test results

AndynSarah

AndynSarah

Member
I can't get my amonia down past .25 or my nitrates down past 5.0. Do I need to add anything to my water? Would a freshwater amonia, and nitrate test give accurate results?
 
Too new, just let it sit to finish cycling three to four more weeks even if Ammonia goes to zero.
For some it might be controversial to change water during cycle but if you have live rock and the Ammonia rises above 0.5 ppm do some water changes to drop it so as to preserve as much life in the rock as possible and limit the level of nitrates at the end of the cycle.
 
this is so excruciating (sp), I hate just watching a tank of rock.
lol

Wish it would just hurry up an cycle
Thnkas
Andy
 
Live Rock, the reason for waiting is not only to let the bacteria grow but to let the life in your rock develop and recover including pods and such before you add predators.
In a week or two you will start seeing a lot of little nice things going around.
Patience is number one skill in salt water aquariums. Patience to cycle, patience to treat for algae, patience to adjust parameters and so on. Only bad things happen fast in this hobby.
 
Depends, They will consume floating plankton that may be needed to initially feed dusters and sponges in your rock. Wait and you will be rewarded, meanwhile enjoy reading and learning as much as you can about species you want to keep, how to handle water parameters and keep them stable and so on. It is better to do it now that right when you find out you are in the middle of it and need to rush.
In Euurope and Japan many wait six months to a year. You'll see.
Enjoy!
 
He is talking about fish eating the pods and such. #1 advise is patience! I can't tell ya how important it is in this hobby. I wished I practiced it a ton more in the beggining! Would have saved me tons of money from buying stuff I didn't need and killing fish from not QTing because I couldn't wait. Especially with stocking with your fish. I suggest getting a sponge filter going in with the main tank to have it seeded for a QT. A 10 gallon tank with a seeded sponge filter and some PVC for hidding will save you tons of headach in the future by QTing all new fish so you don't introduce disease into the tank and wipe out everyone. It just happened to a guy in MTRC this month. You could start with a pair of clowns from Fishboy42 and not QT them for your first fish and some movement. That would be the ONLY thing I wouldn't QT because anything comming from the pet store (ocean!) has a high risk of infecting the tank. I know you didn't ask for this advise but hope this helps.
 
I'm not sure that all tests kits will work for both fresh and saltwater... I'd check on that. As far as nitrates, you'll almost always have "some" of these because they are harder to get rid (the bacteria that remove them thrive in low oxygen environments which are usually relatively rare in aquariums). Nitrate export is a big topic that you can read up on while you're waiting for the tank to finish cycling. Ammonia and nitrites should be 0 before anything goes in the tank.
 
I don't think that a freshwater test kit would work... I know both my fresh and saltwater kits are made by Aquarium Pharmaceuticals Inc... The freshwater Ammonia and Nitrate test are one solution tests, where as the saltwater tests are both two solution tests... I would assume that if it were the same, both would be one solution tests considering its put out by the same company... And Angela is right... Patience is definately a virtue in this hobby... Otherwise you're going to be spending $$$ out the wazoo... You could probably have a pair of damsels in there with those ratings, which are relatively cheap, but they're aggressive and you won't be able to have other fish you wanting there in the future... I had a pair and finally booted them out to my sump when they started nipping at my xenia and zoos... After I move I'll set up a FOWLR tank so they can have a home... lol
 
Thanks guys, had a LFS test my levels for me. They said that the test kit we have is ok for both, nitrate and amonia tests are both 2 solution tests, and the nitrite is a one solution test. The guys at active pets told me that my 20 has just started its cycle, but said that with our levels that a pair of damsels would be ok, so we got a couple and put them in there. They are doing great. Good news though our 2.5 is cycled, woo hoo, that means we can start a couple small corals in there. So I am not a bummed now. :)
Thanks again,
Andy
 
The guys at active pets told me that my 20 has just started its cycle, but said that with our levels that a pair of damsels would be ok
Click to expand...

Don't take this the wrong way, but adding any fish to an uncycled tank is poor form, whether a pet store recommends it or not. The fish will need to be removed eventually, as they won't let any other fish in the tank (and damsels can be hard to re-home in a lot of cases). Even if you're planning on keeping them in there, there's a good chance of physical harm and damage to the fish due to the increased toxicity of ammonia in higher-pH water.

I had been in Active Pets once or twice while we were in Knoxville, and their tanks were absolutely abysmal at BEST. Taking the advice of people that would keep display tanks in as poor condition as they did would be something you couldn't pay me enough to do.

This is just a general rant of mine. Damsels shouldn't be any more "disposable" than any other saltwater fish, or really any fish/animal in general. With live rock in the tank, they were an unneeded and completely unnecessary addition. It's a shame stores like them stay in business.
 
Thanks RCS, they claimed that it would help spped up our cycle in our 20. I am planning on keeping the damsels for good, I am not looking at them as disposable, personally I think that our tank is farther along in the cycle than they are saying it is. Sorry to upset you on this. I never look at a fish as disposable, unless it is a feeder fish, then they serve a purpose. Hoping that they don't die throught this. The COral Reef sold us a peppermint shrimp knowing that our 2.5 wasn't cyclled yet so taht we could get our aptaisa out of our tank.
Thanks guys,
Andy:strooper:
 
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