Author Topic: 10 days in, are my test readings to be expected for this length of time (Read 12282 times) 75 replies

pollydoodle · « **on:** June 06, 2018, 08:00:52 PM »

I've had my tank running (fishless) for 10 days now and for the first seven days used Seachem Prime. Took some test reading last night using a NTLabs kit

pH nearer 8 than 7.5

NH2: 0 NO2: 1 NO3: 20 KH: 15 GH: 12 We live in a hard water area

Are these 'normal' for this stage or do I need to be doing something else

fcmf · « **Reply #1 on:** June 06, 2018, 08:17:16 PM »

Can you remind us, @pollydoodle, are you dosing ammonia to simulate fish waste and therefore preparing the filter to be able to process that (ie a fishless cycle) or are you just leaving the tank to sit with the filter switched on? If the latter, then your readings are going to be just the same as what you would get from the tap. If the former, how often have you been dosing ammonia?

Edited to add: here is a recap of previous discussions / info on the topic: https://forums.thinkfish.co.uk/new-fishkeepers/all-set-up/msg40227/#msg40227

pollydoodle · « **Reply #2 on:** June 06, 2018, 08:43:07 PM »

I haven't used ammonia, it was Seachem Stability I used, for a week, not Prime,

which I used to de-chlorinate the water in the first instance.

I thought the 'Stability' was more or less to do the same job as ammonia

fcmf · « **Reply #3 on:** June 06, 2018, 08:54:42 PM »

Quote from: pollydoodle on June 06, 2018, 08:43:07 PM

I thought the 'Stability' was more or less to do the same job as ammonia

Sue's reply in the thread I linked to is very helpful on the matter, in which she states "The Stability may help but you can't rely on it to cycle a tank. It may or may not contain the right species of bacteria, and if it has ever been stored incorrectly (eg freezing or baking in a lorry) it probably won't work. It is worth getting some ammonia and adding enough of that to give a reading of 3 ppm, then test after 24 hours. If you then have readings for ammonia and/or nitrite above zero, you need to do a fishless cycle. https://forums.thinkfish.co.uk/fishtank-filtration-and-cycling/fishless-cycling-how-to-do-it/"

Kleen-Off ammonia is the brand to buy - e-bay sells it at really good prices.

Hope that helps.

Sue · « **Reply #4 on:** June 07, 2018, 11:09:59 AM »

And also without a source of ammonia in the tank, any viable bacteria in the Stability will go into a dormant state. The longer they are dormant, the longer it takes them to 'wake up'.

A bottle of ammonia costs only a couple of £, which is a lot cheaper than buying more fish if you find the tank is not cycled and the fish die.
It is much safer, and a lot less work, if you add enough ammonia to give 3 ppm in your tank, then test for both ammonia and nitrite 24 hours later. If either of them show more than zero, the tank is not cycled and you will have saved yourself having to do a fish-in cycle with its daily water changes.
In your tank you will need 4.75 ml of 9.5% ammonia to get 3 ppm - and the Kleen Off Household Ammonia that fcmf referred to is 9.5%. I have some and since it doesn't say on the bottle I emailed the company to ask. A babies' medicine dosing syringe is ideal for measurements like this, or a suitable sized syringe off Ebay/Amazon

pollydoodle · « **Reply #5 on:** June 07, 2018, 12:37:42 PM »

Thank you Sue, after last nights post, I've ordered some from ebay and am now waiting for delivery.
Some people are born to be idiots, and I'm obviously one of them!

Sue · « **Reply #6 on:** June 07, 2018, 12:52:04 PM »

When the ammonia arrives, add 4.75 ml (5 if you can't measure 4.75) then half an hour later test ammonia. The half hour wait is to allow it to mix in. You'll have to guestimate 3 ppm because most testers do not have a colour for that amount. If the reading is less than 3, add a bit more but make sure you add the amounts so you know how many mls in total make 3ppm. If it is over 3 ppm, 4 is OK but any higher, remove some water and add more plain dechlorinated tap water.

24 hours after you add the ammonia, test ammonia & nitrite. If they are both zero, good the tank is cycled. If one or other - or both - are not zero, tell us the readings and we'll help with the best way forwards.

pollydoodle · « **Reply #7 on:** June 09, 2018, 07:07:37 PM »

Quote from: Sue on June 07, 2018, 12:52:04 PM

.

24 hours after you add the ammonia, test ammonia & nitrite. If they are both zero, good the tank is cycled. If one or other - or both - are not zero, tell us the readings and we'll help with the best way forwards.

I dosed with ammonia this morning and the reading looked like it would be 4

Does this mean that if everything is ok after 24 hours, fingers, or should I say fins, crossed, I could go out tomorrow afternoon and buy some fish

Sue · « **Reply #8 on:** June 09, 2018, 07:38:51 PM »

That's right. It all depends on the 24 hour later ammonia and nitrite readings. Two zeros mean the tank is ready for fish; only one zero or no zeros mean it isn't.

Littlefish · « **Reply #9 on:** June 09, 2018, 09:16:17 PM »

Fingers crossed.

pollydoodle · « **Reply #10 on:** June 10, 2018, 01:41:31 PM »

Soo disappointed. My ammonia and nitrite readings are 1 - 2. I'm finding it very hard to judge the colours against the box colours. Using NT labs test kit

What do I do next?

Sue · « **Reply #11 on:** June 10, 2018, 02:41:42 PM »

Look on the bright side - you won't be risking any fish during a fish-in cycle

Test every second day (Tuesday, Thursday and so on) till you reach a day where ammonia is less than 0.75. If you you were starting from scratch, nitrite should also be over 2, but since you already have some bacteria - just not enough - you may well find nitrite does not go that high. So concentrate on the ammonia reading.

As soon as you have 0.75 ammonia, add a tiny bit less ammonia that you added yesterday so it gives 3 ppm rather than 4 ppm.
Then carry on testing every other day till you have 2 tests with zero ammonia, the first on one day and the second 2 days later. Make a note of the nitrite reading as well.

Then ask what to do next

TopCookie · « **Reply #12 on:** June 10, 2018, 11:30:16 PM »

Do you have plants in the tank Miss Doodle...?

Sue · « **Reply #13 on:** June 11, 2018, 09:08:22 AM »

Ooops

I forgot to ask that. Live plants can be harmed by adding ammonia, and enough live plants means cycling is not necessary as plants use ammonia. If there are enough live plants they use all the ammonia made by the fish.

So yes, do you have any live plants in the tank, and if so how many?

pollydoodle · « **Reply #14 on:** June 11, 2018, 09:36:16 AM »

Sue, I don't have any. Did think about it, but several people said don't bother!

Thanks

Sue · « **Reply #15 on:** June 11, 2018, 10:00:25 AM »

Live plants are better for the fish, but as long as you have some fake plants in there, the fish will be fine. I just forgot to check before telling you to add all that ammonia as it could kill some plants species. And if your tank had been stuffed full of live plants, you wouldn't have need to cycle it at all.

Plants, whatever they are made of, are important in a tank as they give the fish a feeling of security. Most of the small shoaling fish we keep are food for bigger fish in the wild so not having somewhere to hide if they feel threatened stresses fish - and stressed fish become sick easily. It sounds backwards but the more places they have to hide the more fish will come out in the open because they know the hiding places are there should that predator appear.

Tip - if you want a 'natural' looking tank, silk plants are more realistic than plastic. But even if you want dayglo plastic, the fish won't mind

TopCookie · « **Reply #16 on:** June 11, 2018, 10:05:49 AM »

Another important benefit of live plants is that they will help to keep those water parameters in check superbly...

pollydoodle · « **Reply #17 on:** June 11, 2018, 10:19:45 AM »

All my 'plants' bar one, are silk. I suppose its too late to add live plants, but there again, it would be a 40 mile round trip to get some and couldn't be done until Wednesday, by which time, maybe, just maybe, the water will be coming right. I have also read they should be added at the same time as fish

TopCookie · « **Reply #18 on:** June 11, 2018, 10:29:46 AM »

You can add plants any time, and in many ways the more live plants the better... But not everybody wants them of course... The easiest way to add live plants and start enjoying their benefits would be to add some floating plants - I have some Amazon Frogbit in my tank... Just avoid the one called Duck Weed... With floating plants, there is no need to actually plant them as such, you simply chuck 'em in the tank...

The advice to add plants at the same time as fish is really geared around the fish having the benefits of live plants from the start, but it really does not mean that it's only safe to add them together...

Helen · « **Reply #19 on:** June 11, 2018, 10:32:58 AM »

It's never too late to switch to real plants. You don't have to have a full on plant substrate. There are a lot of plants that prefer to grow on wood or rocks and not in the substrate: annubias, java fern (several variants), mosses, african water fern, beucealandra (I'm so sorry, my spelling is atrocious).

And there are several good internet plant shops. If you are interested I can post links to the ones I have used.

But as @Sue said, it depends on the look you want to achieve. The fish are happy with fake plants.

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10 Days In, Are My Test Readings To Be Expected For This Length Of Time

10 Days In, Are My Test Readings To Be Expected For This Length Of Time

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