# Never Cycled 20 gallon Tanganyika Tank Help!



## mattgrizzlybear (Dec 5, 2015)

Hello! I'm new to the forum and fairly new to the fishkeeping hobby and as a newbie I never cycled my first fish tank. So far only one fish has died and that was when i went on vacation and my friend feeding them overfed them. That's when the mess started. Multiple times i have tried cleaning it and adding stuff for "problem tanks" to help but still no luck.I have 4 Shell Dwellers and a breeding pair of Julidochromis Ornatus (that havent bred yet). The tank has been up for over 8 months. I was wondering what I should do? Thank you for the help!


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

Get a liquid test kit like API Freshwater and post test results for pH, ammonia, nitrite and nitrate.

Avoid additives.

Likely the next step will be to change water, but we need to see the test results first (don't rely on LFS testing or strips).


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## Razzo (Oct 17, 2007)

+1 on the API Freshwater Master Test Kit!

I would think an eight month old tank should be cycled. Perhaps the extra food increased the bio load beyond what your nitrfying bacteria colony could handle?

I bottle of SeaChem Stability will get you out of trouble in an ammonia spike. It will reinforce your good bacteria and take the edge off the ammonia spike so that levels are not lethal while your cycle catches up.

Those test results will enable people to start helping you. Most LFS carry that test kit including a Petsmart and Petco.

Russ


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## mattgrizzlybear (Dec 5, 2015)

Ok i will test it once i get home, i posted this on the fly


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## mattgrizzlybear (Dec 5, 2015)

Razzo said:


> +1 on the API Freshwater Master Test Kit!
> 
> I would think an eight month old tank should be cycled. Perhaps the extra food increased the bio load beyond what your nitrfying bacteria colony could handle?
> 
> ...


Ok i tested it and it seems to be cycled with ammonia at .25, nitrite and nitrate at 0. Any other problems that could have caused it? I will be posting a picture as soon as i figure out how (lol)


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

Nitrate should not be zero in a cycled tank...did you shake the bottle exactly as directed?


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## mattgrizzlybear (Dec 5, 2015)

DJRansome said:


> Nitrate should not be zero in a cycled tank...did you shake the bottle exactly as directed?


I will test it again


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## mattgrizzlybear (Dec 5, 2015)

DJRansome said:


> Nitrate should not be zero in a cycled tank...did you shake the bottle exactly as directed?


It still reads 0. Weird.


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

What additives did you put in there? When was your last water change and how much?


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## Razzo (Oct 17, 2007)

DJRansome said:


> What additives did you put in there? When was your last water change and how much?


+1 need to know this.


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## Razzo (Oct 17, 2007)

Ammonia should be zero, this tank is not cycled. API Ammonia is an easy test. Nitrate test has a few steps. Bottle 1, shake for specified time, add bottle #2, shake for one minute and wait five minutes for results.


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## mattgrizzlybear (Dec 5, 2015)

Razzo said:


> Ammonia should be zero, this tank is not cycled. API Ammonia is an easy test. Nitrate test has a few steps. Bottle 1, shake for specified time, add bottle #2, shake for one minute and wait five minutes for results.


I have the api master test kit. I will do a retest maybe i read it wrong


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## mattgrizzlybear (Dec 5, 2015)

DJRansome said:


> What additives did you put in there? When was your last water change and how much?


I do biweekly to weekly waterchanges for about 25-35%. The additives were just a natural soultion for problem tanks.


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

Specify the brand of all the additives you added...maybe they mask nitrate?


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## mattgrizzlybear (Dec 5, 2015)

Razzo said:


> Ammonia should be zero, this tank is not cycled. API Ammonia is an easy test. Nitrate test has a few steps. Bottle 1, shake for specified time, add bottle #2, shake for one minute and wait five minutes for results.


Ok i retested again and i got 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite, and between 0 and 10ppm of nitrate.


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## mattgrizzlybear (Dec 5, 2015)

DJRansome said:


> Specify the brand of all the additives you added...maybe they mask nitrate?


It is called "ultraclear ssp" it has live bacteria but is for problem ponds


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

Then it sounds like there is nothing wrong with the cycle and you need to look for other causes of any issues.


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## mattgrizzlybear (Dec 5, 2015)

DJRansome said:


> Then it sounds like there is nothing wrong with the cycle and you need to look for other causes of any issues.


Well i do have bad algae that is growing like a carpet over my sand (pool filter sand) that is tge main problem. Do you have any tips on that or should i make a new post


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

Sounds like cyanobacteria or blue-green slime algae.

How is your circulation? What type of light bulbs do you have and when was the last time you changed them? Do you have any plants in the tank that are not doing all that well?


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## mattgrizzlybear (Dec 5, 2015)

DJRansome said:


> Sounds like cyanobacteria or blue-green slime algae.
> 
> How is your circulation? What type of light bulbs do you have and when was the last time you changed them? Do you have any plants in the tank that are not doing all that well?


Circulation is good lots of air in the tank, i just have a regular old flourescent tube light that i havent changed since i got the tank, and no plants in the tank


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## Razzo (Oct 17, 2007)

So what exactly is the problem? Is it this algae? What exactly is it you are trying to fix?

A friend over fed the tank, a fish died (fish do just die some times). You may or may not have had some funky test readings? The over feeding could have caused some ammonia.

Old fluorescent bulbs can loose spectrum and contribute to an algae proble.


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## mattgrizzlybear (Dec 5, 2015)

Razzo said:


> So what exactly is the problem? Is it this algae? What exactly is it you are trying to fix?
> 
> A friend over fed the tank, a fish died (fish do just die some times). You may or may not have had some funky test readings? The over feeding could have caused some ammonia.
> 
> Old fluorescent bulbs can loose spectrum and contribute to an algae proble.


Yes the algae then. Its just like a blanket covering the sand and will not go away


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

Physically remove it and put new bulbs in your light fixture.


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