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right its day 5 the zebra danios were added on day 2 and the readings are .


yesturday

amm 8.0
Ni 2.0
Na 40
Ph 7.0

had a 20% water change to drop ammonia

today

amm 4
Ni 0.25
Na 80
Ph 7.0

i thought the ni had to spike before it went back down . i did put in some water,decorations and filter from a tank thats been going a few weeks so weather that has down anything im not sure .

can anyone clear it up for me

Those numbers sound strange to me...

It is my understanding that in a new cycle, you will see the amonia increase first. Then the nitrites kick in and the amonia drops to zero, then the nitrites start to rise. Then you see the nitrates kick in and the nitrites drop to zero and the nitrates rise. At this point when you are seeing nitrate levels, the amonia and nitrite levels are at zero ppm.

Also, it usually takes a few weeks before you start seeing nitrate levels in a new cycle. Have you taken your water to be tested at your LFS? I personally never seen ANY fish survive 8ppm amonia... Not even goldfish IME... Have you been adding any nitrofying (sp) bacteria to your tank like new improved cycle or anything of that nature or any amonia detoxifiers? The bacteria can cause a faster cycle if added, while the amonia detoxifiers tend to cause false readings which is why I ask.

Anyway, maybe someone else here can provide other input. Although my experience above was the case in all of my tanks....

What are you parameters now??

I agree...those numbers don't look right @all. My ammonia spike last time I cycled was .5ppm.

3 days with zebra danios isn't going to give you that much ammonia, did you start with a fishless cycle either by adding food or pure ammonia to the tank? If so you're supposed to fully complete the cycle without fish prior to adding your stock.

I agree in taking a sample to the LFS to have them test it as well.

^_^
[hr width='40%']"I'm alright, I'm alright
It only hurts when I breathe"

i have been using ammo lock to detoxify the ammonia so thats probably why thewre is false readings.and no i didnt start with just food or pure ammonia. but had a single pleco put in with the 3 zebras . il do a test in a mo to get some more parameters for ya.

The ammolock would throw off the ammonia reading on most test kits. The ammonia probably isn't that high. What test kit are you using? Also the nitrates are very high. Does your tap water start out with nitrates? How long was the pleco in the tank and what size tank? Plecos leave behind alot of waste and really aren't good for cycling but if you already had the pleco you didn't need to add the danios to cycle.

test kit is FRESHWATER MASTER TEST KIT by aquarium pharmaceuticals inc.

and i have been told different things by different ppl so probably just taking bits and bobs and adding together. so if i add no more fish and let it do its own thing it should cycle on its own ok .

Aquarim pharm...that's the kit I use .

Take a nitrate test of your tapwater, many places, especially those on well water will find nitrates in their tapwater. This doesnt mean the end of fishkeeping, just you may need to take some extra precautions such as keeping live plants :88).

As for adding fish. I suggest waiting till the cycle is complete and your ammonia and nitrItes are back down to zero. While zebra danios are able to withstand the cycleing process it's even more difficult to handle if you try to throw them into a tank that's currently cycling.

^_^
[hr width='40%']"Put your soul in the water,
And join me for a swim tonight"

just done a nitrate test on the tap water and its at 0 so thats good .

also i have added about 6 live plants a few days ago not sure if that will have messed the cycle about more or start helping it.

also had a power cut this morning for about 4 hours and one of my zebras started to go crazy and ended up dead .

so am i just to wait it out with not doing any water changes or anything apart from feed the fish and d tests untill its cycled.

Wow! Sorry you're having such a tough time with the cycle.
The live plants, so long as they stay alive , will actually help reduce the stress on the danios.

With powerchanges longer than an hour it's generally reccomended to dump any water in the filter but since you're still cycling you may be okay.

^_^

[hr width='40%']"Put your soul in the water,
And join me for a swim tonight"

just think im best off just leaving it to do its self in its own time .

just seems that my nitrate level is reducing instead of my nitrite one . as ammonia is reducing but nitrite is sticking to 0.50ppm

Leaving it alone is usually the best option .

NitrIte IME took the longest to go down. Ammonia for you will be off a bit because of the neutralizer you used, additonally you're going to be seeing a bit of a minicyle (secondary rise and fall in the levels). Just let it do it's thing...it'll get there eventually. If it's over too soon you know somethings wrong...if it takes 3 months...well that's a problem too .
Only do a water change if the fish are looking stressed.

^_^
[hr width='40%']"I'm alright, I'm alright
It only hurts when I breathe"

update on the 20g iv not touched it for 3 days now apart from feeding the couple of fish in there and the paramiters have stayed the same and havent moved .

amm. 1.0
ni 0.25
na 5.0
ph 7.0

so am i supposed to still leave it or do anything.

Just leave it .
I know it might be frustrating but just leave it alone. Watch the fish for signs of stress (gasping @the surface ect) but otherwise feed normally.

You should see ammonia start to go down in a few days. NitrIte will continue to rise @that point.

^_^



[hr width='40%']"I'm alright, I'm alright
It only hurts when I breathe"