ammonia to high help
- Thread starter csa dad
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ok its down to like in between 1.0 an 2.0 so its a lot better than it was. do you think the two new fish will survive. they dont look to good kind of laying around on their sides but still showing a little movement an the will swim around a little every once an a wile. the other cichlids that were already in there are doing good like nothing has really changed . also how often should the filters be changed te ones with the charcoal filters. i got a whisper on i think is the name its suposed to do up to a 60 gallon tank
It's media (like inside the filter -- sponges, ceramic things, plastic things) that the biological bacteria grows on. So, if someone gives you some of theirs from a tank which is established and cycled, and you put it in your filter, then it jump-starts your biological cycle. Are you familiar with the nitrogen cycle? Here's a link just in case -- it's one of my favorites.
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/fwestcycling.htm
Here's one about the different types of media and what they do:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/fwfiltrmedart.htm
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/fwestcycling.htm
Here's one about the different types of media and what they do:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/fwfiltrmedart.htm
I think that second article will shed a lot of light on this issue for you. See, when you pull out that cartridge and throw it away, you're throwing away a lot of your beneficial bacteria along with it. There are much better HOB filters, such as Aquaclears, which allow you to combine biological filtration (this is the ceramic media), mechanical filtration (fine sponges to trap particles) and chemical filtration (this is the carbon).
It's really not necessary to run carbon unless you're actually trying to remove something from the water. Carbon generally absorbs nasties for about a month, and then it needs to be replaced. Therein lies the inherent problem in Whisper-type filters -- you're replacing carbon that you really probably didn't need to run. However, in that thirty days, the carbon has turned into a surface on which your biological bacteria has grown. Now, you have to remove the whole bag and throw it away, thus throwing away the majority of your bacteria, and setting yourself up for yet another ammonia spike.
Adding a sponge filter to your tank is an easy way to protect and maintain a colony of biological bacteria. They're really cheap, and really easy to use. You can use it in addition to the HOB you already run.
As for your fish, they may make it, and they may not. The best thing you can do, as I said earlier, are huge water changes in order to keep the Ammonia as low as possible.
It's really not necessary to run carbon unless you're actually trying to remove something from the water. Carbon generally absorbs nasties for about a month, and then it needs to be replaced. Therein lies the inherent problem in Whisper-type filters -- you're replacing carbon that you really probably didn't need to run. However, in that thirty days, the carbon has turned into a surface on which your biological bacteria has grown. Now, you have to remove the whole bag and throw it away, thus throwing away the majority of your bacteria, and setting yourself up for yet another ammonia spike.
Adding a sponge filter to your tank is an easy way to protect and maintain a colony of biological bacteria. They're really cheap, and really easy to use. You can use it in addition to the HOB you already run.
As for your fish, they may make it, and they may not. The best thing you can do, as I said earlier, are huge water changes in order to keep the Ammonia as low as possible.
ok the only thing in mine now is the carbon filters an i screwed up the other day an threw my oter filters out. like ive sid befor im new to tis game so unfortunately im learning as i go . i will read both the article you suggested it might be an aqua clear filter i got it at walmart so im not sure an i cant find the box it came out of so. can i get some of te bio balls an put them in the filter to help me out.
Do you have any of the following:
Clean, unused loofah?
Clean, unused pot scubbies (the ones that are just little plastic spaghetti-type stuff)?
Clean, unused shower puff (the ones that are made of the same type stuff as the scrubby)?
Soda bottle caps?
Or anything else that you can think that is clean and would provide surface area for the bacteria to grow?
These can work as biological media, but you still have to grow that bacteria, and the cycling process usually takes about a month. Thus, the point of either using the seeded media or buying the bacteria-in-a-bottle.
Edit: If it was an Aquaclear, you'd know, because there would be a bag of ceramic media with a little red clip that looks like a fish, a beige sponge, and a bag of carbon. So I don't think that's what it is.
Clean, unused loofah?
Clean, unused pot scubbies (the ones that are just little plastic spaghetti-type stuff)?
Clean, unused shower puff (the ones that are made of the same type stuff as the scrubby)?
Soda bottle caps?
Or anything else that you can think that is clean and would provide surface area for the bacteria to grow?
These can work as biological media, but you still have to grow that bacteria, and the cycling process usually takes about a month. Thus, the point of either using the seeded media or buying the bacteria-in-a-bottle.
Edit: If it was an Aquaclear, you'd know, because there would be a bag of ceramic media with a little red clip that looks like a fish, a beige sponge, and a bag of carbon. So I don't think that's what it is.
If you could take the media cartridges or something out of an already set up tank that you have would be great.
Years ago I put some of the old school filter boxes full of ammo chips and the little drawstring mesh bags full of ammo chips and tied them around the intake tubes of my pumps.
Not sure if the ammo chips really worked but the next day there was a huge difference in the ammonia level in my tank. It seemed like to me that the chips made a difference but to me other brands didn't work as well as the marineland ones did.
Adding some stress coat and zyme probably wouldn't hurt either.
Goodluck
Years ago I put some of the old school filter boxes full of ammo chips and the little drawstring mesh bags full of ammo chips and tied them around the intake tubes of my pumps.
Not sure if the ammo chips really worked but the next day there was a huge difference in the ammonia level in my tank. It seemed like to me that the chips made a difference but to me other brands didn't work as well as the marineland ones did.
Adding some stress coat and zyme probably wouldn't hurt either.
Goodluck
the only tests i can run is the ph an amonnia right this mint. ny dad has some stuff to check other things. he might have some of the stress coat an zyme. unfortunately this is the only tank i got up right now. one of my new fish died i dont think the other one is going to make it either but atleast i have a 14 day return policy i can get my money back or some more fish . i put a new shower scrub in the filter so that might help things out. i will see if i can find some people who might have some seeded media i can get
