Help.fishless Cycle Going Wrong...

[Amaria]

OK So I read a very interesting post for beginners(written by Miss Wiggle )

Am still lost, because I read/heard lots of different advices ...and it does not really goes to plan

I have NOT changed any water, just put the filter/heater/gravel/plant/dechlo stuff and left it bubbling away 24h a day.
Added some products (bacteries, etc.)

The level of nitrite is far from 0, the PH is sky high and some of the plants-just noticed have died and are now stucked in the filter

Miss Wiggle give two possibilities:Fishless with ammonia (I have no fish but did not put any ammonia either.....should I begin now??) ot with fish.

Am getting pretty with those coloured readings....plus my kids clearly think I am thick on that one (not wrong, apparently, but hey-I am just learning....just don't want to kill fishes in the process if I can help it! )
HELP!MANY THANKS

 

[Katch]

Post your water stats please;

pH
Temp
Ammonia
Nitrite
Nitrate

You will need some ammonia to do a fishless cycle (in the UK you can get it at Boots or Homebase - also get a 10ml syringe from boots - you'll need to ask for it). Also what size tank is it and what it the filter.

 

[waterdrop]

Hello Amaria and Welcome to TFF!

A tropical fish tank is a wonder hobby to share within the family. Your kids can begin to learn lots of interesting things about the environment from seeing what happens in the family community tank.

The members here are great! All sorts of knowledge of the hobby and lots of friendliness to help you get under way.

Kstch has asked the right questions there - the members will need to know your tank size and the readings mentioned. Let us know the brand of test kit you're using and what readings you get upon testing your tap water after you've added conditioner to it in a bucket.

For beginners in your situation we strongly recommend a Fishless Cycle!

~~waterdrop~~

 

[Miss Wiggle]

Hi there Amaria,

if you've not got any fish yet then by far the best thing to do is start a fishless cycle, there's a link in my signature to a very informative topic about how to do this.

great news that you've got a test kit and started to try to understand the sciency stuff (reminds me of the Loreal adverts - here comes the science bit - concentrate!)behind this hobby. getting your water quality right is really the cornerstone of fishkeeping so it's the best place to start learning.

you can start a fishless cycle really as soon as you have set your tank up and filled it with water.

if you can give us the readings as mentioned above both for the water from your tank and for water straight from the tap that will help us to work out what's going on with you at the moment.

WD had great fun getting his kids involved in the fishless cycle process so I'm sure he can give you some tips/guidance on how to get them involved.