My Cycled Tank Has Huge Ammonia/nitrite Spikes

[edgun88]

I have a 55 gallon tank that had been cycling for a month and a half with a fishless cycle. Well it went through whole cycle, ammonia spike, nitrite spike. Anyway, when the cycle was completed I filled my tank with fish:

5 Tiger barbs
4 silver dollar
1 violet goby


3 days later I looked at the readings and they were:

Ammonia: 8.0 ppm
Nitrite: 0.5 ppm
Nitrate: 10 ppm

I don't understand why the spikes happened. Did I add too many fish? My tank was cycled, I don't understand. I can tell my fish are suffering , what can I do to get rid of all these toxins?


I need help desperatly, I hate seeing my fish suffer! Thanks

 

[Locke]

Well, IMO, adding that many fish could create a large bio-load which contributes to high ammonia and NO2 and NO3 spikes. You should add fish gradually and let the bacteria gradually multiply. Adding that many fish is a bad idea, least it was for me. Good luck with the new tank!

I'll let the more qualified people answer how to get rid of the toxins. Good luck.


SB

 

[Sheridanp]

Instantly do a 50% water change. I'm not sure what is good that could remove ammonia and nitrite. Just do water changes everyday, about 15%-20% .

 

[BHornsey]

Hi,

A quick question; how long did you leave it between completing the cycle and stocking?

Usually, fishless cycling will produce a good colony of bacteria and you should be able to stock a fair amount immediately. You haven't added a large amount of fish for a 55G tank.

When Ammonia and Nitrite dropped back to zero did you stock straight away? If you left it a day or so (without adding ammonia) then the bacteria will die off very quickly.

As advised, do large daily water changes to reduce ammonia and I hope all goes well for you.

Brian

 

[edgun88]

When Ammonia and Nitrite dropped back to zero did you stock straight away? If you left it a day or so (without adding ammonia) then the bacteria will die off very quickly.

Oh man , I waited about 4 days after my cycle was completed. Was that too long a wait? I'm going to do a water change again tomorrow, when I wake up. Hopefully that will clear things up again. Thanks for the info.


How long will it take the bacteria to regenerate because not all of it has died? ( there is nitrites and nitrates in tank )

 

[Sheridanp]

Possibly get some bio-spira if possible. That'll help.

 

[BHornsey]

Oh!

A 4 day wait was the problem. You should have kept up with ammonia dosing daily until the night before adding fish. An established bacteria colony will clear a 5ppm ammonia dose within a day (which is a very large load). However, after a further 24 hours without the colony starts to die back very quickly.

As for re-cycling, Ammonia reducing bacteria develop very quickly, within a day or two. It's the Nitrite reducing bacteria that are slow to grow, typically two to three times as slow, depending on temperature, pH and O2 levels.

Best you can do is keep up with water changes unless you have another tank you can transfer the fish to until it re-cycles.

Don't lose faith, we all trip up; it's the frustrating part of fish keeping. Once it's up and running the results are worthwhile.

Brian

 

[jonny-5]

the same happened to me a while ago and i bought some Nutrafin Cycle,dont really know if it worked or was coincidence but it seeem to do the trick i added 3 zebra danios and 2 neon tets to a 40 gallon the fish seemed instantly sick (sorry fishes) but i just did the water changes for a few days and it seemed to settle down and the fish are still alive today!!

 

[edgun88]

Oh!

A 4 day wait was the problem. You should have kept up with ammonia dosing daily until the night before adding fish. An established bacteria colony will clear a 5ppm ammonia dose within a day (which is a very large load). However, after a further 24 hours without the colony starts to die back very quickly.

As for re-cycling, Ammonia reducing bacteria develop very quickly, within a day or two. It's the Nitrite reducing bacteria that are slow to grow, typically two to three times as slow, depending on temperature, pH and O2 levels.

Best you can do is keep up with water changes unless you have another tank you can transfer the fish to until it re-cycles.

Don't lose faith, we all trip up; it's the frustrating part of fish keeping. Once it's up and running the results are worthwhile.

Brian

Wow man I had no idea about that, now it all makes sense. I did a 50% water change this moring and the fish seem to be doing alright. I'm going to the FS to get some of that stuff you recommended. Thanks again.

 

[jonny-5]

dont get me wrong though it wont cycle your tank any faster as that must still be done as you normally would,all is it will do is supplement bacteria on your filter pads for the fish you do have in there already,dont suppose it will hurt to try it though.Its not expensive and comes in handy for temp setups or transportation of fish.You musnt add anymore fish though until your stats are ok otherwise they will all become stressed or even die