My Tank Won't Cycle

[ProduceGuy]

I have a 10 gallon tank with sand and a lot of live plants (mostly guppy grass). It contains one male guppy and a couple snails, which turned into tons of snails. They came with the guppy grass. The tank is completing week 5 and the fish is very healthy and the plants are growing like crazy! Problem is.... my waters ammonia and nitrates have not risen in 5 weeks! I have not changed the original filter and I have done no water changes. What's going on? Shouldn't it having completed it's cycle by now? Please help.

 

[Aquaman187]

You need to do a water change on a new tank abotu every 2 days and it sounds like you are overloading your filter with all the extra snails..

 

[HayzH]

was it a new filter? you fish will be producing the ammonia that your filter needs. just continue daily waterchanges. What are you testing the water with? which test kit?
The snails multiply faster if you give then plenty of food to eat, you maybe over feeding your fish. Have you any algae problems?

 

[ProduceGuy]

Well... I was waiting for the ammonia and nitrates to raise a bit before I start the water changes. But that's never happened.

Yes, it was a new filter. It was a new setup in everyway.

Could the live plants be removing the ammonia and nitrates naturally??? Is ONE guppy enough to get the cycle going?

I'm using a Jungle brand tester.

I wish I had removed the couple of snails that came on my plants in the beginning. I had no idea they would reproduce the way they do. Is there a way to get rid of them??? I'm not sure I could ever physically remove them all now.

No algae problems. Very moderate/normal amounts.

 

[CezzaXV]

There have been occasions where if a tank is heavily planted, the plants will absorb the waste products rather than allowing the bacteria to grow. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, but it does mean that you'll have to be careful as you add more to the tank. It seems that it's possibly the case that the single guppy is producing less waste than the plants are able to absorb. I'd be inclined to add a few more guppies and see what happens.

As for removing the snails, I've not done it myself, but a lot of people here recommend leaving in a lettuce leaf overnight, then when you wake up in the morning all the snails will be on it and easy to dispose of. I crush the occasional ones I find in my tank - my fish will fight for the remains! I wish they made crushed snails I could buy to feed them!

 

[ProduceGuy]

Ok. I will add another guppy and see what happens.

I tried the lettuce in the jar trick last night. Not a single snail went for it. I guess when they have a tank full of live plants, lettuce doens't seem all the appealing???

 

[CezzaXV]

You don't need to leave it in a jar, just sunk at the bottom (use a rock or whatever's necessary to weigh it down. If that doesn't work you'll be forced to pick them out. Some LFS sell special stuff which is supposed to kill pest snails, but that many dead snails all at once can cause a massive ammonia spike when they start rotting which is bad enough in an established tank, let alone one in which isn't cycled properly.

 

[HayzH]

i crush all i can see when i do waterchanges. Be careful how much you feed the guppy (and one more if you buy it) their stomachs are as big as their eyes!

 

[ProduceGuy]

Will do! Thanks everyone!