newbie question about cylcing tank

[SarahAngel]

So I have read the water chemistry forum post and still have a few questions about cylcing my tank. Am I reading properly that in smaller than a 5 gallon it may be impossible to cycle a tank??

I have my male betta in a 3 gallon tank and for the life of me can not get a reading on nitrates or nitrites and the tanks been set up for about a month with my betta in it. I tried to cycle for a few weeks before I got him, but again can not get the ammonia to 0 and everything else stays at 0.


I thought it was because my filter only uses carbon filters...so I went to the lfs and he recommended some media that I can cut to size. Even this is not causing any change to the water parameters.


I do a 50% water change 1 to 2 times a week and once a month I am doing a full change due to the tank not being cycled. I have only done one 100% water change so far and when I did I did NOT clean any of the gravel or decorations....

What worries me more than anything is now my fish has silver scales and his belly is going white. I posted in the emergency forum about this with some pictures but so far, no response.


Any help/advice on the cycling would be greatly appreciated.

[Myates]

There is just not enough water surface to keep a stable cycle going.

For a 3g with a filter you are wanting to do 2 water changes per week - 1 with siphoning of the gravel. No need to do 100%s as long as you do the siphoning.

Common to see silver bellies on bettas - tends to happen (especially after eating) when their bellies become extended from eating. Make sure you aren't over feeding.. otherwise, a small roundness is normal with a silver coloring.

[marshallsea]

Originally Posted by SarahAngel

So I have read the water chemistry forum post and still have a few questions about cylcing my tank. Am I reading properly that in smaller than a 5 gallon it may be impossible to cycle a tank??

I have my male betta in a 3 gallon tank and for the life of me can not get a reading on nitrates or nitrites and the tanks been set up for about a month with my betta in it. I tried to cycle for a few weeks before I got him, but again can not get the ammonia to 0 and everything else stays at 0.


I thought it was because my filter only uses carbon filters...so I went to the lfs and he recommended some media that I can cut to size. Even this is not causing any change to the water parameters.


I do a 50% water change 1 to 2 times a week and once a month I am doing a full change due to the tank not being cycled. I have only done one 100% water change so far and when I did I did NOT clean any of the gravel or decorations....

What worries me more than anything is now my fish has silver scales and his belly is going white. I posted in the emergency forum about this with some pictures but so far, no response.


Any help/advice on the cycling would be greatly appreciated.

At 1 month your tank hasn't cycled. Do daily water changes until your readings are right.

[Viva]

You won't have a stable cycle in a 3g tank, like Myates said. Just do at least 2 50% water changes weekly and your water will stay clean.

[SarahAngel]

Thanks so much Viva and Myates. I had kind of assumed with the tank being so small that it would not cycle but I wanted to be sure. I will continue with the water changes of at least 2 a week at 50% and will still keep testing for ammonia to make sure it stays pretty low. I don't have a syphon yet so should I do a 100% water change once a month? When I do this I don't rinse the gravel or the plants, just replace all the water. I only did this once and only because I thought he was sick when I saw the silver starting and so I medicated him for a week. When the silver went away, but it started stressing him out I stopped and did a total water change so that he wouldn't stay in the medication.