First Time Tank - Ammonia, Nitrite And Nitrate After 2 Days, But From

[JChase]

Hello, my names Jess. I've been researching tropical fish keeping for a year now and i finally got my first tank on monday and was very excited. Its a 48 litre interpet fish box (not the biggest i know, but the biggest i could keep in the space i have for now).
Just to explain what ive done so far.
On monday, i added a small-gravel shaped substrate but it was actually one of those types of water plant fertilising substrates that is helpful if you have live plants in your tank, which i intended to do. i assumed this would be better than gravel for that reason (i even enquired at the store about buying gravel as well and they assured me there would be no need as it would just mix up with this stuff anyway.
So, i followed the instructions on the packet and put it into the tank and filled it up with water, dechlorinating using tap safe, and left it alone for a day with the filter and heater and everything running.
The next day i went to buy my plants - i have an alternanthera split into two, a bacopa on its own, a lileaopsis (the 10cm kind) seperated into two front of tank bunches, and a piece of bogwood with java fern already growing on it. i also added one ornament.

That same day, following the instructions that came with the aquarium, i started using the interpet filter start that came with the aquarium. i have since discovered by reading other forums that it does next to nothing as it has no ammonia in it. i assumed therefore i would have to put in some fish food as i want to do a fishless cycle and didnt have any pure ammonia. So today (thursday - 1 day after putting in the plants) i put a small amount of fish food in the tank. About half an hour later i realised i should have probably tested the water beforehand so i had a starting point for the cycle.
This is the confusing part - for me anyway - i tested that i had 6ppm of ammonia, Nitrite of 5ppm and Nitrate of 100!? i even tested twice to check id read it right and i had.
What i want to know is - how is it possible i have those readings in my tank already when ive added no ammonia source. is it possible that the substrate and the plants including the bogwood has contributed to it, and the filter start i put in (2 doses in 4 days before i read that it was pointless) kicked in and did a little something to set it off? If so - where do i go from here? Does this mean my cycle has begun? Do i add more food or leave it? i researched so much before i got my aquarium but clearly i didnt research enough!

Any help or advice, as soon as possible hopefully, would be really useful to me - i thought i was well prepared but this sudden occurance of ammonia etc so soon has taken me back a bit!

Thanks in advance.

Also for anyone who suggests it could be the tap water - the ammonia in the tap water only reads 0.5-1ppm so i still dont know where the other 5 has come from. Tap water also has nitrite of 3ppm and nitrate of 15-30ppm its a bit unclear.

 

[Philish]

Hi,

I have just added a post about high nitrate levels - basically I had a pet store test my water, and they told me that I shouldn't add live plants until I have fish because the plants begin to produce to much nitrate. I have recycled mine and taken the plants out hoping it will work...I know this isn't the most informative addition, but I hope it helps a little...

Philish

 

[Electric Warrior]

What exactly is the substrate, because there are some that give off quite a bit of ammonia. Regardless, you should probably do a WC, and think about getting some ammonia, because dosing with fish food can be very difficult to manage, and can take FOREVER.

 

[JChase]

What exactly is the substrate, because there are some that give off quite a bit of ammonia. Regardless, you should probably do a WC, and think about getting some ammonia, because dosing with fish food can be very difficult to manage, and can take FOREVER.

Unfortunately the substrate didnt have a name brand (not like Ecocomplete or anything) it was just called Water Plant Fertiliser Substrate or something to that effect - the bag has since been thrown away - and was suggested to me by a family run fish place which i drove quite far to reach cos i only have the big stores near me which i dont trust. i also purchased it because i couldnt find any gravel small enough for the cory cats i intend to have.

I was under the impression that you werent supposed to do water changes with a fish food cycle?
However, considering the amount of ammonia (6ppm) being thrown out by my substrate, would it make more sense to treat this like a pure ammonia cycle and do water changes? if so, how much and how often?

 

[Aqua Tom]

Hi Jchase

Welcome to the forum.


Ok, at this time its a bit tricky for us to understand whats occuring in your tank, I suggest retesting your tapwater, then doing a 100% water change in your tank (easy in a 10 gallon), leave it a hour or so, then test the water, this will give us a baseline to judge from.


Tom

 

[Fish4]

Hi, your readings seem to indicate your cycle is progressing. As you have increased nitrites, this must mean your ammonia is being processed by something, into nitrite.
These quick start products are regularly rubbished, but i'm begining to believe they do what they say.
As you have not added fish yet, I would do nothing at the moment, except testing daily to see if the bacteria is processing amonia and nitrite, and how quickly.
As for plants producing Nitrates I believe they consume nitrates though.