cindymairi said:
I started my first tank 3 weeks ago...
10gal tank, no live plants. Added two platys and an apple snail on the 3rd day. Added 2 mollies on the 8th day. On that day I started checking Temp, pH, Alkalinity, Hardness, Nitrites, and Nitrates every other day with strips. Didn't realize there was a separate test I needed for Ammonia until one of the platys died a week ago (my first fishy death really made me feel bad).
So from reading a little here, I guess my tank is cycling - but what I'm not sure of is where to step in with the chemicals and where to change the water...and then when to back off and let it do its thing.
At the end of two weeks I did a 10 water change and just scooped out the water from the top of the tank. My pH spiked to 7.8 and the water was reading very hard and low alkalinity. SO the gal at the pet store told me to add a pH neutralizer (powder) which I added - it seemed to fix the levels but made the tank very cloudy for two days. A day after it cleared up my platy died and I found out that although nitrites and nitrates were at 0 levels that the ammonia was almost off the chart
So I added AmQuel Plus two days in a row as suggested buy the fellow at the pet store and I changed the filter. Then I set forth to just watch what the tank was doing...trying not to interfere, but then the other platy apparently was pregnant and now there are 4 babies swimming about in the tank. Since then the nitrites and nitrates have consistently been rising (1ppm/day) and my pH is consistently dropping (0.1 per day). Yesterday I did a 15% water change; using the ciphon hose and it seemed like I stirred more sh* than I cleaned up. BUT I added more AmQuel after the change as well as today and still the Nitrite/Nitrate are increasing and the pH dropping. I don't get it -
What I'm wondering is should I do another 25% water change today and use the hose to clean up as much crap as possible, do I change the filter again?, do I need to add any different chemicals? How long can my fish survive with the nitrite @ 4.0 and nitrate @ 20?
Thanks for your patience in reading all this - I just really want to learn what is going on in there so I can keep my fishies happy & healthy!
10gal tank, no live plants. Added two platys and an apple snail on the 3rd day. Added 2 mollies on the 8th day. On that day I started checking Temp, pH, Alkalinity, Hardness, Nitrites, and Nitrates every other day with strips. Didn't realize there was a separate test I needed for Ammonia until one of the platys died a week ago (my first fishy death really made me feel bad).
So from reading a little here, I guess my tank is cycling - but what I'm not sure of is where to step in with the chemicals and where to change the water...and then when to back off and let it do its thing.
At the end of two weeks I did a 10 water change and just scooped out the water from the top of the tank. My pH spiked to 7.8 and the water was reading very hard and low alkalinity. SO the gal at the pet store told me to add a pH neutralizer (powder) which I added - it seemed to fix the levels but made the tank very cloudy for two days. A day after it cleared up my platy died and I found out that although nitrites and nitrates were at 0 levels that the ammonia was almost off the chart
So I added AmQuel Plus two days in a row as suggested buy the fellow at the pet store and I changed the filter. Then I set forth to just watch what the tank was doing...trying not to interfere, but then the other platy apparently was pregnant and now there are 4 babies swimming about in the tank. Since then the nitrites and nitrates have consistently been rising (1ppm/day) and my pH is consistently dropping (0.1 per day). Yesterday I did a 15% water change; using the ciphon hose and it seemed like I stirred more sh* than I cleaned up. BUT I added more AmQuel after the change as well as today and still the Nitrite/Nitrate are increasing and the pH dropping. I don't get it -
What I'm wondering is should I do another 25% water change today and use the hose to clean up as much crap as possible, do I change the filter again?, do I need to add any different chemicals? How long can my fish survive with the nitrite @ 4.0 and nitrate @ 20?
Thanks for your patience in reading all this - I just really want to learn what is going on in there so I can keep my fishies happy & healthy!
Everybody has pretty much answered your question, but I gotta toss my proverbial 2 cents in too....
1. In MY opinion, I think you added way too many fish, way too fast. That will cause your Ammonia spike (which happens in all new tanks) to rise to lethal levels.
2. I would back off the chemicals. They will cause more harm than good.
3. You are right about stirring up more poop when you vaccum, but that's what you want to do. Don't scoop the water off the top of the tank, that won't really do you any good. Vaccuum the gravel and get the crap outta there.
4. I would do at least a 40-50% change every 3-4 days till your levels are to what they should be.....
5. Feed less food...every other day is fine, the fish won't starve. This will help you control your levels better.
6. Your babies will probably get eaten.
You can get a breeder's net to put them in till they get bigger7. Your pH is dropping due to your water quality deteriorating. Keep up with those water changes!!
8. If you can, and once your tank is cycled, get a different filter. If you want a pretty good one, that will keep your biological filter going, get one made by aqua-tech. For a 10 gal. tank, the filter is about 10 bucks. There are 2 'cartridges' in it. 1 that never gets changed, and 1 with carbon in it. You really don't need activated carbon...so you'll never have to buy cartridges...just rinse the white one in used tank water when you do your water changes.
9. A 'cruddy looking' filter is good.
You don't want it clogged, but you don't want it sterile. The bacteria on the filter is what will rid your tank of things like Ammonia, nitrate, etc.10. You already bought a test kit....use it !!
I keep a log notebook with all of my tank stats. When my big tank was cycling, I checked levels daily...and now, i check them weekly...and keep track of all of it to notice patterns... Oh--you want the test-tube/dropper kit....about 25 bucks at pet-co, cheaper from Drs. Foster and Smith......14 or so... you can order from them online.Lastly...a lot of people on this forum are VERY knowledgable, so if you have any more questions, Do Not!!! hesitate to ask!! Someone will know the answer to what you are looking for! You will soon find fishkeeping to be a fun and relaxing hobby! Don't let this one thing turn you away from fish!
*SUPERSMIL
