Archivarium 2004

[shazz]

hey guys I've got my test kit and airstones and my fish are doing fine but from testing my water it shows my ammonia level is very high and nitrates are fine. ammonia purple and green nitrate results. what I did was I changed about 30% water change but the ammonia level is still high. can you tell me how to get rid of ammonia thanks
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dd

[davidk]

If you did a water change, I would leave the tank alone and let bacteria build up from here on. Use some of that bacteria promoting liquid. If you leave the tank alone and let it do its thing, the ammonia level will go down enough to let bacteria thrive and your tank will be good.
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[benedictj]

Do another water change, get the ammonia down to the lowest level you can. If you wind up changing 80% of the water, that's fine. Simply leaving your levels where they are isn't good for your fish, which is the primary concern.

You could also pick up some Amquel+, as it will help reduce the level of ammonia in your tank (by converting it into Ammonium, which isn't toxic to your fish).
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Best,

Jake

[shazz]

hi everyone,
I did a 60 % water change yesterday for cutting down the ammonia levels. I tested it yesterday it was alright but today the ammoniam level went high again and I don't know why that is. another thing is my tiger barbs colours are fading away asswell. I looked aroung for amaquel + but they didn't have that. so for the time being I don't know what to do. shall I just wait for my nitryfying bacteria to get cultered or shall I do another water change. can ammonia be reduced by adding ammonia to it.
bye
sh azz
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dd

[kingkimster]

hahaha after 6 months of procrastination, I finally got myself to make an account. moving on

by the sounds of it, your tank has never cycled.

your two weeks of "cylcing" didn't work, I think. You didn't add ammonia or any cycling fish (danios) when you let the tank run did you? cause your problems are exactly what someone would encounter with an uncycled tank.

davidk is right. you should go to your lfs and get some of their old, used media. or if not, even grabing a handful of their substrate will help to speed things up. Your probably going to want to start your tank over.

if your q-tank isnt established yet, see if you can convince your lfs to hold onto your fish for a while. if not, daily 15%-20% water changes is okay too.

oh, and that film your talking about, is it kinda shiny? a whitish color, very thin layer and a bit lustrous? I have that same problem with my 5 gallon betta tank. It has no filter, so when it builds its bubble nest, some of the slimy stuff he secretes creates this film
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high school is Definately NOT the "best years" of my life. college... here I come

[shazz]

finally today my water cloudiness is gone and I've got crystal clear water. this took about 2 weeks and 4 days of cycling. I said this incase anyone wants yo know how long cycling gonna take. but my ammonia levels is still high. I did 20 % water changes and it cuts the reading down but after a while it rises up. help
thanks shaz
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dd

[benedictj]

If you have fish in the tank, the ammonia levels will rise back up as the fish dispel waste. So, just keep up with the water changes, eventually the ammonia will drop, nitrites will show up in your tank, and then they too will disapear-

It's worhty to note that cycling with fish generally takes longer than fishless cycling, primarily because of the water changes necessary to protect your fish (that is to say, it could take you a while).
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Best,

Jake

[shazz]

hey everyone, I've got a problem again. despite of doing water changes my ammonium and nitrate level is still high even by adding bacterlife. I don't really nop how to get the ammonium level down. I tried water changes but don't work. next thing somethings happening to my fish fins. I think they are rotting and I don't no how. shall I treat it with fungus bacteria or what help. its getting disasterous for me. thanks

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dd