Help! Ammonia attack!

[banjowalker]

due to an accident, my tank was introduced to a massive amount of ammonia and it is cycling at the moment. I have done a 10 gallon water change and a 20 gallon water change and it doesn't seem to be helping the level of ammonia during testing. What are your opinions on what I should do? Continue to do water changes? just let it naturally go down and turn eventually into nitrates then a water change? I know there will be plenty of die off due to it, I just really need to know what to do since it is cycling and I do not want to have to redo everything. Thanks guys

 

[Oxylebius]

due to an accident, my tank was introduced to a massive amount of ammonia and it is cycling at the moment. I have done a 10 gallon water change and a 20 gallon water change and it doesn't seem to be helping the level of ammonia during testing.

This amount of water change is not going to make much difference. If you want to bring the ammonia down 50% of where it is now, you need to do a 50% water change.

What are your opinions on what I should do? Continue to do water changes? just let it naturally go down and turn eventually into nitrates then a water change?

If it is cycling, then having this extra amount of ammonia isn't necessarily a bad thing. You cycle may take a little longer, but may not b/c I'm assuming that you have already started the cycle some time ago which means you have some bacteria in the tank to help to break down the ammonia. By accidentally adding more ammonia you are essentially growing that bacteria colony even more.

I know there will be plenty of die off due to it, I just really need to know what to do since it is cycling and I do not want to have to redo everything.

Why do you say you will have die off? What critters do you have in the tank? Fish and inverts? You shouldn't add any fish or cuc to the tank while it cycles (critters come on live rock and there isn't much to do about them unfortunately).

 

[banjowalker]

This amount of water change is not going to make much difference. If you want to bring the ammonia down 50% of where it is now, you need to do a 50% water change.



If it is cycling, then having this extra amount of ammonia isn't necessarily a bad thing. You cycle may take a little longer, but may not b/c I'm assuming that you have already started the cycle some time ago which means you have some bacteria in the tank to help to break down the ammonia. By accidentally adding more ammonia you are essentially growing that bacteria colony even more.



Why do you say you will have die off? What critters do you have in the tank? Fish and inverts? You shouldn't add any fish or cuc to the tank while it cycles (critters come on live rock and there isn't much to do about them unfortunately).

I am going to let it run its course naturally and wait for it to go down on its own. I was referring to die off as in the bacterial colony will be huge when the ammonia is consumed, but I'm sure nothing will ever naturally produce this much ammonia so some of the bacteria will die off. I have nothing live in the tank

 

[Oxylebius]

Okay, glad to hear you don't have fish or cuc in there. The tank should be plenty ready for a fish after this cycle

 

[Oxylebius]

I am going to let it run its course naturally and wait for it to go down on its own. I was referring to die off as in the bacterial colony will be huge when the ammonia is consumed, but I'm sure nothing will ever naturally produce this much ammonia so some of the bacteria will die off. I have nothing live in the tank

The bacteria levels in your tank will continuously grow and diminish depending on your bioload. This is normal. This is also why it is recommended to add one fish a month, so that the bacteria colony can grow to help accommodate the increase in bioload in the tank.

 

[banjowalker]

Okay, glad to hear you don't have fish or cuc in there. The tank should be plenty ready for a fish after this cycle

Haha this thing should be bulletproof! [emoji12] If it takes a little longer to cycle so be it. I am enjoying looking at the tank already haha

 

[banjowalker]

The bacteria levels in your tank will continuously grow and diminish depending on your bioload. This is normal. This is also why it is recommended to add one fish a month, so that the bacteria colony can grow to help accommodate the increase in bioload in the tank.

OK great. I plan to quarantine my fish and do tank transfer method on them as well so it will be a long process. And I am not going to purchase fish until im sure it's done cycling. It wont hurt to add live rock now will it?

 

[banjowalker]

Trites are rising, hopefully the ammonia is continuing to fall. Day 7

 

[Festerx]

Wow, that is a lot of ammonia like you said, should be a nice strong cycle.

 

[banjowalker]

I'm at a loss for words. This is 2 days with no water changes or anything. The ammonia has dropped that much! Trites and trates are also rising. Maybe that much ammonia was a good thing

 

[Luukosian]

Sometimes the hardest part of the hobby is the wait. The bacteria in your tank will naturally turn ammonia into nitrite then nitrate. Adding live rock is probably a good idea to make sure it's all cured and ready to go for clean up crews and fish. If you add the rock after the cycle you will end up with another mini-cycle depending on how cured the rock is. As an added bonus the rock will add more surface area for bacteria(aerobic and anaerobic) to form on.

 

[banjowalker]

Sometimes the hardest part of the hobby is the wait. The bacteria in your tank will naturally turn ammonia into nitrite then nitrate. Adding live rock is probably a good idea to make sure it's all cured and ready to go for clean up crews and fish. If you add the rock after the cycle you will end up with another mini-cycle depending on how cured the rock is. As an added bonus the rock will add more surface area for bacteria(aerobic and anaerobic) to form on.

I want to add live rock, but I also do not want to introduce any chance of ich, or any parasites into my tank. I know curing helps this process but nowhere around here cures the live rock.

 

[DaveK]

Live rock is something you really need to cure yourself, unless you can buy it out of an established reef system.

So get yourself a large rubbermaid round trash can, a heater and one or two powerheads, and set it up with SW, as a curing vat for live rock. Add your new LR and let it cure there for about 8 to 10 weeks. That will take care of the common parasites. You still could have other hitchhikers.

You could also use the same arrangement for dry base rock, and add a raw shrimp from the seafood section of your local grocery store. It will decal and cause a bacteria bloom. When you see ammonia and nitrite drop to zero, the rock is well on it's way and you can use it.

 

[bullet]

Our LFS has some really nice LR its cured in tanks so it never has a chance to get the bad critters you are worried about it costs a little bit more but is well worth the cost in the long run also did you add sand yet? by the look of your pic it only appears that there is only water in it, if you haven't now is the time to along with even a 5lb hunk LR to get things flowing

 

[banjowalker]

Our LFS has some really nice LR its cured in tanks so it never has a chance to get the bad critters you are worried about it costs a little bit more but is well worth the cost in the long run also did you add sand yet? by the look of your pic it only appears that there is only water in it, if you haven't now is the time to along with even a 5lb hunk LR to get things flowing

I have 70 lbs of sand in the tank and 50 lbs of base rock. Where is your lfs located at?

 

[bullet]

its called Aqua Dreams located in Feeding Hills, MA right up the road from CT

 

[banjowalker]

its called Aqua Dreams located in Feeding Hills, MA right up the road from CT

I would hate to know how much shipping would be, and the amount of die off

 

[bullet]

I am lucky as they are only 5 minutes from the house but they ship all over the country
and now would probably be better than in the summer when its hot you can always give them
a call their number is on their facebook and web page

 

[DaveK]

Any decent LR that you ship any distance is going to have quite a bit of die off. This just can't be helped. It's just the "nature of the beast". This means you will need to cure it, and unless it's a new tank, you'll need to curew it in an external container.

Shipping livestock can be really iffy in winter. Storms and such can cause major delays, and you end up with a box of very dead livestock. Many dealers will replace it, but even so, you need to file a claim right away, and wait for a reshipment. Summer can be just as bad with the heat. The good part here is that there isn't much in the way of snow.

If at all possible, it's best to ship livestock in spring or fall. Temps are moderate and a delay may not kill everything.