Fish in cycle

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Rmywife316

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Dec 19, 2019
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Hello everyone!

I have a 125g tank currently fully stocked with 2-3 inch peacocks and haps. The tank was I THOUGHT precycled with pure ammonia before the fish were added. However, three weeks ago, there was a leak from the hosing of my FX6 which completely ruined my tank stand as it was particle board. The tank was fully drained and not running for a week and a half while a solid wood stand was built. A week ago I refilled the tank and restarted the filter assuming the bacteria were still alive in the filter. it didn’t even occur to me that they could’ve died with a week without ammonia. Due to living in Alaska I placed an order for all the fish I wanted to stock at once. So I now have a tank of 25 African cichlids. I added the fish about 5 days ago and ended up with an ich outbreak I’m assuming due to the stress of shipping. I’m treating with heat and salt and see no spots on the fish anymore but I’ve read to hold the heat at 86 for two weeks. This morning I check the parameters and got readings of .50 ammonia, 0 nitrite, 0 nitrate and 7.6 Ph. I added a dose of prime. All of the fish are acting completely fine other than occasional flashing from a couple of them last night that I was blaming the ich for. I’m aware that the ammonia is going to go much higher than .50 and then the nitrites will spike as well. What can I do to keep them alive and as unharmed as possible?

I’m not new to fish keeping. I haven’t had a tank in about 10 years however. All of my other tanks were cycled with fish back then as I had no idea about the nitrogen cycle. I never lost any fish with my new tanks back then thankfully. I tried to do it right this time with my first fishless cycle and I believe I would’ve been fine without having to shut everything down. Thanks for any help. I feel terrible and don’t want to lose these guys.
 
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Rmywife316 said:
Hello everyone!

I have a 125g tank currently fully stocked with 2-3 inch peacocks and haps. The tank was I THOUGHT precycled with pure ammonia before the fish were added. However, three weeks ago, there was a leak from the hosing of my FX6 which completely ruined my tank stand as it was particle board. The tank was fully drained and not running for a week and a half while a solid wood stand was built. A week ago I refilled the tank and restarted the filter assuming the bacteria were still alive in the filter. it didn’t even occur to me that they could’ve died with a week without ammonia. Due to living in Alaska I placed an order for all the fish I wanted to stock at once. So I now have a tank of 25 African cichlids. I added the fish about 5 days ago and ended up with an ich outbreak I’m assuming due to the stress of shipping. I’m treating with heat and salt and see no spots on the fish anymore but I’ve read to hold the heat at 86 for two weeks. This morning I check the parameters and got readings of .50 ammonia, 0 nitrite, 0 nitrate and 7.6 Ph. I added a dose of prime. All of the fish are acting completely fine other than occasional flashing from a couple of them last night that I was blaming the ich for. I’m aware that the ammonia is going to go much higher than .50 and then the nitrites will spike as well. What can I do to keep them alive and as unharmed as possible?

I’m not new to fish keeping. I haven’t had a tank in about 10 years however. All of my other tanks were cycled with fish back then as I had no idea about the nitrogen cycle. I never lost any fish with my new tanks back then thankfully. I tried to do it right this time with my first fishless cycle and I believe I would’ve been fine without having to shut everything down. Thanks for any help. I feel terrible and don’t want to lose these guys.
Click to expand...

Welcome aboard you will have to do water changes every other day to keep the ammonia level as low as possible and until both ammonia , nitrite are stable nitrite has converted to nitrate. Do not feed for a day or two and feed lightly until parameters are under control.
 
Besides a lack of food (ammonia) most beneficial bacteria are aerobic, so they need a constant flow of oxygen rich water to survive.
You should test for ammonia every day on the tank, and be prepared to dilute the excess ammonia with new water changes to keep the stock from dying. You may need to do 50% water changes or more per day.
 
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Thanks for the replies!! I can do as many water changes as they’ll need. Will keeping the ammonia under 1 ppm be enough to feed the bacteria? Should I expect the ammonia to spike much higher? Will the prime actually protect the fish from the ammonia and nitrite? Thanks again!!
Also, my local fish store is going to sell me some sponge filters (not a pet store but actual fish store)
How does seeding a tank work?
 
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Once your ammonia starts showing in a fish in cycle it's a real balancing act with your water changes. You don't want to do such large and often changes because you're taking the food source away that your fledgling BB colony require. And not enough changes and the ammonia will rise rapidly, feeding your BB yes, but possibly stressing your fish, or worse, in the meantime. Don't let your ammonia get above 1ppm, and even that is pushing it really, use your prime as well, which helps a lot. And I would feed very very sparingly, if at all. Then it's just a case of monitor and test daily.

I wish you the best of luck, it's unfortunate you find yourself in this situation. And having the back end of an ich outbreak to deal with too is a bit of a bummer.
 
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Rmywife316 said:
Thanks for the replies!! I can do as many water changes as they’ll need. Will keeping the ammonia under 1 ppm be enough to feed the bacteria? Should I expect the ammonia to spike much higher? Will the prime actually protect the fish from the ammonia and nitrite? Thanks again!!
Also, my local fish store is going to sell me some sponge filters (not a pet store but actual fish store)
How does seeding a tank work?
Click to expand...

Seeding your tank with media from another mature set up will help enormously. If you've got the option go for it. When i've done it in the past i've either just thrown all media into my sump or squeezed out the media, if sponges, into my tank. It can dirty your water a bit but you know that all the crud is essential BB, and your tank will clear eventually anyway. The new BB you add just gives your set up a kickstart, hopefully slashing the time for your tank to become fully cycled.
 
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did you keep your medie wet while it was down?
 
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