Help! 8.0ppm Ammonia And Cloudy Water

I just bought my first ten gallon tank a little over a month ago and have one goldfish in it. I know that they can be quite messy, so I have a power filter and sponge filter in the tank as well. I was noticing that the ammonia levels have been getting between 0.5-1 ppm so I was doing 20% water changes every other day and adding API AmmoLock, and it seemed to work. A few days ago I noticed another rise in ammonia so I did a water change and added my AmmoLock last night. I woke up this morning to a white cloudy tank and ammonia levels at 8.0ppm?????? My goldfish seems just fine. I just did a 50% water change and water still is a little cloudy.

 

10gal is too small for a goldfish and have a large bioload so its probably from the goldfish

 

10gal is too small for a goldfish and have a large bioload so its probably from the goldfish

I was told that it was ok to have one goldfish in a ten gallon. I have cut back on his feeding to reduce his bioload. My question is what I should do.

 

Depending on the type, goldfish can get anywhere from 6 inches (some fancies) to over 12 inches (common "feeder" goldfish). Ten gallon tanks just won't sufficient for a fish that grows to that size.

ETA: The only thing you can do is water changes ... a lot of them .. until you get the ammonia down. You will have to continue making large water changes as long as you have the goldfish in that small of a tank. They are very messy fish.

 

I was told that it was ok to have one goldfish in a ten gallon. I have cut back on his feeding to reduce his bioload. My question is what I should do.

you'll probably have to do frequent water changes like you are .. gold fish are known for producing a lot of ammonia and contrary to popular belief they get BIG and need space. and live a long time. so you will eventually need to move Mr. Goldfish to a bigger tank.

Consult the google oracle and it will tell you about goldfish.

 

Also, cutting back on food so that he dosen’t produce waste is no excuse. Fosh need to eat and starving him will not solve the problem. Unfortunately, the only thing you can do is rehome him.

 

agreed you shouldnt cut back on food unless he is bloated because they need to eat unless you want an underfed fish. the only thing you can do is upgrade or rehome

 

Buy a kiddie pool as a temporary home for him or return him to your fish store. You can't keep a goldfish in that tank

 

I was told that it was ok to have one goldfish in a ten gallon. I have cut back on his feeding to reduce his bioload. My question is what I should do.

who in the world told you that information? It's terribly wrong. Goldfish need tanks starting at 30 gallons, all the way to giant aquariums and ponds. 10 gallons is not enough. I suggest returning the fish and reading up on the nitrogen cycle. It sounds like your tank is uncycled.