Hello
i've never had a fish tank before but have recently purchased a 60 litre biorb secondhand. It came with the used filter and media but I didn't fill it up immediately as I didn't have time. However when I did get round to setting up the tank the media and filter were both still wet so I'm not sure if any of the good bacteria survived. The tank has been running for just over a week and I've been adding the recommended amount of ammonia for 3ppm. I've tested every day and these are the results:
Day 1 Ammonia 2ppm Nitrite 0
Day 2 Ammonia 0 Nitrite 0
Day 3 Ammonia 1ppm Nitrite 0
Day 4 Ammonia 0.25ppm Nitrite 0
Day 5 Ammonia 1ppm Nitrite 0
Day 6 Ammonia 0.25ppm Nitrite 0
Day 7 Ammonia .5 ppm Nitrite 0
However today I thought i'd do a Nitrate test just to see if any of the good bacteria were there and doing anything and my reading was between 40 and 80ppm - hard to read colour in dingy light! So my question is do you think the bacteria have survived enough to start stocking as my Nitrate levels are up or should I continue with the fishless cycle? I also have a question re ph levels - our water is VERY hard and my ph reading is 8.2 - what is the ideal level for guppies and dwarf gourami?
Thanks
Jo
i've never had a fish tank before but have recently purchased a 60 litre biorb secondhand. It came with the used filter and media but I didn't fill it up immediately as I didn't have time. However when I did get round to setting up the tank the media and filter were both still wet so I'm not sure if any of the good bacteria survived. The tank has been running for just over a week and I've been adding the recommended amount of ammonia for 3ppm. I've tested every day and these are the results:
Day 1 Ammonia 2ppm Nitrite 0
Day 2 Ammonia 0 Nitrite 0
Day 3 Ammonia 1ppm Nitrite 0
Day 4 Ammonia 0.25ppm Nitrite 0
Day 5 Ammonia 1ppm Nitrite 0
Day 6 Ammonia 0.25ppm Nitrite 0
Day 7 Ammonia .5 ppm Nitrite 0
However today I thought i'd do a Nitrate test just to see if any of the good bacteria were there and doing anything and my reading was between 40 and 80ppm - hard to read colour in dingy light! So my question is do you think the bacteria have survived enough to start stocking as my Nitrate levels are up or should I continue with the fishless cycle? I also have a question re ph levels - our water is VERY hard and my ph reading is 8.2 - what is the ideal level for guppies and dwarf gourami?
Thanks
Jo