jar05g

Hey all. So my tank has been up for a little over a week now. I have some fish in there and the cycle is just starting. I have signs of ammonia, and just starting to see signs of nitrite. My question is this...do I need to be doing water changes? If so, when and how much? I just topped it off today. Anything else I should be doing?

sgould

When cycling with fish in the tank, you do need to do regular water changes. This will cause the cycle to last longer, but is necessary to ensure the fish survive it. How often/how much...any time your ammonia reading tops .5, do a water change of as much as 50%. This could mean you are doing large water changes daily. Any idea what your pH is? If below 7, the ammonia will not be as toxic...if above 7 it will be more toxic. Keep this up until BOTH ammonia and nitrite have returned to 0.

jar05g

Oh wow...50% is a lot!!! My Ammonia isn't that high, but my pH is over 7....I believe it's 7.6. The water is hard so lowering the pH is kind of hard. I've added a buffer to bring it down to 6.5....but it hasn't helped.

sgould

Yes, 50% is a lot. Which is one reason fishless cycling is preferred, aside from the health concerns for the fish. I would not recommend trying to alter your pH. Yours is very acceptable and ultimately your fish will do very well in it. Trying to artificially alter it will result in your pH yo-yoing up and down, which is far more stressful for the fish than just maintaining a consistent level. The only reason I asked is to point out that higher pH values result in higher ammonia toxicity. The fact that yours is over 7 just highlights the importance of keeping a close eye on your ammonia and keeping up with those water changes.

jar05g

Ok....well I will just have to get on those water changes. Does adding bubbles change anything as far as water conditions are concerned? I've only read that it does good things.

lilsoccakid

i would reccomend buying a product called "prime" by seachem, which detoxifes the ammonia and nitrites. this will make ur fish a lot healthier and really help them live through the cycle

jar05g

I've heard about Prime. I've actually used Amquel +...aren't they the same thing? Or is Prime better?

sgould

They are similar products. Either will work in terms of detoxing ammonia and nitrite.

jar05g

Ok...I will go and pick up some of that. I haven't gotten an answer yet about the bubbles...

sgould

Bubbles will not alter/speed the cycle, if that is what you mean. They do, through surface agitation, improve oxygen levels in your water. Plus, they're kinda fun to look at.

jar05g

Heck yeah they're fun to look at. I can tell that my fish love them. I appreciate all the help I've received! Thank you!

Joe_D

I'm new to this, so I will ask a question.

If you add something like Prime to eliminate the ammonia and nitrite wouldn't that make it impossible for the tank to cycle? The way I understand it is, the bacteria needs the ammonia to feed on and it releases nitrites. The bacteria will reproduce to a sufficient quantity to consume all of the ammonia. A second bacteria reacts in a similar fashion for the nitrites converting them to nitrates.

I understand frequent water changes to reduce the toxicity to the fish and that this will slow down the cycle. But, I would think eliminating the ammonia would stop the cycle.

Joe

sgould

Prime and similar water treatments do not actually eliminate the ammonia. They chemically alter it into a non-toxic form. But it is still in there, and the bacteria can still grow. As with water changes though, it can slow the process down.