Newbie Needs Help With Cycling!

But of a long story but one you've all heard before I'm sure!

Got the starter tank from a LFS and stupidly presumed they gave us good advice! They told us to run the rank for a week before we put fish in and then we could add fish every 7 days! I was using the water test strips which said everything was fine.

So we did as told and after 4 weeks the fish started dying (I now know due to the amount of ammonia!) I also followed the instructions on the filter and changed the pads at this point. When more fish died I realised there was more to this and luckily found this forum. We lost 6 glowlights and 1 x-ray by this point.

After reading the great advice on here I got a proper water testing kit and started doing daily water changes and testing. Because I haven't done the cycle in the proper order I'm now really confused as to where it might be up to.

I'm a great one for lists and have been keeping a chart of the water readings and water changes I've done and I'm hoping someone can give me an idea about where I might be up to.

Even after all the problems I'm enjoying the tank, just wish I'd known what to do from the start and then I could have done it right!!

Thanks for your help and Happy New Year

Am I reading the ammonia and nitrite graph correctly? It seems as though you still have ammonia but your nitrite has dropped to zero?



Your ammonia readings do appear to be a bit on the high side, especially considering your pH. I should explain  that ammonia exists in 2 forms in water - the more toxic ammonia and the less toxic ammonium. Our tests kits measure the two forms combined and the proportion in each form varies with both temperature and pH. The higher the pH, the more there is in the toxic ammonia form - and your pH is quite high. Entering your numbers in an ammonia calculator (to work out how much is in the more toxic form) you have 0.035ppm of the toxic form and the safe upper limit is 0.02 so I'm afraid you need to get that ammonia reading down. And the only realistic way is by more water changes.
The other problem you have is that your tank is stocked to the limit, something not really advisable for fish-in cycling as that many fish make a lot of ammonia, making it much harder for you to keep on top of.


How do you feel about rehoming some of your fish? The two glowlights are the first obvious choice as they do need to be in a shoal (I do realise that you did have more originally). Platies are quite big fish for a 64 litre tank; how do you feel about reducing the numbers of them? Your nitrate levels, at 60 above tap water level at some tests, do show that you are overstocked. The aim is to keep the tank nitrate level at a maximum of tap level plus 20 - in your case below 40ppm - and that is the max level just before a weekly water change.


If you rehomed some of your fish you would find it much easier to keep your ammonia level low until the tank cycles. Although some bacteria do live on all the surfaces in a tank, inside the filter is their preferred home, so stop changing the filter pads! Just wash them gently in water you have removed during a water change.
But the thing you really need to do is more water changes - and cut down on the amount of food you give the fish. Feeding them just once every other day or even once every three days won't harm them and it will reduce the amount of ammonia they make.
Your tank will be cycled when your ammonia and nitrite stay at zero.

Books are very variable. I strongly recommend that you read the "Fish Articles" on the Think Fish site (i.e. this site!), they are all very good and give sound advice. Follow this and you should have no problems.