dinatwin

I have a 5 gallon tank which is in the process of cycling. (with fish in it unfortunatly) I do a 30% -40% water change every 24 hrs.

My readings are as follows
pH 6.0
ammonia .25-.5 the color is hard to read
nitrate 5.0
nitrite 0.5
I use the API master kit

Is there something I'm doing wrong? Do i need to change something? or are these normal readings during cycling?

Thanks so much for your expertise

Lucy

You're almost there, but not quite.

Keep up with the watwer changes.

Here's a basic explanation of the nitrogen cycle:

First your ammonia (from fish waste and left over food) will rise.
In a few weeks you'll see the nitrite levels rise and the ammonia levels start to drop.
After a few more weeks you'll see the nitrate levels rise and the nitrite levels drop.
Ammonia and nitrites are toxic to your fish.
So until your cycle is complete, you need to keep the levels down with daily water changes
When you having readings of 0 on both ammonia and nitrites with some nitrates showing, your cycle is done

clinton1621

That sounds pretty normal... are you doing gravel cleanings, and what type of filters and maintenance do you use for them?

dinatwin

Thank you !!

Clinton I do the gravel cleaning about once a week and I use the blue filters with carbon in it. I rinse the filter in the water that I'm discarding. Also do you think I should remove the carbon from my filter and just leave the blue filter? I read somewhere here that carbon becomes tocix if left too long. I have had the tank up around 5 weeks.

Thanks again everyone!!

clinton1621

I would personally take the carbon out... it only works for maybe a week max anyway. It doesnt actually leach out all that much unless you leave it in there long term (months). I would however replace the carbon with filter floss or some other non-chemical media... this will give you more room for bacteria to grow. You could also put a sponge filter behind the filter cartridge, there are a lot of options without carbon in the way.

dinatwin

Thanks clinton!
Would I put the filter floss where the carbon was and leave the blue filter on top. I have an eclipse with a carbon filter and the biowheel. I know not to change the biowheel.

clinton1621

I'm not sure exactly what that cartridge looks like... but yes you basically just get the carbon out (cut a slit in the pouch if necessary), replace it with something else, and leave the rest of the filter pad alone =)

pepetj

As Lucy noted, there are three phases in the nitrogen cycle:
1) Ammonia build up (when tank is fed, either with ammonia solution -my preffered method, fish-food, raw shrimp, etc.
2) Ammonia break-down, which produces Nitrites as byproduct
3) Nitrite break-down, which produces Nitrates as byproduct

In an closed system, as our tanks, the main reason we perform partial water changes regularly, is to remove nitrates. The cycle is not an event that takes place, it is an on-going process,which, if disrupted, will start over again -e.g. mini-cycles; that's one of the reasons we perform regular testing of water parameters.

We aim at keeping this cycle (ammonia-nitrites-nitrates) going, taking care of our beneficial bacterial colonies (there are several strains) by rinsing media filter in dechlorinated water -tank's water; and scheduling substrate vacuum -say one half every week; in such a way that we don't over-clean the whole thing at once.

Using or not using activated charcoal is an ongoing debate. There are pros and cons either way. At this point it's up to our personal opinion (not science fact) to decide which way to go.

I personally use activated charcoal in all my tanks, except the Hospital tank if I'm using medication. After reading about it -and I'll likely continue doing so, I opted to use it. It adds up on maintenance cost -I replace charcoal media every 3 weeks, sometimes sooner than that. However, the water seems to me more "neutral" in odor and cleaner.

Leaving charcoal media for long periods will end up in the release of trapped molecules back into the tank -charcoal becomes saturated, that's the reason most people opt not to use it. Charcoal by itself is non-toxic for the aquarium, if there's a charcoal spill in the tank, there's nothing to worry about except maybe for aesthetic reasons.

Pepe
Santo Domingo

jdhef

If you have a biowheel, can you change the cartridge monthly without starting a mini cycle?

clinton1621

Actually it is a scientific fact that activated carbon absorbs natural minerals, metals, and other organics from your aquarium water which are all necessary for your fish and plants health. And its a well known fact that "clear" water does not equal healthy water... so the use of charcoal for purposes other than removing medications from the water, is purely more for looks than from a health standpoint.

Lucy

There's a awful lot of bacteria in the filter media. I've heard good and bad things about the bio wheel.
I'm not sure I'd chance it.

clinton1621

I agree with Lucy, more of the bacteria is on the actual filter pad itself than on the bio-junk... I mean wheel lol

jdhef

Thanks for the replies.

My new Eclipse 12 has the bio-wheel and I was thinking that the theory is probably that the bio-wheel has the bacteria and you can change the filter media. But to me, the theory didn't seem like it would work in the real world.

So I think I'll just be cutting a slit in the bottom of the cartridge and get the carbon out of there and just rinse the pad weekly in tank water.

clinton1621

That sounds like a great idea, which I already mentioned above by the way lol

jdhef

Clinton, I realizes that you said that. That's why I said thank for the replies. I was just elaborating on my whole thought process, and that you had confirmed it. I guess my poor writing stlye made it seem as if I didn't read your reply.