rosalie68

ok so some of u know that i have a 220 gal that i have been trying to cycle. today i tested the water and it is
0 ammonia
.5-1 nitrite
not sure nitrate but there is some
so does this mean that im cycled b/c i have some nitrate and no ammonia?
also when i went to check the water i noticed ALL of my fish have ich. so i turned my water up. what do i put it at? how long? and do i have to add any ich meds. will copper kill my bacteria? is it safe to do water changes now? or do i have to wait until its cycled more? please help asap i dont want to lose anymore fish i have been having so many problems. i thought i finally finished my cycle and wouldnt have to worry and now this. also i got my new fluval canister should i wait to set it up until the ich is gone or does it make a difference? thanks!
kim

Chief_waterchanger

82 degrees farenheit for 2 weeks.

I would NOT use ich meds with the temperature raising. You would be best served doing lots of waterchanges (25% every other day for the 2 week period making sure the water going back in feels like the same temp as the 82 degree water in the tank) until the ich goes away and until there are no nitrites and very little nitrates.

If the 82 degree water is passing through the filter it shouldn't matter, and better filtration helps the fish... so I would set that up asap.

Shawnie

no it means you are almost there but not just yet...you are totally cycled when you have 0 ammonia & nitrites and under 20 for nitrates...but the fact that you have nitrites, means its coming along nicely...as far as the ich, chief covered it all goodluck !

rosalie68

should i vacuum the gravel or just strictly exchange water? will this take away the bacteria?

susitna-flower

You can LIGHTLY vacuum...no agressive cleaning, it helps clean out the dead parasites, but the main thing is to keep the temp OVER 82 for the full two weeks.

The water changes are for two reasons....First is that ANY nitrites are toxic to fish, which is stressful and will predispose them to infections like ick. The second is that the higher temperatures deplete oxygen in the water, so you have to do the changes also to replenish the oxygen until the temp can be lowered, and the cycle is finished....

Shawnie also has that covered... O for ammonia AND nitrite, and nitrate over 5 means the cycle is finished.... Good Luck

rosalie68

thanks for your help. i am just nervous b/c i dont want to disturb the bacteria and have to start a cycle all over again or lose fish to ich. u guys always help so much!
kim

Fishies-for-me

Ick also affect the gills....and with the higher temps there is less oxygen in the water...it wouldn't hurt ( if you have one ) to add an airstone to the tank and agitate the water to help with the oxygen exchange...good luck.

rosalie68

thanks! i have a large airstone, its about 12 inches long. i always use one. i just have some weird thing with liking the bubble walls. do i need more??
kim