Still having problems with tank cycle...what do I do?

Question

So about a month and a half ago I started a "fishless" cycle by just feeding the tank on and off for awhile. I've been testing it daily and everything's the same as when I started. Nitrates and nitrites are low, PH is pretty high, ammonia is low. There has been no spike in any of my readings. The water has been sorta cloudy for about two weeks now, but still no change in readings. Should I add fish to finish the cycle? Any ideas?

FYI its a 5 gallon tank, freshwater.

Okay so I will add one or two fish.. But how much water change is really necessary?? I see some conflicting answers regarding this. Also, is it better to use distilled water rather than tap water. My tap water is pretty hard.

Answer 1

UPDATE: You asked what would be a good amont of water to change. At this stage you do not want to do a big water change all that its going to do is send you right back where you started... Lets think this over...
If you start a tank with 100% new water you have to cycle it right? Well if 3 weeks - 1 1/2 months you see that its getting cloudy or your levels are off WHY in the world would you do a 90 % water change and take yourself right back to where you started. You would kill your fish and have to start all over again.

YOU MUCH BE VERY PATIENT. FISH ARE NOT THE EASY PET THAT EVERYONE SAYS THEY ARE. You have to feed everyday, change water, watch for and know about things that will harm your fish and how to get rid of them when and if you do get it, and so on.

If you look below I have added a few sites that you can go and look at if you still have trouble with what I have told you. I have had fish in my house all my life. I know what I am talking about.
______________________________________________________

Do a 10% water change everyday for the first week that you have have the fish in and then you can move on to doing a 15% water change every 3 days. After a week of that then only do 20% water change once a week for the rest of the time the tank is set up.


I am going to start this by saying.... NEVER ADD FISH STORE WATER TO YOUR TANK. You never know what is in their tanks and if its bad the last place you want it is in your tank.

Yes everyone is going to have different ways of setting up a fish tank.

The reason that your cycle is tanking so long is...
1. You don't have the proper bacterial growth started. You should have added 1 or 2 fish at about the 3-4 week to help that along.
2. And yes I think you are trying to hard. You should not be checking the tank everyday. Its not going to change that fast. You should check it every week.
3. There is this stuff that you can buy at walmart called Byozyme. Fell free to Google it if you would like. Its a dried bacteria that you can add to your tank to help you get it started.
5. You should have also added Aquasafe of some sort to your tank. I use Aquasafe made by Tetra. It neutralizes chlorine, chloramine, and heavy metals that could be harmful to your fish. Help build the slim coat that fish need to live.
6. Now you don't have to do this (depends on what fish you want) I add a very small amount of sea salt because I have tropical fish (guppies, mollies, ect.)
7. Do a 10% - 25% water change every week to help with your milky water. it will take awhile but it will go away.
8. Be patient. Keeping fish is not as easy as everyone thinks. It takes time.

In answer to your question... Yes I think you should add 1 fish a week but remember rule is 1 inch of fish to 1 gallon of water. And you need to take account that you have rocks and stuff in there too. I would say that you might only want to get 4-5 fish and no more.

I hope this helps. Any more questions you can email me at [e-mail]

Answer 2

Try doing a big(90%) water change, then dose 5 ppm ammonia, test in 25 hours and see what happens. Do not add fish unless ammonia and nitrite are at zero.

To the person above: you will not always lose fish if you do things correctly. Before I knew about the cycle I would lose fish all the time. Now that I cycle tanks properly and change water correctly I don't lose fish. I have not lost a fish in 6 years to anything other than old age. If you take care of fish properly you will not lose them. You have to build beneficial bacteria in the tank to eat ammonia, nitrites so the fish are not harmed. Times have changed in the last 40 years, people understand much better what goes on in a fish tank.

Purplebutter, please read the article on cycling in the link I gave. Do an online search too. You do not add fish to a tank that is not totally cycled. Fish do not grow nitrifying bacteria on them. By adding fish before the cycle is established, all you are going to do is give yourself more work because then you have to change water evey day so you don't harm your fish from toxic ammonia and nitrite.

Please people, the person asked about fishless cycling, why don't you people try answering the question?







Trust me, you are going to regret putting fish in an uncycled tank, but if you absolutely must, you have to change water when ammonia and/or nitrite rise above 0.25 ppm. Trust me, it will be every day, if not, every 2 days, and will not speed up the cycle at all. The fish are just a source of ammonia, only unlike fishless cycling, fish will be hurt from the cycling process. Adding fish will only slow down the cycling process, because you have to keep ammonia and nitrite very low. Without fish, you can keep it around 5ppm and things go quicker.

Do not use distilled water. Distilled water does not contain any minerals or vitamins that fish and plants need to grow and be healthy.

Answer 3

your ph tells me that it's probably somewhat hard water.... iv'e found that with hard water, it's harder to do a fishless cycle. I added my fish to my 5 gallon at this point in the cycle too... they're fine now. never had any problems. my water was cloudy for about a week after i added my fish, then everything evened out. Go ahead and add your fish. just make sure that you float them for 30 mins, then add a 1/4 or 1/2 cup of tank water to the bag, then float for another 30 mins... do this 2 more times, and you should be good to go. i never have a problem with fish and the new tank syndrome if i float that way. it gets them used to the chemicals you use.

also, you might try running everything in your tank, just as you would if the fish were in there.. .filter, bubbler, heater.... also, i got a good tip from someone who says to use a product called 'cycle'... gets the bugs a jump start.

good luck, hope that helps!!

Answer 4

I keep seeing these fish tank questions and always shake my head.
You're doing too much to try and set up the tank. I've been at it for 40 years and the more chemicals you add to the water,and the harder you try to control the environment, the harder it will be for the fish.
You have a small tank. The filters have been working for a month now. Try adding some fish. Guppies are good. Keep the temperature where it should be and don't over feed them. When you get the fish home and after you let the bag sit in the tank to normalize the temperature, open the bag and let in a little tank water. Let it sit some more and add more water in a few minutes. This will help to reduce the shock of entering the new tank.
Less is more. These fish were born and bred to live in dirty, muddy, bacteria filled rivers and lakes. have fun with your tank. You'll always lose some fish and have others live a long time. Don't fret, you aren't doing it wrong. And avoid chemicals as much as possible.
Also, be careful where you get your fish. Stores that breed their own will not have as healthy a selection as those that import them from fish farms that collect the fish fresh from the rivers and lakes.

Answer 5

are you adding any ammonia at all? i think cycling is vastly overrated - -you can buy filters and chemicals that will do it for you. i keep bettas and goldfish and have never cycled a tank. the filters with biowheels will help convert ammonia and nitrites into nitrates -- so will products like cycle and stress zyme. some live plants like java moss or those little japanese moss balls will help too. what kind of fish are you putting in your 5 gallons? 5 gallons is VERY hard to cycle anyway.

Answer 6

Add a hardy fish like a betta or something returnable. Just do normal waterchanges like every week for a while, www.aqua-reliable.co.nr for more information.