Keeping an empty tank alive
 

I have a 10g tank with 2 goldfish. I have found them a home elsewhere for obvious reasons. I've been changing 4 -5 gallons twice a day to keep nitrates down. I assume the tank has a healthy bacteria colony as there has never been an ammonia problem. I want to keep the colony going but am not ready to buy new fish yet. My tap water always tests .25-.50 ppm ammonia. Can I change 1-2 gallons a day and keep the colony alive?

Ghost shrimp, snails, or other shrimp
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Maybe add a little food every day as if you were feeding a light population. After the gold fish are gone, I wouldn't think you'd need to do water changes any more than once a week.

I'm wondering if the ammonia in my tap water is enough to feed the colony.

What's in the tank ? Plants, rocks, gravel, decorations ?

All of the above, fake.

I doubt that would keep the whole colony alive. A fully cycled tank can deplete 2-3ppm in 12-24 hours, well at least a planted one that is. They would starve and loose numbers at .5ppm. Not to mention being a pita to change water daily. Adding pure ammonia would be alot easier.

Thank you. Is pure ammonia something I can get at a grocery store?

Maybe but unlikely. Ace hardware is the best place. If there is a janitoral place around town they should have it as well. Just make sure its pure ammonia, no additives. This is what we use to do fishless cycles and its very very effective. Just a good as using fish to cycle but without an expensive wallet and without the headache of fish loss. Look up fishless cycle to find the amount to dose. I don't remember the ratio off hand.

pure ammonia can be difficult to find. Why not just add a pinch of fish food daily until you get more stock? You would likely be amazed at how resilient bacteria is and even in very lean times, bacteria will go into a stasis like suspended animation until conditions promote further growth.

Just remember that when you do restock, it's wise to only add a very few fish at a time, giving the bacteria colony(ies) time to 'gear up'.