Lollie

Thanks Kim
I trust that your advice is good, I'll wait to do the water change though because I have yet another concern, I've yet to get my hands on Prime I didn't think it was terribly important since I don't have chlorine in my water...but I guess I was wrong again? lol
I'm going to have to take time to find a supplier online and order some asap, is there any other "must have" products that I should get at the same time?

kimb

Since there are no fish in your tank, any water conditioner can be used. Prime is essential when there are fish and you are cycling. Prime neutralizes ammonia and nitrite for 24 hours between water changes. I seem to remember you had some stresscoat, you can use that to condition the water until you have fish, then it is prime all the way.
Keep us posted!

Lollie

Unfortunately, I only have Stress-zyme, (sitting useless on my shelf...lol)
I've got a lead on Prime and will hopefully have some in the next week or two. One dealer I spoke to from up the shore says he could order it in for me (but it would be several weeks before he orders from that supplier again) he says he has Aqua Plus in stock and could practically deliver it to my door, but I've learned my lesson - I need prime!
I went ahead with a water change (only about 25%) last evening, this evening there's a slight drop in the ammonia, but the nitrates appear to have dropped ever so slightly too. I'll be away for the weekend so I guess I'll just let it be for a few days and see what takes place between now and Sunday.
Thanks yet again!

Lucy

Hi Lollie.
I think I got lost. lol
The tank that you're adding ammonia to doesn't have fish, correct?

Personally, with such a high ammonia reading, I wouldn't add any more right now.
Just let it set and keep your eye on the readings. When the ammonia drops to 0, if you still have a nitrite reading, bring your ammonia back up to about 3ppm.

catfishlover123

Welcome to fishlore! Good luck with your new tank!

Lollie

Don't feel bad Lucy, I'm lost too! hahaha
Yes, you're correct, the tank I'm cycling has no fish in it (at least I've done that much right.. lol)
I started it off with dropping a bit of food in it daily, then last week it had dropped way down to almost 0, I had just finally got ammonia so I added just a bit to bring it up again and it's been super-high ever since (until this evening). I'm wondering if perhaps the food has *processed* since adding the ammonia and that's what's making it stay up so high. So yeah, I'll do as you suggested, do nothing for a while... while I've been waiting I've been doing alot of reading on here and admiring all the beautiful fish and tanks everyone has... yes, I think its fair to say I'm already wishing for a bigger tank!
And thanks for the welcome mr.goldfish

Lucy

Thanks for clarifying that for me. Your doing fine, so hang in there.
lol, MTS doesn't take long to strike.

Lollie

lol... so I've noticed Lucy
I'm sure I'll be back after the weekend with more questions and an update... thanks again everyone!

Lollie

Hello again
I think things are going as they should be in the cycling tank (?)
Since adding ammonia on the 29th of last month, the levels haven't dropped down much though, it's remaining steady at the high 2.0 range. Nitrites have been a steady .3 and in the last week nitrates have gone from 50 up to closer to 100. I'm wondering again if I should do a partial water change or is everything as it should be and I should just leave well enough alone?

I'm also happy to report that I've found someone locally that has an outdoor pond that would welcome my goldfish to come live in her "Home for Wayward Goldfish" as she calls it… the pond has been established for several years as she's a sufferer of MTS and ran out of room indoors so she says the pond was the next step for her.. lol
Now I just need to convince myself to part with them, but it will help a lot knowing they'll be in a better set up for them and have someone that will take great care of them!

Sooo… my next dilemma will be, once my tank is cycled and ready for fish (and I've parted with my goldfish ) What would be appropriate for and do well in a small 10gal tank? Ideally, I think I'd like a lively, colorful tank... but I realize I'm very restricted by tank size and I'll have the dojo loach in it as well. (until he gets too big and needs a new home too) Which brings me to the next thing, dojo is doing fine in the cold water tank (no heater) with the two goldfish right now, the info about them say they prefer temps of 65-75 F, so I realize I'll probably be further restricted by tank temps or perhaps I'd be better off to try to find him a new home first before considering purchasing other fish?

Decisions - decisions!

Lollie

Since my post earlier today, my bottle of prime arrived in the mail...I've made so many mistakes already that before I do anything with it, I wanted to double check and make sure that I should start using it in the tank I have cycling right away?
And… I can use it in the little 1.5gal tank the fish are currently in… figuring out how much and measuring is going to be tricky for these small sizes

Je55*e

I think that it's only a drop of prime per gallon. I didn't start using my prime until my final water change before adding the fish. I think that was correct, but I'm not positive. Best of luck, you're doing the right thing by these fish!

Lollie

Thanks Je55*e... I'm trying!

Je55*e

You're doing great =)

Lollie

Just a little update... probably because I need confirmation things are going right and looking for a confidence boost to encourage me to continue being patient.. lol

It's been close to 4 weeks since I started cycling my tank, I'm glad I've taken notes here and there on the readings so I can look back at where it was and where it is now.

Ammonia has gone from a high 8 to 1 this evening, nitrate has been consistently in the 50-110 range for close to 2 weeks and Nitrite has been in the .3 range all along. My pH is low both in the tank and from the tap, so I gather this could be making things go slower, but as someone pointed out earlier (I think it was Lucy) in the long run that's not such a bad thing and the fish that are waiting to go from the tiny tank to the next size up are doing fine in it, so I'll leave that alone as I was advised earlier.

Sooo... everything is going as it should be... hopefully?

Je55*e

Looks like you're doing great! Good for you =)

Lollie

Thanks Je55*e!
I was beginning to wonder if everyone had hit the "ignore Lollie" button... haha!
Maybe I'll see some more change when I check things when I get back after the weekend... here's hoping! (fishies have their bags packed and ready to move into their new home.. lol)

kimb

LOL...I have that going on to Lollie, 55g was supposed to be delivered 2 weeks ago...still waiting, then I have to cycle it! All will be worth the wait, just have to hang in there!

gonzo127

sorry if this sounds strange however to me it seems a little odd that the Nitrites have held steady at about 0.3 for the entire time no matter what ammonia or Nitrates are have you thought about testing your water before you do anything to it, more of a curiosity than concern but it could be that there are some latent amounts in your base water, the other one is since from reading i beleive you are using the test strips which are not hughly accurate it might just be them giving a incorrect reading

anyways good luck with everything from the looks of it you are getting close to the end of the cycling ordeal just bare in mind that before you move the fish you will have to do a 50-75% water change to try and get the Nitrate levels down to a more suitable level, i generally try to keep them under 20ppm in my tanks,

and just so you dont worry the bacteria which do the 'nitrogen cycle' are not floating around in the water but are actually built up on your filter media, gravel and other surfaces (mainly the filter as it has a good flow of oxygenated water flowing through it to help growth) so you will not be gettign rid of them when you do the water changes (which i have found is a commen misconception when i have had to visit my local fish store and overheard people talking)

keep up the good work

Lollie

I'm hanging in there Kimb! (kinda like a kid waiting for Christmas isn't it? lol)

gonzo - after reading your post I was curious too, so I checked my tap water - zero nitrites and nitrates 20. Is it unusual to have either/or in tap (well) water?
I did start out with test strips as that’s all I could get locally, but after only a week or so I got the liquid kits and have been using those ever since. They aren't the highly recommended API kits though, they're Nutrafin (made by hagen) but they can't be that far off base (hopefully) ?

Thanks to all the reading I've done on this forum I'm aware of the need for water change before adding fish and the facts about the bacteria, but thanks for making sure I knew… I appreciate that!

Lollie

Back for more advice and opinions...

I didn't start taking notes on my test readings right away when I started cycling my tank, but I'm guessing its been close to 7 weeks now and its still staying consistently with ammonia 1ish, nitrate 110 and nitrite .3. Nothing has changed for quite some time now, the only thing I've been doing is adding water as necessary due to evaporation.

I still have the 3 fish cramped up in this little 1.5 tank, doing lots of partial water changes with prime. This evening out of curiosity I checked the ammonia level in it and its through the roof! So green it's almost black (thank goodness for prime!!!)
Nitrates are 50 and nitrites pretty much nil.
So now I'm wondering... would they be better off in the larger tank even tho it's not finished cycling providing I continue with regular water changes with prime if I were to move them over?

Je55*e

They just may; Goldfish are pretty hardy. You might want to drip acclimate them in a bag to be sure.

Lollie

Yeah, that's what I was thinking too Je55*... but then had second thoughts after I posted.
I'm glad I'm not being impulsive with these fish, because now I'm thinking the idea of moving them might not be such a good idea since there's still nitrites in the tank?

Je55*e

If they're holding up well, maybe leave them be until you're sure the new tank is cycled. Keep up the great, caring work! =)