Cycle Challenge

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GarrettT3

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Jun 18, 2006
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U.S.
Hello all. It's been a long time since I've set up and run aquariums and I'm having some issues. I've done my reading on the cycling process but I'm wondering when it's ever going to end. I want to get it right. It has been over a month. I feel like I'm in the never ending cycle.

I have gone through 2 large bouts of cloudy water. Finally today after several partial water changes (20% for several days each time and water clarifier) I got that under control.

My big issue is ammonia. I have gone through a few bottles of Ammo Lock over this time. I can't get the ammonia to go down. It reads at toxic levels. I have done partial water changes and keep the uneaten food vacuumed up. I've added API Stress Zyme to get the beneficial bacteria going but I'm afraid all the small water changes may have hampered this. What should I do to get this balanced out? Does using Ammo Lock give you a lower reading after using it b/c when I use it my levels still read toxic? Should some of the chemicals we use not be mixed in the tank with others at the same time?

From what I've read, this site appears to be very interactive and not an archive where folks say, "Hit the search feature." I like that people are willing to lend a hand. Thanks for help.

Here's what I have:
-55 gal.
-2 300gph power filters
-1 power head 170gph
-undergravel filter
-4 RBP 2"

Nitrate 0-10
Nitrite-0
Hardness-120
Alkalinity-50-80
PH-7.2
Ammonia-6 to 8 ppm
 
normally I cycle the tank with some uneaten food, and just dont do ANY watch changes untill the nitrites/amonia are at 0 and the nitrates start to raise.
I dont know how that would affect your rbps though. I'm sure someone here will have the answer (I dont know much about the piranhas)
 
my 180 gal has been 4 weeks running with 13 goldfish sized 3 inches to 4 inches. fish are doing fine. i just did a 20% water change after a month. my amonia is zero, my nitirite is 0.25 (i'm still waiting for it to go zero). until both are zero i don't test for nitrates. do not change the water, i heard that it would make cycling longer. my tank was cloudy for 4 days when it started (w/o fish - fish got in after 3 weeks). i did not use any other additive except for stress zyme (first day, 7th day and 14th day), i wanted bio-spira but no one sells it on a lfs. let it cycle properly. with RBP i think they are tough fish but i won't risk anything though.:)
 
Hiya Garret, welcome to MFK.
It seems to me you are doing too much.
I am afraid you may have to start over.
Put the piranha in a 5g bucket or 20G storage bin with clean dechlored water and a box filteor sponge filter, be prepared to do about a 30% daily water change in it, feed sparingly.
Drain the 55g and give it a good gravel vac while doing so. Refill it with new water and get a baseline ammonia test, it should read zero.
Dechlor the tank if you use ammo-lock to do it use just 5 teaspoonfuls then put it away for now.
Bring the tank to a stable 78 F.
make sure the UGF is covered by at least 1 1/2" fairly fine grain gravel.Wait until the next day to make sure the temp is stable and then plant the tank if you are going to.
Then add either a biological starter such as Stress zyme both to the filter and squirted directly over the gravel, or do the same with filter sludge from a healthy filter (I prefer the latter).
Wait until the next day and check it again for ammonia, it should still say 0, if it doesn't you had a bad batch of biostarter, that sometimes happens if it sits to long on the shelf.
Then add your 4 fish, as long as you do not overfeed or make sure to siphon out the scraps 4 two inch fish in a 55g should be fine.
Do daily ammonia checks, it should climb a little each day for the first 3-4 days then at least stabilize by the end of the week it should be approaching 0 again.
At that time your nitrites may be rising a little for a few days before falling again.
Good luck
Ps, it takes a couple weeks for a UGF to really kick in, when you clean it ( other than just a surface siphoning when needed)the best way I have found is to stir it with your fingers then only vac 1/4-1/3 at a time.
 
GarrettT3 said:
Here's what I have:
-55 gal.
-2 300gph power filters
-1 power head 170gph
-undergravel filter
-4 RBP
Click to expand...

This is what my Local Fish Supplier told me: "You have too many piggies in too small of a pen, and you are feeding them way too much corn".

The translation is that your RBP's are messy eaters and huge waste excreters. They are the wrong fish to cycle a tank with. Your undergravel filter will NEVER keep up with them. At the very minimum, get a "tank hanger" power filter such as a Penguin with a bio-wheel. Your LFS will have something with a bio-wheel; Petsmart has the Penguin brand.

Your best bet will be a wet/dry filter and a mechanical filter.
 
Okay. Thanks for all the + input. I think I'm going to try a 50% water change to start. If this does not work I'll try what guppy suggested. At this point I feel my filtration is adequate with 10x per hour turn over. I've got bio sponges in both filters.

I've noticed on some of my plastic plants a white cotton type growth. It's very fuzzy looking. What is this? Thanks again.

I'm pretty confident I'll get through this. :)
 
CHOMPERS if forgot to mention that in my list there I've got two power filters (both the hanger type). Did you see that? Once my guys get a little bigger I'll transfer them to a 125 gal...down the road. I'll have to rethink how much food I feed them for now. Thanks.
 
whats cycle? :p
 
CHOMPERS said:
This is what my Local Fish Supplier told me: "You have too many piggies in too small of a pen, and you are feeding them way too much corn".

The translation is that your RBP's are messy eaters and huge waste excreters. They are the wrong fish to cycle a tank with. Your undergravel filter will NEVER keep up with them. At the very minimum, get a "tank hanger" power filter such as a Penguin with a bio-wheel. Your LFS will have something with a bio-wheel; Petsmart has the Penguin brand.

Your best bet will be a wet/dry filter and a mechanical filter.
Click to expand...


Is not the bio-wheel a patented product of Marineland Inc.? they are esssentially the only one with this specific product.

Eclipse, Penguin, Emperor, Magnum & BIO-Wheel PRO are all Marineland products. I hear there are kits to adapt many HOBs to fit a BioWheel. Aqua-Tech has a bio mesh that sits in the water (poor o2), but you can put a bio-wheel into it.

IMHO Bio-Wheels are an excellent HOB solution (alternative) to wet/dry.
 
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