Green Goddess's First Fishless Cycle (240 Ltr)

[waterdrop]

I'm sure some of my posts may have given an exaggerated sound to the problem of bicarb dosing in a tank with fish. The kind of transition I think GG is thinking of would probably be ok I think, as long as he maintains the level of attention of care he's currently giving. He's already running with the hardness raised in the current goldfish tank and intends to try and do a similar thing with the bigger new tank. I think some careful dosing to bridge the period until the crushed coral slowly kicks in would be ok. I wish I knew some tricks for how to ensure that the bicarb is not able to change the mineral content too quickly. I think that being willing to move in very small steps with it is the best idea unless someone comes along and advises otherwise (I mean obviously you've already dosed and tested the water to 7.2 pH prior to introducing them, so its the re-dosing that I'm talking about.)

The sodium that gets left over is a long term issue, not a short term one. As long as the transition is made to CC then the sodium will not have long enough to be a problem. Keep an eye on Robby's article and take the KH/GH situation seriously.

~~waterdrop~~

 

[PDSimon]

Thanks WD

p.s. waterdrop you need to empty your inbox!

 

[greengoddess]

Thanks WD

I'm quite competent at making pH adjustment using bicarb now. But if bicarb is bad for the health of my fish I'll have to rely on the crushed coral doing its job.

 

[waterdrop]

I think the CC method should work out ok for you GG, but I have to mention that there -was- an interesting discussion recently by Neale that took place in one of the threads and Robby and I participated a bit. I thought he had some interesting things to say about it and he left me willing to entertain his ideas as method to think about. Sorry I don't have a link to that discussion at the moment.

WD

 

[OldMan47]

The bicarb is actually a method of choice for some people. I avoid it only because I know that it can move the chemistry faster than I would like. Since you use it with water changes, there should not be much of a build up issue, you will be removing some of the sodium each time you add a dose.

 

[JoshuaA]

Lovely tank! Happy to see the fish in there, don't forget about us when you're fish are fully grown . I'd love to see pictures when they get bigger.

Very happy you've been able to stock fish, and I think this goes for everyone here...Well done for having the patience!.

 

[greengoddess]

The bicarb is actually a method of choice for some people. I avoid it only because I know that it can move the chemistry faster than I would like. Since you use it with water changes, there should not be much of a build up issue, you will be removing some of the sodium each time you add a dose.

Thanks Oldman,

Yes, I've noticed that bicarb moves the pH very quickly so I would not like to add it directly to a tank with fish in. For the last few months I have been using bicarb weekly to adjust the pH of the new water for my 25 litre tank (with goldfish in it) at water change time. I wanted to try and match the pH of the incoming water to the pH in the tank to keep it as stable as possible. That's a very good point you make about the non-build up issue. I didn't think of that.

Lovely tank! Happy to see the fish in there, don't forget about us when you're fish are fully grown . I'd love to see pictures when they get bigger.

Very happy you've been able to stock fish, and I think this goes for everyone here...Well done for having the patience!.

Thanks Joshua,

It's been an absolute pleasure watching my two fish enjoying their new home over the last couple of days. They've taken to it very well (although the strong current of the filter took them by surprise initially ). The wife and kids are really enjoying the new tank and we're all watching it more than the TV at the moment. Thanks again for all your help.

 

[JoshuaA]

we're all watching it more than the TV at the moment.

I'm not surprised the Beebs programming schedule is horrific! I sometimes find myself walking past my fish tank... then moon walking back to it and sitting down to watch it for a good 30 minutes. It's somewhat therapeutic

 

[LondonguyJ]

Hey greengoddess can I ask how much ammonia added to raise your count to 4ppm?

 

[greengoddess]

Hey greengoddess can I ask how much ammonia added to raise your count to 4ppm?

Hi Londonguy

I used 3.2ml of ammonia to take it to 4ppm. But beware that there are different strengths of ammonia. The stuff I was using is the industrial .880 grade which is hard to find and is nasty stuff. If you're using regular household ammonia you will need to add quite a bit more than that. There is a link to a calculator somewhere on this site to help you work out how much ammonia you need to add to your tank.

 

[PDSimon]

That stuff sounds deadly, its bad enough sniffing the 9.5% ammonia one

 

[FishyWishie]

http/www.fishforums.net/aquarium-calculator.htm

 

[greengoddess]

That stuff sounds deadly, its bad enough sniffing the 9.5% ammonia one

Believe me, this stuff is horrendous. It's a relief that the fishless cycle has ended so I don't have to handle it any more.

 

[waterdrop]

Hope you, your family, your goldfish and your tank are doing well GG. Just happened on this thread and didn't search for other discussions you may be currently participating in.. WD