What am I doing wrong?

[skjl47]

So a follow up question, I kept the tank bare bottom. Is this part of the issue, and if so will the tank still be able to creat BB with a gravel/sand bottom?

Hello; Bare bottom or gravel /sand will not make any difference as far as the colonization of the bb goes. There is some advantage to a bare bottom in that you will be able to clean up the detritus/ mulm (aka poo and such) much easier because you can see the stuff. ( one more tid-bit - you are the clean up crew. Catfish nor filters will do this part for you. In fact some catfish, plecos, just make it worse.)

I stopped using sand (at least the finer sand) decades ago. I use substrate from bb to small pea size.

I also am still using UGF under my substrate and run them with air.

 

[quasar]

Hello; Bare bottom or gravel /sand will not make any difference as far as the colonization of the bb goes. There is some advantage to a bare bottom in that you will be able to clean up the detritus/ mulm (aka poo and such) much easier because you can see the stuff. ( one more tid-bit - you are the clean up crew. Catfish nor filters will do this part for you. In fact some catfish, plecos, just make it worse.)

I stopped using sand (at least the finer sand) decades ago. I use substrate from bb to small pea size.

I also am still using UGF under my substrate and run them with air.

Ya I learned Plecos don't help the hard way. I had a common pleco in my old 80g and it hit 14" in like 4 months. The thing shat so much that there were points where the string of poo was going directly from the fish to the filter intake (as one solid string).

 

[quasar]

Hello; Bare bottom or gravel /sand will not make any difference as far as the colonization of the bb goes. There is some advantage to a bare bottom in that you will be able to clean up the detritus/ mulm (aka poo and such) much easier because you can see the stuff. ( one more tid-bit - you are the clean up crew. Catfish nor filters will do this part for you. In fact some catfish, plecos, just make it worse.)

I stopped using sand (at least the finer sand) decades ago. I use substrate from bb to small pea size.

I also am still using UGF under my substrate and run them with air.

I also wanted to ask, are the Nutrafin products good? I got a 4L bottle of Nutrafin water conditioner and I find that the water quality got worse (not that it was a great point to begin with) vs when I was using Seachem. Are they bad products, or am I just imagining it?

 

[skjl47]

I also wanted to ask, are the Nutrafin products good? I got a 4L bottle of Nutrafin water conditioner and I find that the water quality got worse (not that it was a great point to begin with) vs when I was using Seachem. Are they bad products, or am I just imagining it?

Hello; This I cannot comment about. I have used seachem PRIME lately but not nutrafin. Nutrafin may be fine I just do not know.

 

[JAYBIRD1011]

Go on the web and see if you can find a localish aquaria club and see if anyone would be willing to share some bio-media with you.
Also goldfish produce tons of amonia. They will transfer to a pond or makeshift container easily enough.

 

[duanes]

New tanks commonly have bacterial blooms (especially the non-cycled ones) which make water cloudy.
The only thing to do is wait them out, because once the tank is cycled and reaches equilibrium, they usually disappear (unless you keep fiddling with it).
The bacteria are too small to be filtered out so pass right thru any filter (doesn't matter how good the make, or reputation, or type).
Even with those cycle starters, it could take 5 to 8 weeks for your tank to reach an equilibrium and become properly cycled, the more you mess with stuff, (like media, or like changing out filters) the longer it takes, and often delays the cycle.

 

[quasar]

New tanks commonly have bacterial blooms (especially the non-cycled ones) which make water cloudy.
The only thing to do is wait them out, because once the tank is cycled and reaches equilibrium, they usually disappear (unless you keep fiddling with it).
The bacteria are too small to be filtered out so pass right thru any filter (doesn't matter how good the make, or reputation, or type).
Even with those cycle starters, it could take 5 to 8 weeks for your tank to reach an equilibrium and become properly cycled, the more you mess with stuff, (like media, or like changing out filters) the longer it takes, and often delays the cycle.

So best bet is just leave it alone and do WCs? Is a 50/60% wc to drastic?

Also, I was wondering if I should change the medi in the SunSun to just bioballs+bio rings to help the BB growth. Right now there's only sponges and the only bio rings are in one tray o fthe fx 6(basically what the box came with). Should I bother doing this? Or does BB build up in sponges regardless?

 

[skjl47]

Hello; While there is a general concept now days that the bb will be mainly found on special media (what is called bio-media) inside of power filters, that has not been my experience.
I ran tanks for over a decade before I saw my first power filter. I ran them with simple sponges. I ran them with only UGF's and still do. What I am saying is the bb will populate some surfaces in the tank no matter what you do.

I do go along with the idea that water flow with oxygen rich water is an aid and that those two conditions will exist in a power filter. So yes dedicated new bio-media may eventually be well colonized with bb, but that is not your problem right now. Your problem now is that you added a number of fish to a tank that is not cycled.

My take you need to keep up with WC and give what you have more time. Changing media now will set you back in terms of time. Go back and read the links I posted. Pay attention to the "fish in cycle" parts since that is what you are doing. In effect you tanks is a ways from being properly established and the fish now in it are basically being sacrificed as part of the process of getting it established. Do not get more fish until the tank is fully cycled.
I did not see any water test numbers but when the ammonia and nitrite are at zero and you have some nitrates then the tank will be cycled.
Some of the fish you now have may survive exposure to ammonia and nitrite but are likely to be damaged. They are already present but please do not add more before the cycle is done.

 

[FreshyFresh]

I'm not sure I agree on the bare bottom tank not effecting your beneficial bacteria. I know the majority of it thrives on your filtration bio media, but it should also be all over the surfaces in your tank. The more surfaces, the better IMO.

 

[duanes]

So best bet is just leave it alone and do WCs? Is a 50/60% wc to drastic?

Also, I was wondering if I should change the medi in the SunSun to just bioballs+bio rings to help the BB growth. Right now there's only sponges and the only bio rings are in one tray o fthe fx 6(basically what the box came with). Should I bother doing this? Or does BB build up in sponges regardless?

Media is just a surface for bacterial film, to me it doesn't matter what kind is used, be it lava rock, ceramic ring, old hair curlers, or some new gizmo, they are all just a place for bacteria to grow on.
The more you start replacing stuff that's already there, and starting to grow biofilm, the longer it will take to finish your cycle, and the longer it will take for the tank to clear.
Just water changes, and if your ammonia tests high, you need to dilute that ammonia. An 80% water change is not too high if your tank water is fish urine soup.