# 0 nitrites 1 ammonia



## cariba666 (Mar 16, 2004)

i recently bought a black heart caribe and put it in a 20g long tank but i totally forgot about cycling the tank and i developed a serious ammonia problem i took my water sample to the aquarium specialist near me and they said i should just buy this stuff called cycle and put it in the tank well i have 0 nitrites and 1 on my ammonia the guy said though the ammonia was only 1 but it was as deadly as a 3 or 4 because of my high ph but i put the cycle in there and the piranha has eaten 1 time since then and i put the cycle in yesterday im not sure whats going to happen he said it turns the water a milky color but it hasnt changed and the ammonia is 1 and the nitirtes are 0 is there anything i can do i dont wanna lose my 50 dollar fish thanks for your help


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## rufus (Jan 6, 2004)

Any cycling product at your lfs is bogus. Bio-spira is the only product I(and many, many others) have had luck with. I would definitely order some ASAP. Keep doing small water changes until you get it.


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## DonH (Jan 25, 2003)

If you have another established tank, or know a friend in the hobby, get some used filter material and place it into your filter. This should seed the tank to speed up the cycle. Do not add any more of the "Cycle" product... You are reading low ammonia levels now and no nitrites but you will see that the ammonia will rise within the next week and start to subside as your nitrites rise. Add a teaspoon of salt to help with the upcoming nitrites. As far as ammonia, the only thing you can do at this point is to buy a water conditioner that detoxifies the ammonia (like AmQuel) or do small water changes to dilute the ammonia concentration. If you choose to use AmQuel, Prime or Ammo-Lock, make sure you buy the appropriate test kit to measure ammonia (one that is salicylate based) or else you will get a false reading. You can try to buy Bio-Spira but I think it's easier to use the filter material from an established tank. Good luck.


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## illnino (Mar 6, 2004)

if i were you, untill your tank gets cycled, i would do like a 3 gallon water a day so it will keep the amoina down to a safe amount.


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## cariba666 (Mar 16, 2004)

the place i went to has been in business for over 30 years i think they would know what there talking about they have a 10,000sq ft showroom with salt and freshwater fish but i mean i was just on here to see if anyone had any opinons i trust the people i bought the fish from and what there telling me and if there wrong i can hold them accountable thanks for all your input though it was much appreciated


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## Guest (Mar 17, 2004)

cariba666 said:


> the place i went to has been in business for over 30 years i think they would know what there talking about they have a 10,000sq ft showroom with salt and freshwater fish but i mean i was just on here to see if anyone had any opinons i trust the people i bought the fish from and what there telling me and if there wrong i can hold them accountable thanks for all your input though it was much appreciated


 Actually, I think you would have a hard time holding the store accountable for a fish that dies after you take it home. Especially if it lived for a few weeks in your tank.

DonH gave sound advice. He has a level of experience that far exceeds the average minimum-wage-earning pet store clerk.

Let us know how this developes.


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## DonH (Jan 25, 2003)

cariba666 said:


> the place i went to has been in business for over 30 years i think they would know what there talking about they have a 10,000sq ft showroom with salt and freshwater fish but i mean i was just on here to see if anyone had any opinons i trust the people i bought the fish from and what there telling me and if there wrong i can hold them accountable thanks for all your input though it was much appreciated



















Thanks Bullsnake...

cariba666: If you ask ANY pet store about cycling and what product to use, they will recommend "CYCLE". Does that mean it works? ABSOLUTELY NOT!!! They push the product because it makes money. If you have that much faith in that fish store that's fine, but you wouldn't be here asking questions would you?

This website tries to educate the hobbiests so they don't go out spending extra money on products that simply don't work. Go and ask this question to your reliable pet shop and ask them how "Cycle" works. They'll tell you that it adds the necessary bacteria (or nitrifiers) to seed the tank and cycle it almost overnight. Then (here's the important part...), ask them how they can keep living organisms(like these bacteria or nitrifiers) in a closed bottle without a food source or dissolved oxygen on a shelf without refrigeration for months on end and STILL expect it to work once you put it into the tank. Because these bugs go into suspended animation like in the sci fi movies? Oh wait... even that requires refrigeration to keep them dormant. Even if they give you a convincing answer to that, you can ask them what species of nitrifiers does "Cycle" carry. I'll tell you... It carries Nitrosomonas and Nitrobacter species that were developed based on wastewater treatment plants. Is an aquarium even remotely close to a wastewater treatment plant? Well maybe some of the ones I've seen...









There have been published studies by Marineland labs that most of these bacteria simply do NOT exist in an aquarium or pond environment AND are NOT the ones that do the job in nitrification. In other words, even if "Cycle" finds a way to keep them alive, it's the WRONG SPECIES OF BACTERIA!!! Convincing enough?

Marineland is on the right track because 1) they have used DNA testing to find out what species of nitrifiers exist in an aquarium environment. and 2) refrigerates their product (I believe with an expiration date) so the batch remains viable when used. Downside is, it's expensive and not many pet stores carry it. There have been cases of it not working probably due to improper storage or transport (must be refrigerated). Like I said before... it's better to get filter material from an established tank and place it in your filter. It has the right species of nitrifiers and you know they are alive to seed your tank.

If you have a problem and will only listen to your trusty fish store that's been established for over 30 years, why would you ask us if you already have the answer?


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## anotherreject04 (Mar 16, 2004)

damn...DonH..-you have spoken


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## Dr. Giggles (Oct 18, 2003)

Great diplomatic answer DonH.


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## The Wave (Oct 22, 2003)

Nice Don H


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