Tank Cycling and new to fish keeping?

Question

I have had my new tank 4 weeks and in the process of cycling this.

I have 3 fantail who are doing fine which I added a week later.

I check the water and do partial water changes on a regular basis using a gravel cleaner and water conditioner. Leaving the water 24 hours

I fed my fish a small amount twice a day but cut that down to once because the ammonia levels went up a little.

My readings are ammonia 0.2mg/l

Test Strip GH 120 KH 40 PH 6.5 NO2 0 NO3 0.

Is this all okay or do I need to do anything else?

Answer 1

you're doing alright

although i would never cycle a tank with goldfish

anway keep watching your parameters and changing the water as you do

if you want more info on cycling, here is a great article for you to read up on

http://www.americanaquariumproducts.com/...

Answer 2

Get yourself a liquid water tester. Test strips are c**p and very innaccurate.

Also, get yourself a water dechlorinator. Leaving the water out for 24hrs does get rid of chlorine, but chloramine and heavy metals in the water stay put and those 2 can cause harm to fish.

You're going to have to do more water changes. At least until you get the ammonia reading below a 0.25 lvl. Even at that amount, it's still causing harm to your fish.

Answer 3

AMMONIA - NITRITE and NITRATE

....test results should be in 'p.p.m.'

PH

....test results should be shown as 'mg/l'

....since you are new, let me recomend testing the water before a change...or 48 hours after a change

....the readings just after a change a skewed terribly

....for the moment let us assume that in fact your tank water

....has 2 ppm NH3 ammonia and NH4 ammonium

....has -o- NO2 nitrites

....has -0- NO3 nitrAtes

and you are in fact changing some water every 24 hours

.....those figures are false postives, and 24hrs is too often to change water, RELAX a little, some ammonia is good for the bacteria...and if there is ammonia, there will also be a few nitrites in the real world

OKAY HERE IS WHAT TO DO

....in a beginner's tank with goldfish

       Water Changes and Filter-

.......change 25% to 30% of water every 7 to 10 days

.......feed small pinch of food daily or large pinch every 2 days

.......remember that uneaten food makes new ammonia

.......keep the filter running (if the filter ever breaks down, leave the filter cartridges in the tank water while you take the filter down and look it over...keep the media wet so the bacteria colony stays alive)

        AMMONIA CONTROL

....goldfish make an extraordinary amount of ammonia

....plant living plants in the corners of the tank and short 'dwarf mondo grass' in the middle areas so it helps absorb ammonia....the grasses eat lots of ammonia and nitrAtes as food (and plants release CO2 that nourishes the nitrifying bacteria in the water filter)

     NITRITES

.....the bacteria in the water filter eat ammonia and also eat nitrites.....converting the nitrities into nitrAtes which less toxic to fish, and very good for live plants

    NITRATES

....the only way to control nitrate levels is by using live plants that absorb them as food and by maing the regular water changes

FINALLY

...in our tank we have a captive environment that depends upon regulary water changes, filtration, live plants and some light for the general health of the 'miniature ecosystem' that we control

....we complete the needed symbiosis through the use of live plants( i recommend using grassy types, like the curly 10" vallisneria spirulata, dwarf mondo grass, and sagitteria subulata) the plants are cheap and easy means of providing a buffer in the tank that softens the effects of spiking ammonia or nitrates.....(and they look good too)

....plants provide one other important aspect to the tank by giving fish a pace to rest, reducing stress, by breaking up the direct lines of sight of the fish within the tank

LAST THING

...use the dechlorinating products known as 'Prime'...it is about $3.99, and comes in a red bottle, at Wal-Mart or Petsmart, etc

....Prime dechlorinate and also locks up the hydrogen moles in ammonia, nitrities and nitrates and provides another means of buffering the effects of ammonia spikes in the tank

.....and goldfish will lead to ammonia spikes