The Fishless Aquarium Cycle

I get a lot of requests for help on this one. And it is always the same problem. So I will start with that. It is not necessary to build up a bio filter that is consuming 4 or higher PPM ammonia. What will happen is when you add fish you will have a massive bio filter die off. The bacteria have to keep in step with the food supply. Adding a few discus to the aquarium will not give you a bio load that requires a nitrifying bacteria colony capable of handling 4 ppm ammonia . If, however, you plan to add hundreds of feeder goldfish into a 55 gallon aquarium, then by all means carry on.
The fishless cycle can start with 1 PPM ammonia. Problems occur when the ammonia goes down, and nitrites climb, and too much ammonia is added which can harm the bacteria and stall the process. Because the filter bacteria multiply very quickly, if ammonia levels do elevate later, the bacteria will catch up. This is far preferred to creating an atomic super charged bio bed that will have a massive die off once feeding is stopped and fish are added. Trust me, this is not what you want to accomplish.
Fill the aquarium with water and adjust the ph and get the temperature correct. Do not use a water conditioner for chloramines which treats ammonia. This is crucial. You can use a product like Dechlor that ONLY removes chlorine, or you can run the tank with the filter and an air stone for two or three days to blow off the chlorine (it is a gas). If you have another aquarium you can add a small amount of water from it, from a thimble full to a cup, to the new aquarium. Adding a product called Cycle will not speed up the process. Using Stress Coat is not recommended as it will coat the bio media and hamper the bio filter bacteria. Stores push those products heavily. I have cycled tanks without adding any tank water. If you build it they will come. A lone piece of gravel from a healthy aquarium can be placed into the tank also. One piece is enough. There is very, very little chance of introducing harmful critters with a piece of gravel, as they live on or in the fish.
In a nutshell, add ammonia, cleaning unscented type is fine, until a level of 1 PPM is attained. Monitor closely and when that level drops, after several days, check nitrites. When they start rising, begin feeding the filter lightly with ammonia. This is where the problem occurs due to misunderstanding. DO NOT go back to 1 PPM of ammonia. This set of bacteria is cultured, so just feed them lightly with a few drops of ammonia daily. Otherwise, you will build up nitrites too fast, which could hurt the bacteria that consume ammonia. Too much ammonia can harm the nitrifying bacteria that consume nitrites, and conversely, too much nitrite can harm the bacteria that consume the ammonia. SO, feed the ammonia very lightly with a few drops, just enough to detect on the test. Then let it completely drop to zero before feeding again. WHEN the nitrites are zero, the filter is cultured. At that point elevated levels of nitrates will be present. That indicates a fully functioning bio filter. This filter can be maintained indefinitely by just lightly feeding with ammonia. A water change or two should be done just before fish are added to reduce the elevated nitrate levels. ALWAYS add fish when the ammonia level is zero AND nitrite levels are zero. Once fish are added they provide the ammonia and no more should be added. You should not see extremely high nitrate levels unless you are adding plant fertilizers or vitamins to the water for the fish, BOTH of which are unnecessary.
After the fish are in the tank and it is time for a water change, I recommend you use one of the following products: Prime, Amquel or Tetra's Aqua Safe to neutralize chloramines from the tap water. These products have an additional benefit. In the event you encounter deadly high levels of ammonia in your aquarium, they can be added to the tank to neutralize the ammonia. These are the water conditioning products I have never heard of going sour in the bottle. Use them with confidence.

The new test strips are a boom to manufacturers who are no longer faced with shipping a liquid product, no longer use glass vials and are extremely light weight. Some of them claim to perform many tests all at once. Trust me, you will get accurate results by using the LIQUID drop type test kits. I have assisted many hobbyists with water issues resulting from acting on readings taken with test strips. When retested with liquid drop type test kits, the difference was enormous.

Ammonia and Nitrite Spikes

Ammonia and nitrite spikes require immediate action. Regardless of whatever action led to the problem, the steps to take to remedy the situation are the same. The most common causes are upsetting the bacteria bed by cleaning the bio filter. Another is having an inadequate bio filter, either not enough of the right media or adding fish before the filter bacteria are established.
You have to take immediate action as time is the enemy here.
The first step is to acquire some aquarium salt ( Kosher salt from the grocery) and some Prime water conditioner. If you already use Prime fine, if not, get some. You also need some high quality carbon, (not charcoal, not a resin or ammo chips, just carbon, and a filter bag). If you already have carbon or a resin type media in your filter remove it and discard the media. That includes softening pillows, which is a resin.
Any deviation on the recommended products could affect your success. Especially important is to not get stress coat, which coats and plugs your bio media and builds up on the glass, providing a breeding ground for bacteria.
TRUE bottled bacteria is refrigerated and rather expensive and most stores do not carry it. You do not want to use cycle or one of the many products kept on the shelf at room temperature.
You need to do a 30% water change. Add the Prime to the aquarium before filling it. After filling it, add the salt, one tablespoon per ten gallons. Fill the filter bag with the carbon and rinse well. Place the bag in your filter. Note: Do not remove or disturb any bio media you have in the filter. If you cannot add the carbon to your existing filter, a cheap little hang on filter from Wal-Mart or a discount pet shop would work for the carbon. It just needs to move water thru the carbon.
The fish will not have an appetite. Do not feed them during this critical time.
Daily change 30% of the water, using ample amounts of Prime. Replace only the amount of salt removed – 1 teaspoon per ten gallons. If you see the fish at the surface gasping, change 30 % twice a day. After several days the tank should stabilize. Elevated levels of nitrates indicate the bio filter is function again.
The salt should be discontinued when the tank is stabilized. The carbon should remain in the filter for 3 days after the tank stabilizes. Stabilized means the fish swim naturally and water parameters are right. If nitrites were high and have normalized, the tank is stable.
If the fish are eating, feed once a day only with frozen bloodworms very lightly for a few days.
Normally salt and carbon are not used in the discus aquarium, except for specific purposes. You should never attempt an extremely large water change as it will shock the fish. Breeders doing huge changes on tiny fry have adapted the fish to that and use specialized water.

Bloat - Swollen Belly

If bloat suddenly occurs in one your discus fish it is most likely not an internal parasite. A leading cause of death among healthy discus, goldfish and other tropical fish is from overeating. This usually occurs in the larger, prettier and most aggressive eater. If this problem occurs in a one and a half inch or smaller discus that has failed to grow properly, the cause is usually a defective digestive tract as a result of improper feeding as a fry and the result is usually fatal. The condition I am addressing will be seen usually in a lone single discus. Proper diet and feeding techniques reduce the occurrence of overeating in healthy discus, three inches and larger.

Discus need small, frequent feedings, not large ones. Their stomach is not designed to hold large meals. Overeating can easily result in constipation. As the food sits in the gut it begins to decompose and rot inside the fish. Bacteria, gas and fluids are created, resulting in swelling and pressure on the swim bladder, which in a discus sits on top of the stomach. This results in loss of balance which affects the ability to swim properly. The discus will either sit on the bottom or hang in the water facing down or up as it cannot properly keep it's balance. As this progresses, the swelling in the gut increases and the abdomen becomes very distended, looking like a balloon ready to pop. The buildup of gas and fluid causes the eye to become distended, creating a Popeye effect. A hazy, cloudy look may appear on one or both eyes as bacterial growth increases. The discus fish may create extra slime and become dark, fins may become clamped and the fish will not eat. Using treatments labeled for Popeye in tropical fish will not cure this discus.

For now forget about internal worms or parasites. A swollen belly is almost always assumed by the new discus hobbyist to be internal parasites. But even heavy tapeworm infestation does not give the extreme bloated appearance of overeating. Internal parasites are microscopic with the exception of tapeworm and a couple others not common to discus. On that note gill flukes and external parasites common to discus are also microscopic.

If you have recently added some new fish and suddenly several fish are exhibiting swollen bellies it could be bacterial. The most common bacterial infection is Aeromonas. There is no single physical or behavioral sign specific for Aeromonas infections. Infected fish frequently have: small pinpoint hemorrhages at the base of the fins or on the skin, distended abdomens, and protruding eyes. Internal signs include: fluid in the abdomen, swollen liver and spleen, and the intestines are distended and fluid-filled. This is the classic Popeye bacterial infection found in tropical fsh. and while it is a real threat, 99% of the hobbyists I counsel on this issue have a discus fish with constipation from overeating.

Treatment - The discus fish must eliminate the bowels quickly to prevent death. This is done with water changes and Epsom salt (available at any drug store and most grocery stores), a laxative that works on discus. Each case is different so there is no one set standard dose. First change a volume of water equal to the amount you are already changing on a regular basis. Then add one tablespoon Epsom salt for every ten gallons of water the aquarium holds. Thus, a 100 gallon aquarium receives 10 tablespoons. Add an identical dose of Epsom salt in four hours and one more in 4 more hours if the fish has not started elimination. Look carefully the following day to determine if the fish has evacuated. If not, repeat the exact treatment done on day one beginning with the water change. If needed, repeat again the third day.

If on day two you see the fish has evacuated, change a volume of water equal to the amount you are already changing on a regular basis and replace just the amount of Epsom salt removed by the water change. In 24 hours change water again but do not add Epsom salt. The Epsom salt will be removed by water changes over time. Begin feeding with frozen bloodworms or frozen brine shrimp in small amounts.

If the fish has eliminated but the stress of the ordeal has resulted in loss of appetite, it will be necessary to treat the fish with metro for a few days to restore the appetite. Metro blends such as metro plus are not recommended as they are mostly salt and fillers. You need the pure metro to see results. The pills are not nearly as water soluble or effective as pure metro powder which is water soluble, pure and effective. Usually a daily dose of pure metro, 1/4 teaspoon per 20 gallons for five days restores appetite. Once the fish is eating continue the metro for 3 more days. I do provide the pure metro on my food and medication page of my web site, http://www.RockyMountainDiscus.com/Food_and_medications.htm

Prevention: One thing that contributes to a discus overeating is the use of a plastic worm cone for feeding frozen or live worms. The idea is to keep the worms in one place and keep them from getting scattered. However, they really should be scattered so everyone gets a fair share. And although the discus grab food as it enters the water, they like to graze along the bottom. Using the cone teaches the discus to compete for food, training the largest most aggressive eater to dominate, and possibly overeat.

Avoid feeding discus fish freeze dried foods. They can swell up in the stomach, even after soaking in a liquid, and can cause this condition. Also the nutrients are lost during processing. Be very careful with foods made of fish meal, as discus do not easily digest this. Frozen foods rarely cause this problem if presented properly. Frozen bloodworms can be placed in a small Tupperware container of tank water for 60 seconds before pouring into the tank. Although frozen foods thaw instantly when hitting the water, this prevents any discus from swallowing a large chunk of bloodworms.