Lucy

Uh oh, what did you add?



In this case he turned up the heat because of an ick breakout.

Alessa

Seriously... what was it? "live bacteria" can mean many things...

if it is biospira then its ok... no water changes

if it is something else.... like cycle or stress zyme... you still have to do them.

Calab

Please, someone correctly if I'm wrong...

If you used Cycle, I hear that it's not compatible with the normal bacteria that grow in your tank. If you use Cycle, you have to keep using it forever. Once you stop, you need to cycle your tank over again.

Lucy

That's my understanding also, although I have no personal experience with it.
I've read here that it contains the wrong kind o bacteria.

tko187

Tetra Aqua safe start is the product i put in. Heres the info on it,

Tetra SafeStart allows you to rapidly stock a new aquarium with fish. It contains a patented blend of the bacteria responsible for removing harmful ammonia and nitrite from aquarium water. These bacteria are not found in any other product, and work to instantly activate the filter. By removing ammonia and nitrite they create a safe environment for fish, allowing you to enjoy your new aquarium with the minimal amount of maintenance.
How it Works
SafeStart is the result of years of research into the bacteria responsible for ammonia and nitrite removal in aquarium filters. This has shown that the bacteria traditionally thought to remove ammonia and nitrite, and therefore included in other filter´start products, are not responsible for maintaining a healthy aquarium. By identifying and then culturing those bacteria which truly are involved in ammonia and nitrite removal, SafeStart is able to offer a relaible means of quickly activating new filters. This in turn allows the instant introduction of new fish, and ensures a better environment for them.

Calab

It sounds like it should do the trick, but so did a number of other products I tested.

IF it works your ammonia and nitrite readings should drop to zero within a few hours to 24 hours. Nitrates should go up as well. Add some ammonia and it should be gone within 12 hours with nitrites at zero as well.

If your tank is going from about 4ppm of ammonia to 0ppm of ammonia and 0ppm of nitrites within 12 hours without you adding anything more to the water, your cycle should be good. Do a large (50%+) water change and you should be OK for adding fish.

Again, someone correct me if I'm wrong. I'm a noob, but I'm absorbing as much of this as I can. Gotta get it right the first time when I set up the 130gallon!!!

tko187

yoi calab i already have fish in my tank.

Calab

Ooops... I forgot.

Not sure how you can test to see how the cycle is progressing when you have fish in the tank.

Lucy

Please read this post:

New Bio Spira - Formula Change

If this is true, follow the package directions, I guess.

Can anyone confirm this?

lalynya

Most fish I have had you turn the water down to spawn..when you do a water change used slightly dcooler water temp to mimic a tropical storm

Evelyn1919

wow...i was reading that link about the new biospira. it is great!

lalynya

so how are your fish holding up

tko187

Hi guys yeah my fish seem to be holding up, the white spot outbreak is still there trying to rid my tank with meds a six day course. My neons go really pale, anybody know what this is? I turned on my light this morning and they were really off colour, have picked up now, i dont know if this is normal, iv heard they are not very easy to maintain. Yeah my tank is also cycled, last nights check is a s follows

Ammonia 0
ph 7.2
nitrite 0
nitrate between 5 - 10

That new bio spira stuff worked great !! Its called tetra aqua safe start!!

Evelyn1919

it's great that your tank is cycled!!!! congrats!!!

i have neons too and the thing is that as soon as you turn the lights on they will look very pale but then they color starts coming out. it happens to my neons a lot too. what i heard was a good thing to do is not turn the lights on/off of the tank all at once. now what i do is turn the lights in the tank off first and leave the lights in my livingroom on for a while then shut off all the lights in the livingroom and the opposite when i want to turn them on in the morning. helps stress too i heard.

good luck!!!

tko187

Thanks for that Evelyn, i thought maybe something was up with them. I noticed they go to their hiding hole before i turn the lights off every night, maybe 20 mins or so. I was wondeing if there is maybe a lighting timer or dimer available for aquariums, would be good . Cheers.

Alessa

OMG!!! Congrats Finally!... I know that feeling of accomplishment very well.

Lucy

I think you can just buy a regular timer for it, the type you would use for lamps.
My neons get pale when the lights go out too, then color up when I turn on the lights. A lot of fish do that.

Evelyn1919

yeah...my tiger barbs also do that.