CichlidFish.com - Fish That Think.

Hi.  I'm new to this forum.  My problem follows:

I have a tank around 100G.  The tank has been running for around six weeks now.  After slowly adding a few cichlids a week I currently have 11 in the tank (they are still relatively small at around 1.5-3 inches each).  There have been some losses due to fighting and possibly one due to disease.  Those in the tank now, save for one, look healthy. 

The problem is that the tank still has not cycled.  It took a while for any ammonia to appear which I guess, based on the few books I've read so far, is not a bad thing since it just means we're adding fish slowly and not overfeeding them.  However, we've now been stuck with a moderate range of ammonia and no nitrites for a few weeks.  I have a wet-dry filter so I'm at a complete loss why bacteria colonies have not grown in the proper amounts to see the ammonia drop and the nitrites rise.  I have been getting most of my fish and advice from a store (really a specific person within a fish store) to date.  They have been very helpful and honest so far, but when I go in for water tests they simply say "the water has not cycled yet. Here's some dirty water." 

Is there nothing else I can do?  I'm not interested in speeding up the process if it puts the fish at risk, but as someone new to the hobby who has done a fair amount of research I am frustrated that I cannot stock my tank yet and that I have lost so many fish (5 of 16 with one not looking so great right now) despite following expert advice to a T.  I actually probably slowed down the process, but after six weeks of no water change and with one cichlid not looking so great I couldn't help it and so I did two water changes in 3 days which effectively introduced 65% new water into the tank.

So what do I do?

Sorry nobody has responded to you yet, haven't been here for a while myself.

Cycling, the fact that you keep adding fish keeps adding to the bioload on the tank.  To see a difference with ammonia & nitrite you have to keep your tank stable for a while.  In this case you will see ammonia rise and as it starts to fall nitrite will rise.  If, as it seems here, you continue to add fish your ammonia levels will continue to rise and your nitrate eating bacteria will always be behind them.  I have only cycled tanks using ammonia & not live fish but with live fish would continue to carry out water changes.

The only thing I can suggest now that you have several fish is:

1.  no more fish for now
2.  Water changes, try to do a 20-30% water change (with dechlorinated water) every other day.  This will help reduce the levels of ammonia & nitrite that the fish are exposed to.
3.  Feed sparingly - only feed tiny amounts & every other day.  If the fish are starving you will see their stomachs start to 'contract'.  (I had a 2 inch malawi who was holding almost kill herself by not eating for 4 weeks & holding again now 8 weeks later)

Also: what cichlids are they?

If you ever set up another tank tho, dig up references to fishless cycle.

Hope things go well
Best of luck
Al