nitram79

Hi peeps,

I got a 3 foot tank (about 135 litres) a while back now, which came with an internal filter which does about 100 PPM, i also had another internal filter which does 60 ppm plus a had a hang over aqua one filter which does 40 ppm. When i first set up the tank i had all 3 filters going and the tank was lightly stocked and so the tank kept on cycling. So in the end i put the hang over filter away and the cycling stopped so all was good. Now i have an over stocked tank which needs frequent water changes. I was wondering if i pulled the little 40 litrle filter back out, would that combat an over stocked tank?

Shawnie

it would help because you never can have too much filtration but you still will have to do frequent changes to get up the waste and leftovers of an overstocked tank

cichlidsmad

yes it is very helpfull especialy in a overstocked african cich tank with me i always over filter mi tanks even if there under stocked

nitram79

thanks,

I thought the same thing when i first set it up, but as i said it kept on cycling even after i put bacteria cycle in the tank, it would be fine , then i would cycle again. what im more worried about is just that, i dont want the tank to cycle again. do you think a 40l ppm would cause another cycle or would it just add better filtration i dont mind cleaning the tank, its just that is very heavily planted and it very hard to clean the gravel. thats my major concern

cichlidsmad

ok someone else will have to answer that i know nothing about plants as having africans ive never needed them

Shawnie

what did you use to cycle the tank to begin with? once a tank is cycled, it shouldnt be having mini cycles if it was done properly before...most of the bacteria you add to cycle a tank, isnt the proper kind and that could be why you keep having cycle issues...overstocking will cause mini cycles if the tank isnt cleaned often ..but being heavily planted, should help with the nitrates ...but if they arent, then gravel vacs are a must

nitram79

The stuff i used to cycle the tank was called cycle made by Sera. i didnt have many fish at that stage and having 3 filters running, i dont think the bacteria knew if it was coming or going. as soon as i got rid of the hanging filter, i havent had a cycle since. mind you when the tank kept on cycling, the ammonia and nitrite levels were still 0 but the water kept on going cloudy for no reason, which to my knowledge is a cycle, but as i said, removing the hanging filter ended that. im wondering if i put the hanging filter back on, will this cause another cycle. it only does about 40ltrs but i dont want to cause ammonia and nitrite spikes so im not sure if i should clean the tank more or add this filter and keep on doing 1 clean a week.

also whats causing this concern is im finding it hard to get a straight forward reading oif nitrate levels with my tester, as when i put the test tube against the colour chat the colour is much darker giving me a high nitrate reading of about 20 - 40, but if i put the tube up against the light i get 10 - 20. my fish never get sick which is a plus, but iv never had cichlids before so i want to make sure that the water is good for them, as the tetras, shark, pleco's and all the other fish iv had have been ok. but now im going into new terrirotry with cichlids and dont want to stuff up.

Shawnie

well the product cycle, is your issue...its not a self sustaining bacteria...once you stop using it, the cycle crashes....so getting the tank properly cycled is going to be your first step....when was the last time you used cycle (the product)? and what are you ammonia and nitrite readings right now? the filter is not causing you to have a cycle but removing it and the bacteria it might start to establish, could be putting you back to mini cycles also...

nitram79

I havent used the cycle stuff for nearly a year now. i cant clean the whole tank because of the plants and deco in the tank, so the unreachablethats where the bacteria lives undisturbed. so when i clean the filters and change the water i dont bother using anything such as water agers or cycle or anything like that. i clean the sponges in the filters once a week and change about 20% of the water once a week as well, but now because im over stocked im trying to work out what im going to need to increase to keep everything the same. nitrite and ammonia levels are always at 0 ive never seen them above that

Shawnie

sounds like its doing ok then!!! not sure where you come up with the mini cycles? was it just that time you removed the filter? which is normal as you lowered the amount of bacteria that was sustaining the tank..being overstocked(ive been there too much) and running more filtration, is definitely a plus like i said..but if its still not working, you are going to have to somehow clean up even with a turkey baster or something...I found with my overstocked tanks, the bigger canisters did best and helped me only have to do water changes every other day instead of everyday LOL ...what type of fish do you have ? smaller ones or big giants? other than that, rehoming the overstocked fish or another tank, is about it goodluck!

aquarist48

Hello. I'd like to add you should keep in mind if the fish can handle a stronger current by adding more filtration.

nitram79

good point aquarist48, currently i have to 2 internal filters at each end of the tank. the nozzle/jet on the one on the left side of the faces directly across the tank from left to right. the nozzle on the one on the right side faces forward with a slight angle of right to left so the water goes on a circular motion around the tank, its not super strong but the water at the surface moves around thats for sure. the filter i want to add is a hanger, which has the water pouring down into the tank like a water fall but this isnt strong at all, so it wont disturb the fish or cause them to have to swim against any currents.

this is the tank in question