Ok, I'm new to all of this, so please bear with me. I have a ten gallon tank with a whisper filter that has been up and running for about eight weeks. I have one black moor goldfish. The water would get very cloudy after just a couple of days, so I kept doing massive water changes (like 90%). This was all before I learned about cycling and all that good stuff. So for about three weeks, I have just let the water go. It is now crystal clear. Originally I would just bring the water to petsmart to have it tested, but quickly became annoyed and bought the freshwater test kit from aquarium pharmaceuticals. My ammonia levels (when petsmart tested it, and I test it) are ridiculously high. Greater than the 8 ppm on the color card. So I bought ammo-lock 2. I ran out of it last week, and when I tested my water yesterday, the ammonia was still greater than 8 ppm. So I did a 50% water change last night (with no ammo-lock, just stress coat). When I got up this morning, the fish was just laying on the gravel and would not move. So, I tested the ammonia again thinking that the 50% change MUST have cut it, and that there was something else wrong. No. Greater than 8ppm. So I freaked out and didnt want to leave him any longer in the tank. I just filled a bucket, and added stress coat, and then added him (very bad to do, I know). After less than a minute he was breathing normally again and swimming. So I left him in the bucket, went to the store, bought ammolock and an air pump and air stone, did another 50% water change, added ammo-lock and stress coat, and set up the stone. I let the tank run for about two hours, and then added him back into it. He seems ok, but still not himself. What else can I do? I don't want to stress him out any more. Should I do water changes? 50% or 25%? How often? Doesn't that just slow the cycle process? Sorry so long winded. And the ammonia is still testing high. Went down to maybe 6 or 7 ppm. And I think I did stress him out more by adding the airstone because he won't leave the one side of the tank where the stone isn't! Any help would be GREATLY appreciated.
Tara

there are a few things, feed him a lot less, like way way less. this will help the ammonia level stay lower. 2nd, don't change the filter material at all, or gravel while the tank is cycling. If you have a few dollars to blow, throw in some bio-spira, or if failing that, some other biological addiditve, like cycle, this should help a lot (especially bio-spira)

In a 10 gallon tank, if you are doing massive water changes, I can't see how you can get to 8ppm in ammonia. I would do like very frequent 25% water changes, making sure to NOT wash the filter. Also I would feed maximum once a day, and just an itsy bit, as much as your goldfish can eat for like 2 minutes, making sure no food is left in the tank. If you are feeding pellets, like 4 pellets max, and if any food is uneaten within a few minutes, take it out of the tank. This should keep your ammonia levels down to non-lethal levels.

Hope that helps a little

you'll also want to test your water for ammonia levels right out of the tap.
if these read 0 on your test.. then your tank has too much solid waste in the water.

use a gravel vac to suction the gravel to remove any old food stuffs, and fish waste. If you ahve an undergravel filter, put the vac right on the tube and suck it out from there, and vac the gravel.

if you dont have a gravel vac.. this is what i would suggest, (i dont know if this is correct, but if this was my tank, this is what I would do)

move the fish into a separate container...with clean temp matched de-chlor treated water.

1. scoop out half of the water in the tank..
2. using temp matched de-chlor treated water
3. "pour heavily" into the tank to dislodge the waste matter in the gravel.

1. scoop out half of the water
refill - if there is considerable cloudiness from solid waste do the steps above again
test levels..
if the ammonia levels are still very high,
repeat the above steps until the matter is reduced, and/or the tests come back into the normal reading (under 2 is good, under 1 is better)

let tank stand for maybe half hour, with all airstones/fitler running
test once more before re-adding the fish..

then re-add the fish..
follow the above posts recommendation to feed very slightly, you should see a "perk" in the fish almost immediately, the fish may also scrounge off the bottom, so additional flake food is not necessary.
a fish's belly (intestine) can hold only as much as the size of its eye.. feeding more does more damage than good.

tomorrow, test the ammonia level again, if it has increased again, do a gentle water change of 30% or enough to bring the ammonia back down,

it may take 2 or more days to get your ammonia back to a healthy level.
high ammonia levels can/will create stress for the fish, when a fish gets stressed illness is more likely to set in.
please watch your fish for adverse reactions to the high ammonia.
you may notice, black marks forming once the ammonia levels are stable, these are scabs (healing) from the ammonia burns.. this should heal within 1-2weeks depending on the severity..
if you have additional questions.. the members here are wonderful.
-Tooter