My aquarium is not looking good.

Tested the water again this morning, parameters as follows

Chlorine - 0 ppm
Nitrite - 0 ppm
Ammonia - 1-2 ppm

So my ammonia level went up, I'm going to do another 50% water change. I've been using Prime in every bucket of tap water.
 
When you say bucket, is that a gallon, all of the conditioners on the market specify 5 or 10? Make sure your water conditioner will also remove any hard metals and also has aloe to protect the slime coat. Also do frequent water changes. How long has the tank been set up? Do you have city or well water?
 
As everyone has said...lots of water changes. Many of us have been there, I know I have. My first tank..knew nothing, it took about 2 weeks of 50% water changes everyday or every other (after a few) to get my tank where it needed to be, then I was able to ease up a bit on the changes, still did about 30% every 2-3 days..until finally it was stable enough for once a week WCs. Just keep it up and it will all come together and be worth it in the end.

As for the Africans..well they are aggressive fish and most likey unless you want it to be a African tank..you need to get them new homes. Either or on this one I believe.

Good luck with everything and just hang in there:)

Edit: forgot to add, have you tested your ammonia from the tap?
 
dogyluver said:
When you say bucket, is that a gallon, all of the conditioners on the market specify 5 or 10? Make sure your water conditioner will also remove any hard metals and also has aloe to protect the slime coat. Also do frequent water changes. How long has the tank been set up? Do you have city or well water?
Click to expand...

The bucket is three gallons, the treatment I'm using (Seachem Prime) says a cap-full is good for 50 gallons, so i do a little more than a drop. I'm planning on doing a 50% daily until the ammonia drops. The tank has been set up for almost five years, the featherfin has been in it from the beginning. She has had some fish die over the years and replace them with different ones. We are using city water.

Lady G said:
As for the Africans..well they are aggressive fish and most likely unless you want it to be a African tank..you need to get them new homes. Either or on this one I believe.

Good luck with everything and just hang in there:)

Edit: forgot to add, have you tested your ammonia from the tap
Click to expand...

I sold the cichlids and the yoyo loach tonight, when the water is stable I'm going to put mollies and corys in.

I tested my ammonia from the tap and it shows 0 ppm ammonia.

Thanks for the great advice everyone, I'll keep you posted on what's happening!
 
My ammonia level is back down a little bit, from 1-2 ppm to .5-1 ppm. I know it's still too much, I'm going to do more water changes. Btw, Lupin I don't have a kit that test nitrates yet. This ancient kit is barely getting me by while I wait for the API.
 
I wouldn't trust any readings from the "ancient and used liquid kit from my LFS" .

Stay on the 50% daily water changes with the Prime until you have a good liquid test kit. The Prime will bind any ammonia to a non-toxic form and still keep it available for your bacteria to grow.
 
rbishop said:
I wouldn't trust any readings from the "ancient and used liquid kit from my LFS" .

Stay on the 50% daily water changes with the Prime until you have a good liquid test kit. The Prime will bind any ammonia to a non-toxic form and still keep it available for your bacteria to grow.
Click to expand...
:iagree: Just keep up the water changes until your new kit gets here, you may end up surprised!

Congrats on finding homes for the fish...and what you have planned sounds very nice:)
 
Don't get stressed out about fish loss. Many people have done fishy cycles and have not lost any fish. You just have to do the water changes religiously when needed. As soon as you get your FW master test kit you can see where you at. What kind of filter are you currently using and what's in the filter for mechanical and biological filtration? Is there a reliable source around you that you could get some used filter media, or gravel from? This could help you cycle your tank faster. BTW the inside of your cap of prime has threads...Look at the instructions on the back of your bottle. I believe the first thread will dechlorinate around 5 gallons of water. So if you do a little more than half way to the first thread you'll be fine. Prime can be overdosed with no ill effects.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
AquariaCentral.com
Top Bottom