Fish novice with tank problems, need help

[tbetta]

I have the all-in-one 2.5 gallon national geographic tank that comes with a filter and light (I know now that was a bad idea and wish I hadn't done that) and have a betta fish in it. Nitrite has been dangerously high(api master test kit shows as deep purple, at least 5 ppm) so i've been doing 25-30% daily water changes (while vacuuming gravel) to get that down, and this has not been working. Ph is around 7.6, ammonia is 0, and nitrates are at 20 ppm, which I know is also really bad. There's never leftover food at the bottom of the tank, and I clean up the poop with that special turkey baster whenever I notice any. I feed the betta 3 of those tiny pellets in the morning and at night. I have 6 moss balls in the tank (I don't know how helpful that will be). The tank is always heated to 78 F. I use a carbon filter as the only filter medium, which I now know is ineffective and need to switch it for something else. I don't know what to do about that because starting with a new filter gets rid of that good bacteria. I didn't cycle the tank before putting in the fish (I was an idiot and didn't research enough). I am terribly sorry that the contents of this post is going in multiple directions. I was wondering if you guys might be able give me advice on what to do about all of this (if you have the time)?

 

[Munroco]

The two options that I can see are to rehome your betta or to start on a regime of water changes and attempt a "fish in cycle". This will explain it far better than I ever could. Your nitrates at 20 are not particularly high btw.

http://www.fishforums.net/threads/cycling-your-new-fresh-water-tank-read-this-first.421488/

 

[tbetta]

The two options that I can see are to rehome your betta or to start on a regime of water changes and attempt a "fish in cycle". This will explain it far better than I ever could. Your nitrates at 20 are not particularly high btw.

http://www.fishforums.net/threads/cycling-your-new-fresh-water-tank-read-this-first.421488/

Thank you so much. For filter media did you have any suggestions?

 

[Munroco]

I'm not familiar with that tank. I assume it will have a small internal powerfilter which would be where your carbon sponge is. The carbon will only remain effective for a few weeks and will do no harm unless you are medicating fish, in which case it might negate any medicines. Once the carbon loses its effect it is just a sponge so I would just leave it. It will provide a home for the beneficial bacteria you need to get your cycle going. If you know anyone who has a cycled tank you could get some mature media (ie a bit of sponge) and use it to speed up the process.