When can I add cleaning crew and fish?

myre

myre

New Member
As of yesterday my stats read as:
pH-8.2/8.4
Alkalinity-reads as high- what can I do to lower this?
Nitrates-0
Nitrites-0
Amonia level-.25
I wanted to put in a cleaning crew before I introduced my fish, I was just wondering when I could put the cleaning crew in...I was thinking about adding a pair of clowns, and maybe some kind of angel. Help?
 
J

jdragunas

Guest
Everything looks good, except for ammonia. You should wait a while to put anything in, because that ammonia still has to change to nitrites, then to nitrates. Your levels should read as follows for you to add any critters:
Ph - 8.2-8.4
Ammonia - 0
Nitrites - 0
Nitrates - >20ppm
SG - 1.025-1.026 ~ What is your SG at the moment? Please note that for inverts, they require a higher SG than fish. Fish can live in 1.022-1.026. Inverts on the other hand need it to be about 1.025-1.026.
I'm not too sure about the alkalinity, as mine has always been in the "normal" range, but i would personally suggest doing a 10% water change, but i'd wait for other opinions before you do that. :notsure:
Just a quick question, are you using tap water, distilled water, or R/O water? If you're using tap, that may have something to do with it...

BTW, how long did it take your tank to cycle?
jenn
 
myre

myre

New Member
All my stats are the same today, but I think that my amonia level is between 0-0.25. My alkalinity is still high, and I really want to know if there is something that I can do to change it. My salinity level is 1.023-1.024, which is within the brackets on my hydrometer...I was told to stay within those brackets? is that wrong? I used tap water to fill my tank...help?
 
myre

myre

New Member
when I look at the color level for amonia it looks more yellow than light green...is that good?
 
J

jdragunas

Guest
You should stop using tap water right this instant! It's bad for your fish, and all the extra chemicals and dissolved minerals will cause excessive algae growths in your tank. You should use either distilled water or R/O (reverse osmosis) water. R/O is the best you can get. You can buy it at your local Walmart Supercenter. They have a water machine where you bring your own containers and it's like 33 cents a gallon. If your local walmart isn't a supercenter, you can go to the beverages section, and buy the bottled water called "drinking water". It has a green cap, and a green label.
As for the SG, 1.023-1.024 is good for fish, but inverts require it to be a little higher, at 1.025-1.026.
Not sure about the ammonia test, but if it's in between the color on your chart, you can just say it's like 0.125.
To reduce your alkalinity, i'd do a 10% water change with the R/O water. The tap water may have extra elements in it that can contribute to high alkalinity.
Hope this helps!
jenn
 
snipe

snipe

Active Member
On the nitrates they should be as close to 0 as possible as higher nitrate levels can kill inverts.
Wait till everything reads 0 and then add inverts first.
On fish what size tank do you have?
 
myre

myre

New Member
Would the fact that I got my rock from a tank that wasn't being used at a pet store change anything...I was just reading about the spikes in nitrite and nitrate levels...I have only been cycling for about 3 days now.
 
snipe

snipe

Active Member
Well a 29 isnt gonna be big enough for most angles. It might host a dwarf angle like that of the pygmy angle and 2 clowns and mabey a goby. But that would be about it in a 28gallon.
For a 10% water change in a 28gallon all you do is divide 28 by 10% and you get 2.8 gallons so a 3 gallon water change would be fine.
 
myre

myre

New Member
Thanks for all your help guys...I did the water change...I will continue to test the water...thanks again for your advice.
 
nofish

nofish

Member
Yes But Keep Your Tank Cyclein 3 Day Is Not Enough..don't Add Anything To The Tank Yet.you Gota Wait Like 6-8 Weeks To Fully Cycle. Ok .. One Dwarf Angel Is Fine Just Wait For The Cycle..or You Will Kill The Fish...
Later,

Jr
 
newfishguy

newfishguy

Member
Don't worry about a water change now. Your cycle just started. It will take atleast a month for your tank to cycle.
Originally Posted by Myre
Thanks for all your help guys...I did the water change...I will continue to test the water...thanks again for your advice.
 
snipe

snipe

Active Member
The at least a month is inaccurate. It took my tank 2 weeks.
For that size tank I would go with the pygmy or cherub angle. They only get 3 inches as the others get like 5 inches. And I agree dont worrie about water changes until your cycle is over.
 
nikolai

nikolai

Member
Originally Posted by Snipe
The at least a month is inaccurate. It took my tank 2 weeks.
For that size tank I would go with the pygmy or cherub angle. They only get 3 inches as the others get like 5 inches. And I agree dont worrie about water changes until your cycle is over.
It took 4 months for my take to complete its cycle.
 
robert dri

robert dri

Member
You can purchase a chemical bacteria to speed up your cycly but I WOULD NOT RECOMMEND IT! Also, I am not sure how it would be possible to cycle a tank in 5 days. I would be skeptical of this info.
 
snipe

snipe

Active Member
It can happen. If you start with all Live rock and All live sand it will cycle very fast compared to the normal seeding everything with bacteria. I cycled with 4 shrimp. 75lbs lace rock (dead rock) and 40lbs lace sand (dead sand) and 20lbs live sand. Took my tank 2 weeks. So yes a tank with all live rock and live sand could cycle in 5 days.
 
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