The Nitrate Workout

[lolobunnz]

I have a 29 gallon cycling tank. My Platy had babies to which I have found 3 and put them in a breeder net with some java moss. The upstairs tank is not mine but has been running for years. The owner of said tank wants to adopt my Platy fry and I would love to get them into that fully cycled tank. I have now been testing that tank to make sure things are great for my fry. Ammo 0 trites 0 and trates blood red, off the charts.

This tank I have seen for 5 years. I don't think I ever saw anyone ever do a water change on it the entire time. They only had put more water into the tank when it evaporates enough. This tank looks like a 35ish gallon bow front. It has an undergravel filter. It used to have 2 large cichlids in it and a 6-7 inch pleco. The 3 fish have been living for years in this tank. The water is super yellow. The pleco is the only one left. The others have passed on and once found a baby cich in there and it grew for only a bit and then disappeared.

I have been doing 50% water changes daily and sucking everything out of the rocks and below. I have a 5 gallon bucket and have to carry it across the living room, open the door, across the deck down the stairs and dump it into the garden. That is two trips each time followed by two trips filling up the bucket and dumping it into the tank. . This is the 5th day in row that I have been doing this and the ppm for the trates have finally went down from blood read to a readable 80ppm.

Is there anything I could do with the equipment that they have currently in the tank to get the nitrates to a nice level for the fry and the pleco? Or should just a few more days of this do the trick? Is the large pleco going to keep the nitrates sky high due to his size and I have to get something to adequately combat that?

Any info is much appreciated.


Oh and I forgot to mention that the first 3-4 times I was getting A LOT of stuff up from the gravel and the filter grate. plenty. Now there is barely anything but here and there i will move the gravel just right and get in to the right spot and there will be a nice big brown cloud of poo getting sucked away.

 

[Ruskull]

First, I'd look to re home the Pleco, especially if it's a common Pleco as they get far too large for that tank. A Pleco might have eaten the Cichlid fry depending on how small it was, and he would probably eat your fry as well. After you re home the Pleco you can drain all the water and do a single almost 100% water change. As long as you refill with dechlorinated water your nitrates should be at a really low point. You can also get some plants, Moss balls, etc. to help keep your nitrates lower.

I would imagine the filter is probably cycled but it could use a good cleaning as well. Just make sure you don't throw out the good bacteria when the old sponges, cartridges or whatever.

 

[lolobunnz]

He may not want to get rid of the pleco because they have had it forever. He is not the most fish savy person and I am teaching him things but don't want to step on his toes. I will push for the pleco to be moved later on down the road. This is an undergravel filter. I have no idea about them and don't want to mess with it much. I was just wondering if I should be messing with it or if I keep doing a few more vaccuumings with wcs that I will eventually get to good levels?

 

[Ruskull]

Yes, but you're doing it the slow, sloppy way. It's better for the pleco anyway if he's going to stay, because you don't want to shock him with too much of a change all at once. There could be a pretty big change to the pH in the tank.

How big is the Pleco & what does he look like? Pics would help.

 

[lolobunnz]

So which way is the quicker way without ripping up the undergravel filter? I can't find where a different way was said, srry.

Here is a picture. The lights are all off upstairs so I turned the tank on and he was out, snapped a pic and turned the lights off and left. There are also 3 rainbow sharks in the tank that he just got the other day. You can see one towards the bottom end of the left rock part of the 'cave'.

Hope this is big enough to see what kind he is-

 

[lolobunnz]

Oh, do a 100% change!

 

[Ruskull]

That's a big Pleco

and that tank looks more like a 26 gallon Bowfront. What are the dimensions? A 36 gallon is exactly 30.375 wide from the outside.

 

[lolobunnz]

The tank is approximately 20.5 inches high 10.25 length and 26 inches wide.

Any clue what kind of pleco he is and how big he will get?

My mom is getting me a 50 gallon 4 ft long tank. Could he live in there happy for the rest of his life?

 

[Ruskull]

It might be a common Pleco & they can get 18-24 inches long! I'm sure he could live in a 4 foot 50 gallon tank but he'd be better off in a bigger tank, especially since a 50 gallon is only 13 inches deep (from the wall.)

...........and yes, I think that's a 26 gallon bowfront, not a 36.

 

[lolobunnz]

Thanks so much ruskull. I will find him a new home. Even tho we will all miss him!