[GSAS-Member] Problems with my new tank (and the potential revocation of my new GSAS membership)

[Steve Connor <sconnor317@gmail.com>]

Hi everyone,

I just joined the GSAS this week and really look forward to
participating. It seems like a great group.

I am terribly embarrassed that my first post is about all of the mistakes I
have made with the aquarium I got for Christmas. I will not disclose all of
them, but suffice it to say, I have done just about every dumb thing you
could do starting an aquarium up and am suffering the consequences.  (I kept
aquariums starting as as a kid, had multiple tanks, bred angels, had
saltwater tanks  etc so I must have been a bit too smug getting going again
here after a fifteen year- plus haitus).

My beginning problem -as you probably already canguess- is that I put too
many fish in my 29 gallon before letting it cycle.  The  present issues
arising from my dumbness that I could use some help on are:

1.  My ammonia skyrocketed and, after losing some cardinal tetras, I
panicked and got  Ammo-Lock.  It seemed to help the fish immediately but I
continue to have very high ammonia readings.  I understand that one of the
problems of using Ammo-Lock is that it messes up your readings but I don't
understand whether that is a permanent thing or not.  I also don't
understand whether by using that I have prevented the creation of nitrites
and thus blocked the cycle from happening.  A secondary consequence of this
is I don't know where I am in the cycle and am not clear whether all of my
fish are about to die from some nitrite spike

2.  A couple of fish now have a some spots of ich.  ( I got most of the fish
from chain stores).  I didn't want to add anything that would further mess
up my tank chemistry or stain the tank and the chain stores I went to did
not seem to have any product with just formalin in it.  Instead, I added
salt and increased the temperature to 82 but am worried about the corydoras
I have in there.  I cant tell if it has solved the problem as a few fish
still seem to have a couple of spots ( I started the salt three days ago but
hadn't reall gotten the temperature up to 82 until today). Any suggestions
on this front?

I have been doing 25% water changes every other day to try to ameliorate the
problems I have caused.

The third problem/question I have  unrelated to my overstocking is I
boughtsome driftwood from one of the chain stores which said it was suitable
for terrarium or aquarium use.  I think it said it was grapevine or grape
wood or something with grape in the name. After soaking it and  getting it
to sink I put it in the tank and after a few days started to notice a
fuzz on it.  At first I thought that  it was just fiber from the wood but it
continued to grow (it was white) and i started to think that it was some
kind of fungus.  I have taken it out of the tank but am wondering if anybody
has any idea what that was and any comments about "grape" driftwood.

In view of the foregoing I may attend the first few meetings incognito
butwould appreciate any feedback.

Thanks!

Steve Connor
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