Ammonia too high in a new tank?

Question

I just set up my second freshwater tank (38 gallon), and went to do a water check. They said that the ammonia level was too high, and the water is a little hard. They recommended a liquid chemical to be used. I was wondering, since the tank has only been set up for about a week, with about 10 starter gold fish added, should I just wait a bit longer for the cycle to be completely going and do another water check? I heard it takes about 3 weeks for the cycle to get completely going? Thanks!

Answer 1

If your first tank is still running all you have to do is transfer some of the filter media from the old tank to the new one (don't rinse it, keep it dirty). Filter media, substrate, and large decorations (rocks, etc) are teeming with beneficial bacteria if taken from an established fully cycled tank.

Transfer some or all of the above and your ammonia will be taken care of by the bacteria. And for FREE.

Answer 2

Personally, I would donate 5 of those gold fish back to the store. Goldfish produce a lot of Ammonia .. it is a "dirty fish" in that sense. The tank should not have any fish in it at first. The tank should just be allowed to cycle..with the filter running , rocks and conditioned water .. it should be left like that for at least 36 hours. After that point, I would add 3 to 5 goldfish .. wait a week to see how your chemicals do .. then add 3 to 5 more. Goldfish can grow to be very large.. most fish need 2 gallons of water per inch of fish .. I have heard with Goldfish this number is higher due to the amount of Ammonia they each produce .. I have heard as many as 5 gallons of water per inch of Goldfish. In the meantime, I would definitely run to a PetSmart or a PetCo and grab some Ammonia reduction "fizzing tablets" .. AND give back at least 5 of the fish for now. If you don't do this , they may all die very soon.

Answer 3

10 goldfish is a bit too much. At most you should start out with 1 goldfish per 10-15 gallons. Goldfish are large bodied high waste fish, and the ammonia, and nitrates will tend to spike a lot for the 1st month. Then again goldfish can take a lot more ammonia than most fish.

Really I prefer to just add 1 fish per 15-20 gallons a week. As long as the 1st fish are relatively hardy, and watch the ammonia, and nitrate levels. Then again I over spec my filter, and avoid fish that are less hardy.

The hardness will likely not be an issue unless you plan on having discus, angelfish that can't take it. As far as reducing hardness I recommend using distilled water to reduce the hardness. By itself distilled water is bad for fish as it's to soft, and mineral poor. If your water is only a little hard mix in 25% distilled water. Just remember rapid large changes in water chemistry are often worse for your fish than the condition you are trying to fix. Also for amusement ask the fish store what they use. (The answer is nothing, which explains why the angel fish in my local pet stores drop like flies.)

PS- Starter goldfish?!!? What are you planing on doing with the goldfish? 10 goldfish are likely to be hard to keep in a 40 gallon tank when they reach full size. Many people only recommend 1 goldfish per 5-10 gallons. (With regular gravel vacuuming, and a good filter it's doable in a 40 gallon.)

Answer 4

This is the Nitrogen cycle that new tanks go through and is perfectly normal. However - I would recommend doing a "Fishless" cycle instead of a Fishy cycle (Fish In Cycle). Reason being is if you have old media cartridges (old filters) from your other tank - you could use those in combination with some pure/clear Ammonia from the store, and cycle your tank much quicker and cleaner (no fishy deaths).

Fish in cycles are messy because the initial spike of both Ammonia and Nitrites will kill the fish or potentially damage them and shorten their lifespans.

Here is a great article on Fishless Cycling. Read this main page, and the various recipe pages for 10 and 14 days successful cycles. I did my first tank with a Fishin cycle, and then my next with the 14 day recipe, and will never do another Fishin/Fishy cycle ever again! Hope it helps!

http://www.tropicalfishcentre.co.uk/Fishlesscycle.htm

Answer 5

Add bacteria to your tank (the kind sold at pet stores for fishtanks, which may be the "chemical" you're talking about). The tank needs to establish a bacteria cycle that breaks down the amonia. And yes, that process can take several weeks. Took me at least a month to fully stabilize my new 55 gal. tank.

Answer 6

depending on the size of your tank,,,your water should be 6-7 on the ph scale. You can by stuff to adjust your tank to either reduce or increase ph., this will directly effect your ammonia in the tank. Just keep checking your ph.

Answer 7

yes that stuff is very toxic it has the same toxins in cat pee