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hi there~~i am not sure if i am being to overprotective/obsessed with my 10 gal. tank. i just don't want to lose any fish. it is the third week in it's cycle, and i have two mollies in there.
they have had babies twice, so i have about 20 fry in a little breeder box. the ammonia is reading between 1-2 on a drop test. is that ok for a new tank? the nitrate read 20 on a dip test, and the nitrite was 0. the reason i am concerned is because of all the extra fish now, and i have already done a water change with a gravel vac. once a week at the instruction of my lfs guy because of high ph.
does this seem ok ??????
thanks so much!!!

ffwife

[span class="edited"][Edited by firefighterwife 2004-08-10 21:36][/span]

Hi FFWife.... Welcome to FishProfiles..

The biggest problem about having all those fish are, they are going go grow up and that ten gallon tank is going to be way too small very soon.

Anyways, doing the water changes is alright simply because you want to have good quality water for the babies so that they remain healthy. As for doing partial water changes to lower the level of pH isn't such a great idea. You want your pH level to remain stable and not fluctuate very much. The fish will adjust to the level of pH they are in. Altering it too often or too much at one time will do more harm than good. The water change that you performed is probably helping to keep the level of ammonia and nitrites in check. That is why the water change is good. It will slow down the cycling process of your tank but healthy fish are more important than attaining a speedy cycle.

Do you know what kind of Mollies these are? Are you feeding them a varied diet?

thanks for the fast response. so it is ok to keep up with the water changes~that's great. i was just worried about messing up the cycle, but you have a good point.
i have one gold dust molly, and one dalmation molly, and they are eating tetra min pro flakes. any recomendations? i think i will get another tank to use as the nursery for the babes so i can get them out of there. does that ammonia level seem safe as long as i keep up with the water changes? or should o throw something in there? (i have amquel)
do you know much about molly moms? mine sure seems crazy~ she swims so fast and eraticly all the time, and seems absolutly starving! maybe she is but i am so afraid to overfeed in there. maybe she is mad because her babies are in the breeder box.
thanks again. i am learning so much here thank goodness!
ffwife