Jump to content

missing nitrite cycle


ineke

Recommended Posts

  • HOF Member

Thanks Newbreed I prefer having them vertical but with that tank I used to have under gravel filter with one outlet and a sponge filter it worked well but had poor circulation so I put the heater in horizontal with an airstone under it . Now with the canister the water moves strongly by itself but I didn't realise it. All fixed now but I don't really like the look of the sponge filters however Dean said you either have a pretty tank with shrimp in it or you have a tank to breed shrimp in so sponge filters are there to stay:encouragement:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Replies 111
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

  • ineke

    59

  • ninja

    13

  • torface

    13

  • Squiggle

    10

Top Posters In This Topic

  • HOF Member

We will get you to 700 tonight woohoo way to go!

The tank has plenty of moss for the babies and plenty of grazing space for the others. That's as un fancy as I can do;)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • HOF Member

Come on Ninja we need some more posts to add some excitement tonight.:congratulatory:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

+1 Woohoo for excitement (in case Ninja holds out)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • HOF Member

You know she's lurking dont you hope I don't have to wait all night she is in WA long way behind us in time!:D

Link to comment
Share on other sites

she's normally a bit slow, isn't she?

;)

See if that gets a response.....

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • HOF Member

Ooo ahh you are living dangerously Newbreed she is a Ninja and strikes unexpectedly:)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Ok good night before she kills me..................................

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • HOF Member

So will you Ninja catch you tomorrow :encouragement:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...
  • HOF Member

So my tank is almost there ammonia 0.25, nitrate 5 but while I'm waiting I set up a new tank Friday night it is a 20" . I put 2 sponge filters, plants, golden vine all from a mature tank . Half of the fluval is from another mature tank and half new, half of the water is from a mature tank half new RO. This morning after 36 hours of filtering the WP's are amonnia 0 -down from 0.25 yesterday, nitrite 0, nitrate 5. I used stability as well so everything looks good but is it safe to add my shrimp that quickly? I'm using this tank for my chocolates to get them out of my cube where it is almost impossible to see them.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Ineke, that tank is taking too long, is there something in there that could be contributing to the ammonia?

Are you adding bacteria?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • HOF Member

I was told a new canister can take 6 weeks its now just over 5. I'm washing my filters from other tanks in the water, adding a bit of food not much, and I used stability. There is nothing new in the tank that hasn't been used in other tanks, there's plants, golden vine only new things are the filter which was seeded with some material from other filters and the benibachi soil, even the sponge filters are from other tanks. It is almost there with a bit of improvement in the ammonia it is a very very light green just not quite yellow.

I was going to give it another week and then do a water change. I'm being very patient which is unusual for me.Any thoughts on what else I can do. I don't want to open the canister if not necessary.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

If it is improving ok, but it seems to have been on 0.25 for a long time now and your nitrates are not going up either. Got a heater working in there?

By the way, how many tanks does that make with the new 20" one? Lol

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • HOF Member

I've got a heater in there, the nitrates have come down from 10 but I haven't been checking them so don't know how high they got. The ammonia is ever so slowly coming down it was probably closer to 0.50 before than 0.25. Last time it stalled I did a big water change -as per instructions from another member and that got it moving. I had the heater up around 25 for a while but it's down to 23 now. I will see what it does over the next few days.

The 20" is to replace the cube, I also have another 20 " to replace the other cube and is for the tibees who are sharing another tank with the rillis but even with that tank all stopped up with filter wool I found a tibee on the floor yesterday so the 20" will be taped shut!!!!!!!!, the little mini tank is not in use now so when I set up the other 20" and take out both cubes I will still only have 5 tanks with the cubes only being used for any selective breeding down the track. I am sick of getting shrimp out of the sumps of the cubes -I have put all sorts of barriers in them but they still get in there so I am going to pull the sumps out to give the full 30x30 space to the shrimp.

I don't know what selective breeding I will be doing but the cubes will be ideal. (so I guess all up including the mini, the cubes and the large fish tank I have 8 tanks because we all know I will end up using the cubes;))

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • HOF Member

<a href=%7Boption%7Dhttp://i1293.photobucket.com/albums/b583/ineke24/2013-03-25093825_zps05f67a04.jpg' alt='2013-03-25093825_zps05f67a04.jpg'>

The black bit at the back of the cube on the right is the sump. It is a divider in which filter media, pump and heater sit so the filtration is 2 stage with sponge then noodles and then the last section is for the heater and pump which pulls the water through a small grid and filter medium and then out into the tank.

I don't have a better picture just now

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Cute tanks, I suppose you need to keep the water level high to keep the filter working?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • HOF Member

Yes thats the problem with them can't lower the water. They were the first tanks I bought for the shrimp and soon realised I had made a mistake. I love the look and once the sump is gone I can lower the water and tape the airline hole and they should be safe.

I was going to get 24 inch tanks this time but couldn't get any locally so thought the 20 inch is ok they hold just over 30 litres so hopefully should be OK. I don't like the wasted space of the bigger tanks as they get so deep. I got 2 tanks for $82 and was happy with that.

Back to my original question as the readings are all within safe limits can I use the 20" tank even though it's so new?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • HOF Member

Yeah that's what i thought. I will check the nitrites again in a few days to make sure there are no spikes but there aren't many of them so should be ok. Then I will set the other one up and let that cycle a bit longer for the tibees or the rillis not sure as the tibees seem happy in the tank they are in, thats the one they bred in. Just need to plug the escape hatch!!!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • HOF Member

ok guys and girls time to get serious I'm very frustrated with this 30" tank. It has been cycling with a new canister for nearly 6 weeks (6 weeks friday) The ammonia is still 0.25 and has been there for a while. I did a water change as recommended when it first stalled, I have washed out filter material from other tanks in there, The heat was turned up but now back to 22-23, I have seachem matrix in the canister along with sponges and noodles, I have been using stability in there. I occasionally put a tiny bit of food in but very little. It has sponge filters running as well. There are plants growing, mosses growing etc. I know patience is a big thing but I think it has run out!!!

Any idea what to do now? If it would help I could put a few tropical fish in there as the ammonia isn't high enough to bother them now but I am at the end of my knowledge PLEASE HELP ME:(

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now

  • Join Our Community!

    Register today, ask questions and share your shrimp and fish tank experiences with us!

  • Must Read SKF Articles

  • Posts

    • beanbag
      Update to say that after a few gravel vacs, front wall scrub, moss / floating plant trim, that the condition seems to have improved.  My current theory is that it is due to waste / debris management, where "stuff" like that brown mulm accumulates in the substrate and behind the HMF filters.  Maybe some tanks can somehow deal with it, but mine can't.  Also another experienced shrimper suggested that maybe those "shell bugs" don't just live on the shrimps but also in this debris.  Maybe this is the reason some tanks fail due to "old tank syndrome" where all they need is a good gravel vac? Also, I am guessing that plant trim helps too because now more of the nutrients and light go into growing algae instead of more plants? Well anyway for this tank I will try weekly water change and monthly gravel vac / plant trim.  For my next tank, I'm thinking of something like an under-gravel system where this mulm can fall down and I vac it out.
    • sdlTBfanUK
      Good to have an update and good to hear you are getting shrimplets, so hopefully your colony will continue and you may not get to the point where you have to cull some to stop over population. These type of shrimp only live 12 - 18 months so the adult deaths may be natural? If you have the time I would do weekly 25% water changes, adding the new water via a drip system and do some vacuuming clean of the substrate each week, even if only a different bit each week! See if that helps in a few months and if it does then stick with that regime? It should help reduce any build-ups that may be occuring!
    • beanbag
      Hello again, much belated update: The tank still has "cycles" of 1-2 month "good streaks" where everybody seems to be doing well, and then a bad streak where the short antenna problem shows up again, and a shrimp dies once every few days.  I am not sure what causes things to go bad, but usually over the course of a few days I will start to see more shrimp quietly standing on the HMF filter, and so I know something is wrong.  Since I am not "doing anything" besides the regular 1-2 week water changes, I just assume that something bad is building up.  Here's a list of things that I've tried that are supposed to be "can't hurt" but didn't prevent the problem either: Dose every other day with Shrimp Fit (very small dose, and the shrimp seem to like it) Sotching Oxydator Seachem Purigen to keep the nitrates lower Keeping the pH below 5.5 with peat Things that I don't do often, so could possibly "reset" the tank back to a good streak, are gravel vac and plant trim, so maybe time to try those again. One other problem I used to have was that sometimes a shrimp would suddenly stop eating with a full or partially full digestive tract that doesn't clear out, and then the shrimp will die within a few days.  I suspected it was one of the foods in my rotation - Shrimp Nature Infection, which contains a bunch of herbal plant things.  I've had this in my food rotation for a few years now and generally didn't seem to cause problems, but I removed it from the rotation anyway.  I don't have a lot of adult Golden Bees at this point so I can't really tell if it worked or not. Overall the tank is not too bad - during the good streaks occasionally a shrimp will get berried and hatch babies with a 33-50% survival rate.  So while there are fewer adults now, there are also a bunch of babies roaming around.  I guess this tank will stagger on, but I really do need to take the time to start up a new tank.  (or figure out the problem)
    • jayc
      If that is the offspring, then the parents are unlikely to be PRL. I tend to agree with you. There are very few PRLs in Australia. And any that claim to be needs to show proof. PRL genes have to start as PRL. CRS that breed true after x generations doesn't turn it into a PRL. Neither can a Taiwan bee shrimp turn into a PRL despite how ever many generations. I've never seen a PRL with that sort of red colour. I have on Red Wines and Red Shadows - Taiwan bee shrimps. So somewhere down the line one of your shrimp might have been mixed with Taiwan bees and is no longer PRL. It just tanks one shrimp to mess up the genes of a whole colony. 
    • sdlTBfanUK
      Sorry, missed this one somehow! The PRL look fantastic and the odd ones look part PRL and part Red wine/Red shadow in the colour. They are still very beautiful but ideally should be seperated to help keep the PRL clean if you can do that.  Nice clear photos!
×
×
  • Create New...