Question: Cycling new tank + ammonia

[kevintaco]

I have a 20 gallon tank that I have been cycling for over 3 months in preparation of moving my axolotl to a bigger tank. I started with a fishless cycle, then got a goldfish to help things along. The goldfish produced too much ammonia to cycle the tank so I surrendered it and got 3 white cloud minnows about 2 weeks ago. My readings:

0.25-0.5 ppm Ammonia
0 ppm Nitrites
~ 5 ppm Nitrates.

I understand how the cycle works and want to know what I should do. Can I move my axolotl or do I really have to wait until the ammonia is at 0 ppm? I have been doing ~15% water changes every few days but the ammonia won't go below 0.25 ppm.

Thanks in advance for any helpful advice.

 

[bugdozer]

Are you using the API liquid test for ammonia? Sometimes water with no ammonia in it can look exactly like the colour for 0.25ppm. I can't produce the plain yellow colour it supposedly has for zero, even with pure fresh water. If you are using this chart, take a sample of fresh water and compare it with the tank water to see if there is a colour difference between the two.

 

[fraustdemon]

Most pet stores will do free testing too. If you think your test kit is off, take a couple cups of your tank water to the nearest store and see if they'll test it for you. Preferably one with knowledgeable staff.

 

[kevintaco]

I am using the API liquid test kit. It's a little old, but I trust it. I moved my axolotl to his new tank today after testing an established fish tank and my tap water and found that the ammonia was 0.25 ppm. The new tank also has slight discoloration from the driftwood so I think that may have added to the background color. Thanks for your help, I'm hopeful that the transition will go well.

 

[Kaini]

My tap water has .25 ppm of ammonia in it as well, but my tanks all test out 0 ammonia 0 nitrite because the beneficial bacteria take care of the ammonia content of the water.