Where am I in the cycle.

[Nora]

Hey all, i have redone my tank getting ready to add a new betta.

5 gal.  Half the substrate (stratum) was from the previous set up plus new stratum and a bit of new sand.  1.5 gal of water were from the old tank the rest is new treated with Prime.  Most of the hardscape is from the previous, some of the plants as well.  New filter.I currently have 3 mid sized mystery snails and 1 nerite snail in there.  

Its been set up one week and here are the numbers prior to removing and replacing one gal.

Heres the numbers: PH: 6.6, Ammonia: 4.0ppm, Nitrite: 2.0-3.0ppm, Nitrate: 5.0ppm. 

So am I at the point in the cycle where the conversion is happening or is my tank in trouble?  Some of the leaves on my anubia and looking bad but im not sure if thats the snails or water.

[Tony s]

I would change water by half and get the ammonia down to 2. More than that can be toxic to plants even.  If your plants or substrate dried out before installing in a new tank it died on you. It sound like you are barely starting a cycle at this point. Although you do have some nitrates. If you’re dosing ammonia, you could be using too much. I would try to get the ammonia down to 2 and see how many days it takes to clear. Without adding any more. If you’re cycled it shouldn’t take long.  Hopefully by lowering the ammonia, your anubias starts to perk up.

Above 2 may even stall or stop your cycle 

[CoryWithAKatana]

You say your Nitrites are 2.0-3.0ppm?? That could be stressful to your fish/snails. The ideal nitrites is 0ppm-0.2ppm. I would recommend waiting a few more weeks for those Nitrites to turn into nitrates as your bacteria from the old water and substrate process it. To avoid your betta being stressed and losing coloration and personality I would wait. Here is an article I found helpful: https://www.co2art.us/blogs/blog/how-long-does-it-take-to-cycle-a-tank#:~:text=However%2C as a general rule,an additional week or two.

Also 6.6 pH is kind of acidic Regular water changes can help increase it. The ideal pH is around 7.0-8.0

Ammonia is the build up of fish wage that can be very harmful to fish. The ideal ammonia is 0ppm. For a betta tank I would recommend a bubble filter. Bubble filters have foam around the base where Nitrifying Bacteria love to grow, these beneficial bacteria break down your ammonia into Nitrites which after a few week will break down into nitrates. The ideal Nitrates is around 0-20ppm. Cycling tanks does take some patience so don't get impatient and hurt your fish

Edited May 6 by CoryKeeper

[Tony s]

On 5/6/2024 at 9:50 AM, CoryKeeper said:

Also 6.6 pH is kind of acidic Regular water changes can help increase it. The ideal pH is around 7.0-8.0

That all depends on what part of the country you’re from. Ph around 6 is perfectly normal for parts of the east coast. Pacific Northwest. And gulf coast. And they can do things with fish that we cannot. There are a lot of South American fish that come from very low ph water. 

[CoryWithAKatana]

On 5/6/2024 at 10:08 AM, Tony s said:

That all depends on what part of the country you’re from. Ph around 6 is perfectly normal for parts of the east coast. Pacific Northwest. And gulf coast. And they can do things with fish that we cannot. There are a lot of South American fish that come from very low ph water. 

Thats true..I was being a bit petty with it. My pH is around 7.6 so I thought this was the average for everyone 😅

[Tony s]

On 5/6/2024 at 9:28 AM, Nora said:

I currently have 3 mid sized mystery snails and 1 nerite snail in there.  

Yeah I missed this the first time. I’d get them out of there until the situation has resolved. Even a bowl or pitcher with clean water would keep them alive for now 

On 5/6/2024 at 10:10 AM, CoryKeeper said:

My pH is around 7.6 so I thought this was the average for everyone 😅

And some of the others think their water is normal also. I have the ph 8. But have iron in the well. So am stuck using ro water and remineralizing everything. 

Edited May 6 by Tony s

[Nora]

On 5/6/2024 at 10:11 AM, Tony s said:

Yeah I missed this the first time. I’d get them out of there until the situation has resolved. Even a bowl or pitcher with clean water would keep them alive for now 

And some of the others think their water is normal also. I have the ph 8. But have iron in the well. So am stuck using ro water and remineralizing everything. 

Thanks all.  Ive got a 2.5 gal tank that I had for trying to raise snails when we had a pea puffer, Ill move the snails to that.  Yeah believe it or not NYC has awesome water, although its usually closer to 7, so not sure about why its dipped.  I did dry out the stratum before putting it back in (to deal with the dust) so oops.  

[CoryWithAKatana]

oops indeed

[Nora]

Update: I removed the anubia on the rock and snails to a smaller tank with fresh water simply treated with prime, and well 2 died overnight.  

After a 50% water change the numbers are as follows:

PH: 6.6, Nitrite: 2.00ppm, Nitrate: 5.0ppm, Ammonia:  1.0ppm.  So really the only thing that got better was the Ammonia.  So, am I correct that I should just keep doing the water changes until I get to the right numbers?  

RIP speedy and ghost.  

[Tony s]

On 5/8/2024 at 6:52 PM, Nora said:

So, am I correct that I should just keep doing the water changes until I get to the right numbers?

Sorry to hear about your animals 😪 At this point, It's just a waiting game. your ammonia is down low enough for your tank to cycle. It just takes time. If anything, I might add a bit more bacteria for a bit of a boost. If you change water at this point you could actually begin starving your bacteria colony.