .25ppm and still no nitrites at all. pH on the 46 climbed up to 7.0 from the 6.0 -.2 range, and my 20's pH is 6.2. no need for a water change tonight (jesus does love me) and my fingers are crossed in hopes these nitrates will keep on coming. until tomorrow my friends.

**and of course pics will be coming. it's all about the suspense man. need more plants, and my planned stock first!

***also, along with these 2 tanks cycling under different methods, i have a 3g soon to be wild type betta tank cycling with no fish - dosing ammonia. after all are cycled i will write up a doc on each of my experiences and probably have an idea on which one i would decide to do if i ever had to do it again.
 
evelyn80 said:
yes it does katu, sorry but i have to agree with corax there. adding more fish while cycling makes the cycle go longer and adds more un nesasary stress on your fish. blk skirts as it is arent very hardy either making the chance of death higher. if i were u i wouldnt buy more fish until your cyle is over. monitor the params VERY closely and do water changes as nesasary. but i see where your coming from it is hard to wait while your tank cycles!
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I would have to dissagree. Adding more fish to an already small bioload will only increase the bioload, thus promoting more bacteria. His cycle was almost over anyway, no harm done, especially from someone that is watchful of his water parameters. From what I've read, he's lost one fish due to a careless mistake that he's owned up to.

Corax said:
... and hopefully recognize what a dumb move this was so you won't jump the gun when things level off the next time.
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I wouldn't call it dumb at all, it's how they did it years back, it worked then, it also worked for him. Fish-Cycle works. He didn't add fish when his ammonia was rising, he added fish when it was dropping off. It's what I would have done as well.

Corax said:
There was no "method".. You saw a momentary ray of light and ran as fast as you could to the store to buy more fish. If it was a method, you would have tested again several times over a few days to be sure it maintaining those levels before throwing yet more fish into a potentially toxic environment. In my humble opinion, that was a very dumb thing to do.

I would have to pull a Ms Jinkz here and bold my replies, as there's so much to respond to here. I don't find your oppinion "humble" at all. Calling someone else's action very dumb wouldn't be exactly "humble". I think his method was unique in his own right, and he did so with not only one method, but 3, all at the same time. I can probably "humbly" oppinionate that that's more than what you did, your first time around.

Tarquin, I've wondered about the same thing for a long time. Which is why I keep a bottle of boring old Start Right on hand when cycling a tank. All it does is remove the chlorine/chloramines.. Leaves all the wonderful ammonia and nitrites in the tank, where you need them, for fishless cycling..

Don't wonder. While you keep wondering, katuuuz is converting the ammonia into ammonium; both of which the bacteria will gladly consume to produce nitrites.

Hopefully you learned that fishy cycling is a paint in the butt and should be avoided at all costs.. Fishless is so much simpler, more predictable and much better for the tank in the long run.
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I started out 15 years back doing a fish-cycle. 2 Months ago, I tried the fishless-cycle. My next tank, will be a fish-cycle again. How much "cost" are you willing to put up to avoid fish-cycling? The cost of watching an empty tank for 6-8 weeks? How's it better for the tank in the "long run"? Would the tank brew healthier bacteria that can sing the fish a good night song? Please elaborate.

msjinkzd said:
Lets refrain from personal attacks of any sort please. Offer constructive advice or don't offer any advice at all. Lets keep this on topic to help the OP please
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Yes, let's help the OP, and preserve democracy. Let's not cower to those that impose their methods on others, and call others names for not doing it their way. Mistakes may be made, but they are made at the expense of the OP. They are not anyone's to judge. We're so quick to judge sometimes, that we forget, we too are being watched, and judged.


Kashta said:
A lot of our methods and viewpoints are debatable. That's part of the hobby and there's no getting around it. Still, personal attacks and name-calling (both sides here) are pointless and that interferes with any constructive exchange of ideas.

Amen!

katuuuz - You started a thread asking us for opinions and advice and it's open to everyone. You don't get to pick and choose who can post and who can't. You've drawn some criticism that may be fair or unfair. So be it - you also have tremendous support here. Try not to take this personally or get personal towards your critics about these differences. Really, our disagreements usually bring out a better end result for everyone participating in this. You'll just have to decide for yourself who to listen to and who to ignore.
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Words of wisdom here. I too have read through this entire thread, and found it to sum up many views, and many helpful tips and pointers. It took a wild turn of events, hopefully for the better as new hobbyists read on.

katuuuz said:
thanks jinkzed, i just woke up and wasn't thinking clearly.

anyhow back to the matter at hand.
today's tests show:

ammonia: 0
nitrite: 0
nitrate: 5.0
and pH 6.4

looking good if i do say so myself.
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katuuuz - Looks like you're done. You've been done quite some time actually. The reason for your low Ammonia and Nitrite levels was due to dirty's bacteria seed. The reason why your Nitrate level was not elevating was due to your plants. Plants eat up Nitrates. You were struggling to increase Nitrates to show that your cycle is complete, but your plants were taking care of that for you. But no worries, your struggles would not have gone in vein. Many after you, will read these forums, and find the useful information, and the aspiration that katuuuz was able to pull through, with the help of the many wonderful people here.

Keep up the good work, and let us know how those tanks turn out.

-Shawn
 
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