Old Driftwood causing Nitrate to go up??? HITH experts needed.

Ang

Ang

I should be a Hookworm
MFK Member
Dec 15, 2005
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San Diego
So I have had Oscars.... well 1 Oscar for 7 years. He died.
I got a new (jeuv) Oscar. prob 10". the first one had chronic HITH. Now this one has a big hole in his head. One solitary hole.

I cant figure it out.

125 gallon. FX5.
weekly water changes
1 Oscar and 1 Tinfoil barb
Feed Omega one

I cannot figure out what is causing these holes.
They get fed, they have good filtration, I do water changes, its not overstocked, they're not overfed. I don't use carbon. I have no stray electrical. Any ideas?
I'm out of ideas. I tried PraziPro. I did a few rounds of Metro with the last Oscar.... I don't get it.

Then i have a question on Driftwood and Nitrates.
I did a 50% w/c last weekend. Its already up to 20 ppm nitrates. Like I said, they are not overfed and it is certainly NOT overstocked. Could it be the driftwood? Could the decay of organic matter (driftwood) be causing my nitrates to be high?
 
M

MonsterMinis

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Apr 28, 2009
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What are you running in your fx5? sounds to me like your filter is likely the culprit. I've seen Oscars in particular recover from some pretty bad HLLE/HITH by keeping nitrates at or below 20ppm alone once other variables had been ruled out. A spike can cause the onset. Liquid vitamins might be worth investing in.

You may have some residual poop/food ect in your gravel/filter that is causeing the nitrate spike.. or your fish might be dirtier then you think. there is no reason not to do more frequent water changes other then the time involved ( ie no negative side effects ect to your fish) at leats until you can ID what is the issue.

I had some pretty nasty HLLE effects to my gar not to long back.. forgot I was useing carbon in my filter replacement cartridges.. removed the cartridges and the fish looked better over-night and compleately healed in a matter of weeks.
 
K

krichardson

Bronze Tier VIP
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Jun 19, 2006
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I think the nitrate problem has to be due to something else and not the driftwood.....I recently acquired a cichla that had a pretty nasty case of HTH,it had holes and lesions but after a few weeks in my tank with good water and food most of it has cleared up.
 
Ang

Ang

I should be a Hookworm
MFK Member
Dec 15, 2005
2,045
11
38
San Diego
RRRRRRRRR..
Ok. Well I hoover the sand really thoroughly when I do water changes. And the filter is pretty clear as far as debris inside it. I checked it recently.

I took the driftwood out even if it most likely has nothing to do with it. (it was annoying me anyways) it was pretty old and falling apart

I guess i'll try some vitamins and just go crazy with water changes for a while and see if that does anything. Thanks guys
 
M

Mythic Figment

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Jul 27, 2012
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Florida
Ang said:
RRRRRRRRR..
Ok. Well I hoover the sand really thoroughly when I do water changes. And the filter is pretty clear as far as debris inside it. I checked it recently.

I took the driftwood out even if it most likely has nothing to do with it. (it was annoying me anyways) it was pretty old and falling apart

I guess i'll try some vitamins and just go crazy with water changes for a while and see if that does anything. Thanks guys
Click to expand...
How often do you stir your sand? One of the negatives of sand is that they can trap and leech harmful gasses into the water.


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L

lighthouse39183

Gambusia
MFK Member
Nov 9, 2008
313
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Mississippi
What other decorations do you have in the tank? I had a fake rock formation and fake stump causing my nitrates to stay high a while back. They tend to get food and detritus down inside and cause a problem. They need to be cleaned when you do water changes.
 
Ang

Ang

I should be a Hookworm
MFK Member
Dec 15, 2005
2,045
11
38
San Diego
I just siphon the sand once a week. I removed my driftwood. One of them had a lot of holes in it that would trap a ton of poop. I don't want to clean it every week so I just tossed it. Otherwise, NOW I just have 3 little plastic plants and sand.

My sand is pretty shallow also, maybe an inch. I'm hoping it helps. I rinsed my filter pads. They weren't that nasty. Just a little brown. After the 50% w/c, and rinsing filter pads and removing drift wood. My Nitrates are at about 10-20 ppm. So I guess I just need to do water changes more often than once a week? gahh. :p
 
Aquanero

Aquanero

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Feb 16, 2009
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Have you read the sticky about the use of probiotics above? Check it out if you haven't it might prove helpful.
 
L

lambogriffin

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Feb 25, 2013
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new england, USA
Could try pothos/golden ivy to help reduce nitrates... There is a thread about it. I would suggest putting a net around the roots if it doesn't mention it in the thread.

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