cessna driver Posted October 23, 2009 Report Share Posted October 23, 2009 Hi, I have a new AR980 that has had 12 neon tetras (as recommended by 2 fish shops to cycle with because they are cheep) in for 6 days now and i have no ammonia showing at all, NO2 & NO3 are zero also. PH is 6.4, was above 7. Temp is 25c Tank has had 1 dosing of Stress Zyme From what I have read, I should have seen some ammonia on about day 3, All 12 fish are happy. Is this normal for a tank of this size, or do I need alter something? Thanks in advance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sandysme Posted October 23, 2009 Report Share Posted October 23, 2009 sounds like good readings to me... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiwiplymouth Posted October 23, 2009 Report Share Posted October 23, 2009 Welcome. Be patient, It will happen. It may even take a week or 2. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingart Posted October 23, 2009 Report Share Posted October 23, 2009 welcome to the forums it may take a bit longer to happen it is a big volume so will take a little longer than a smaller tank Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cessna driver Posted October 23, 2009 Author Report Share Posted October 23, 2009 thanks for the replies, I shall continue as i have been, cheers Great site by the way Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiwiplymouth Posted October 23, 2009 Report Share Posted October 23, 2009 One of my first tanks was a planted 90L hex tank with an under gravel filter. It had heaps of fish in it and it took just over a month to cycle Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ryanjury Posted October 23, 2009 Report Share Posted October 23, 2009 Sometimes in a bigger tank with smaller fish the ammonia can build up so slowly it is actually converted and the tank cycle started before you even detect anything on your test kits Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BikBok Posted October 23, 2009 Report Share Posted October 23, 2009 i used JBL filter start in my (much smaller) hexy tank but I never got any ammonia readings at all.. it went straight to very low nitrites and then low nitrates and I was testing every day. Several months on my nitrates have risen slightly (to around 10-20 before a water change) , I'm only testing every 10-14 days now but never any ammonia so not sure what happened with my cycle but the fish are all happy. I also use TLC bacteria once a month . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingart Posted October 23, 2009 Report Share Posted October 23, 2009 any new tanks i start i use the TLC as well bikbok with the same results Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morcs Posted October 23, 2009 Report Share Posted October 23, 2009 Always having some spare filter sponges or a bag of spare bio noodles in an existing filter helps too - you never know when you might need to set up a new tank, and existing media makes everything so much better! cant remember the last time I had anything but a mini cycle! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JK Posted October 23, 2009 Report Share Posted October 23, 2009 Sounds like everything is going quite well actually. Just be patient as it will take abit longer on bigger tanks. And for what its worth - I too use TLC - its an excellent product and may help thjings along a bit further. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanmin4304 Posted October 23, 2009 Report Share Posted October 23, 2009 Patience grasshopper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cessna driver Posted October 29, 2009 Author Report Share Posted October 29, 2009 Cheers for the words of wisdom, I now have 1.0ppm of ammonia and have been changing about 10% of the water for the last few days to keep it at about 1.0, no nitrites yet. But now the tank (mainly the filter) has a fungus like smell, also there are what appear to be little mould balls floating around, I have been netting these out as they appear. Will this go away in its own accord as my tank cycles or do I need add something? replace filter pads maybe? I have reduced the amount of food given but it seems persistent. Thanks in advance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jennifer Posted October 29, 2009 Report Share Posted October 29, 2009 Hi, I am not an expert but I would wonder if this was particles of food that are getting mouldy. Are you feeding pelleted food? If it were me, I would feed only what the fish can eat within a couple of minutes and hopefully all is eaten and not floating around the tank. That might solve the problem entirely. If the water is also cloudy, it could be bacterial bloom. Either way, I personally would do a good water change (approx 30 to 40%) and change any filter wool out then wait to see what happens. Nothing too drastic - a lot can happen as the tank stabilises. Anyway, hopefully some others might have good ideas as well. Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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