Newbies and Ammonia Levels
Saturday August 30, 2008
From the forum, this newbie needs some advice .... "Hi - we purchased a 14 gallon tank for our daughter's birthday, although we all take care of the fish. We are totally new to fishkeeping, so have been poring over the web to make sure we don't do anything wrong. We have three small (1 1/2") fantail goldfish that are very lively and appear to be very happy. The water is always clear. We've had the setup for 23 days now and for the past five days the ammonia level has been hovering around .25 - .50 ppm. I changed 6 gallons on Day 18, which didn't change it at all. I changed 9 gallons at Day 19, which seemed to bring it down a bit, but since Day 20 through today, it's right between .25 and .50. I also did a 6 gallon change at Day 21. I have had zero nitrites for the entire time.
How long does the nitrogen cycle typically last for a setup like this? Should I be worried about the ammonia levels or change water more frequently? I'm planning to change out about 12 gallons this weekend. We only feed very small amounts of flake food once a day.
Thanks very much for any help and advice!"
Comments
Hi - just wanted to let you know I took Thelma’s advice and have only done a small water change since I posted my first notice on this issue. I will continue to monitor the water and do frequent small changes either daily or every other day. Any other advice would be most appreciated!
PS to Dano - I’m going to see about getting some gravel from a fish store, but have to find a reputable one in the area, as I don’t really trust the big chain stores on this issue….Thanks!