High Nitrate

[joraejay]

If you need to get rid of high nitrates in a hurry, SeaChem Purigen is a miracle worker. Of course, it is no substitute for regular water changes, but it's a great product to mitigate a potentially lethal problem quickly. http://www.seachem.com/Products/product_pages/Purigen.html

Yup, I run this stuff faithfully and it's rechargeable!

 

[TheCanuck]

Thanks to all for the good info! I was searching for some wisdom on water changes. My nitrates are stable at 20ppm for the last week...while the ammonia which was fine for the last week has risen...(but I just added 5 4'' rbps and 4 live plants 2 days ago). Is this normal? i just did a 30% wc just now so......

... stop adding fish until you know what your doing...


You should maintain 0 amonia at all times. As well as 0 nitrites.

Add some more bio media to the tank if it doesn't cycle out.

 

[mhansen76]

Thank you! I did just that...if it is still high tomorrow should I just do a w/c daily until it stabalizes?

 

[mhansen76]

Hi everyone,

i did a 30% water change yesterday....nitrite still high. I did a 40% wc today ( i tested my tap water and it was fine) I treated each new batch of water with prime and the nitrite level is still @ 3.0! Ammonia is back at 0 nitrates are at 20ppm HELP!

Missy

 

[knifegill]

Sounds like you're on the winning end of a mini-cycle. Adding a few new fish at once will usually result in a temporary spike in ammonia, but your bacteria have adapted well and grown in your filters to accommodate the waste. In a few more days, you'll see the nitrite go away and the nitrAte rise. Then you can return to your normal water change schedule to keep nitrates as low you want them. For now, just watch the ammonia (change as necessary to keep it at 0, should it test positive) and let the bacteria eat the nitrIte. What size tank? How much biological filtration are you running?

 

[SemperFish]

Im not saying anything new here but....Do a big water change, then smaller changes daily until it becomes manageable. Then make your regular water changes around 50% and youll be fine. I skippped some of this thread because it was getting repetitive but do you have enough filtration?
The upside of this whole experience for you is that learning has occurred, and thats a good thing.

 

[mhansen76]

I have a 190gallon w/ one 8''rbp and 5 4'' rbps (they are separated). I have an undergravel filter( I know I have to get an fx5) and an external medium size filter. I thought my tank was completely cycled... i guess not! I am a newbie and sorry for the repetition...I have posted this same thing in about 5 forums Thank you for all of the great information.

Missy

 

[knifegill]

Even when a tank is fully cycled, a sudden increase in bioload will take a few days to accommodate. So you may well have been completely cycled before adding the new fish. And by the sounds of it, you have a good culture going. GL!

 

[mhansen76]

I am learning new stuff everyday on this site, thank God for you all ( or higher power etc)!

 

[Gatorxxx420]

I have a floating aquarium thermometer that I hold under my kitchen faucet and get the temp just slightly warmer than the tank water. I do atleast 10 gallon minimum changes frequently on my tank. Lately I've been doing 15-20 gallons twice a week on my tank. I use 3-5 gallon buckets to drain it into, 2-4 gallon buckets and a 3 gallon bucket for my replacement water that I use DeCHLOR as dechlorinator. I don't care how much time I spend on my fishtanks. Because like I told my mother, "You wouldn't leave your dog in a burning house, I won't leave my fish in bad water".