I had to set up a new tank for my goldfish Larry. He was in a 5 gal and doing real bad. I had ammonia levels that should have killed him, but did not. I got his ammonia down to 0 and his nitrites (the bad ones) went sky high. Now I have moved him into a tank w/ the following parameters.
ammonia 0 mg/l
No-2 <.3 mg/l
pH 7.5
It is a 10 gal. / 100 gph on the filter, w/ a bio sponge
Water treated w/ dechlorinator only
I have been filtering through the old bio sponge since it has been running, which is over 3 hours I think. The fish has been moved to this new tank. He seems ok, has ate well and is swimming around alot. I have noticed w/ the gravel he is doing alot of sucking up gravel and spitting it out? Do you think I should have left in the old tank and cycled this one out?

Thoughts and maybe gentle correction as needed??!?!?!?

Gentle correction? HA! We are sooooo tough here....



Sounds like you are on your way. The fact that the ammonia is dropping and the nitrites are rising means you are almost half way through the cycling period. This is one of the toughest times..... nitrite can be really toxic to the fish, and the bacteria that process it can often be subborn and persnickity getting going. But, hang in there, they really will! In time.

Until they do, you are going to have to work, every day, to keep the nitrites in the tank under control. Ideally, you want to keep them under 0.5ppm. If that means a water change every day, go for it. 10 gallons is really not much - you can do that in 10 minutes or so. Do not be afraid to change out as much water as you need to to get the nitrites down to about 0.25 at the end of the water changes - this will give you a bit of a cushion between water changes where the nitrite may rise to 0.5, but not higher.

I would also suggest getting a bottle of a product called Prime or Amquel+ if you can. This chemical will bind the toxic ammonia/nitrite from your water, still leaving it available for the beneficial bacteria to process. IT makes it non-toxic to the fish, yet does not stunt your developing cycle. It is GREAT stuff. Add it after each water change - and it can help hold the line on the nitrites until the next water change.

During the cycling of the tank, I would also suggest feeding LArry far far less food than you are presently doing. Less food in means less waste in the tank - less nitrites for you to have to deal with. Feed him lightly or every other day. IF he is a bit bigger - 3 inches and over, you can easily feed him every 3-4 days, very lightly, and he will be just fine. In fact, he will probably be the better for it, for his water will stay even cleaner.

When the tank is fully cycled, you can slowly increase his food, increasing the waste and the biocycle will grow to met the demands of the extra waste.

Water changes are Larry's best bet right now. And your cycle will grow and develop.

Thank You Daryl....

I have been learning so much here - this website is awesome!

So w/ the new tank I will continue changing out the water. I did not use any water from the old tank. I thought the levels were just toxic and all fresh would be better. If I test the water here in a few and it is all normal do I still do a water change? Silly question, but I don't want to hurt him. I will minimize his food in take to every other day. That is what I was doing in his old 5 gal. tank.

I am sure I will come up w/ some other questions as I we go through the first cycle of the new home.

Larry seems much happier - has more room to swim around. I just hope he does not get sick or to stressed.

Thanks!

I will have hubby check @ the petsmart in town while @ lunch today. They should have that prime there or the other stuff. Thanks!!

Here are the results from checking the water on the new tank -
pH - 8
No-2 - <.3mg/l
ammonia - 0 mg/l

Do I do anything to the tank? Let me know.
Thanks
Andy

I htink I would still change out the water - about 1/4-1/3 of it. That is only about 3 gallons - a quicky change. That will lower the nitrites in the water. At 0.3per litre, that is about 0.5ppm per gallon, which is about as high as I prefer to ever let it go.

I, personally, have a theory that fish subjected to high nitrIte values - far more than high ammonia values - during a tank's cycling often develop a permanent sensitivity to nitrAtes. They can become floaty or flip at levels of nitrAte that would not bother other fish. A fish exposed to high nitrItes can also have many other permanent problems - - frequently becoming more sensitive to many things.... far more so than other fish that have never had to endure nitrites.

For that reason, I prefer to keep the nitrites as LOW as I can during cycling. Your fish is always adding more ammonia. There will always be ammonia/nitrite for the cycle to develop with. So you should not fear the changes. They will keep your fish safe and will, I believe, make your fish easier to keep in the future.

I get in the routine of feeding the fish. Testing the water. Changing the water. EVery day during a cycle or a cycle bump or a new fish being added, etc. As you see the readings, you will be able to adjust what amounts of water you will need to change to keep the parameters within reason. The Prime will help a lot, too.

Larry sounds like a lucky fish to have you!

Ok so last nightr I checked the parameters of the new tank all was 'normal' for a new tank only running about 24 hours. I did NOT change any water out.

Today my ammonia is up a little, not sure of the #, am at work now. No-2 is <.3 mg/l. I did a 20% water change since that was all the water I had.

How long will it take for the tank to cycle? What signs should I be watching for. I am minimizing Larry's food to every other day. He gets fed tonight.

Any more advice or pointers would be welcome. I will check the water again when I get home from work in a few hours.

Thanks in advance!

Tanks can cycle in 2 weeks. Or they may take 12. WArmer water, higher pH can help a tank to cycle faster. All in all, though, it is an exersize in patience.

This should give you an idea of what to look for:

http://www.kokosgoldfish.com/cycle.html

In a nutshell, your ammonia will climb, then level out, then decline as your nitrite levels spike monstorously high. The ammonia will slowly dwindle until it reads zero, but the nitrite will hang around and hang around and hang around and just when you think you are ready to SCREAM at the stupid nitrite readings and constant water changes, you will test one day and the nitrites will be zero.

It really does work. But it is an exersise in patience....

I have issues exercising myself, let alone patience! HA!

Time will tell. I will watch and test constantly - I just got to get this baby cylced!
Woo Ho!