You are probably right about the false positive, although all the ammo
lock is probably no longer in your tank. If your ammonia test is a 1
part test, and the color card goes from yellow to orange, you will
get a false positive for ammonia when using ammo lock or amquel.
Goldfish are big waste producers, and the general rule is 1 goldfish
per 10 gallons of water. They also get quite large, and will need
a bigger than ten gallon tank later on.
Your frequent water changes are necessary, but will also slow the
cycle down.
If you don't already have one, I suggest you get an Aquarium
Pharmaceuticals master test test kit. Get the one that includes the
nitrate test in it. You will need to test for nitrates to know when
your cycle is complete. Also, it contains the 2 part ammonia test
which won't give you the false positives. It sounds like you are
going to have to dechlor your water with amquel or ammo lock anyway,
because you tap water contains ammonia, so the 2 part ammonia test
will be necessary. It's gonna be a long haul for you to get your
tank cycled becuase of the excessive ammonia being produced in a
small tank. It will take a lot of patience and daily large water
changes, but it can be done.
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