Nitrites driving me nuts....

[Just Toby]

I think that many have answered the questions but to recap and clarify.

1)NEVER water change without a conditioner...this alone could be your problem.

2)test your tap water for Nitrite and ammonia....you only mentioned testing them for ph.

3) get rid of ammonia blocks etc from filter....let the filters do their job properly.

4) nobody has mentioned it due to being such a rookie error but when you cleaned your filters did you use old tank water? If you rinsed in tap water then you would have killed all the bacteria.

5) always add the conditioner before the tap water or at the same time, never after as the chlorine and chloramine can have already killed stuff.

 

[bcfd144]

During the week that I have had this problem, only one time did I not add conditioner. Only for the simple fact that I had been doing it for almost a week straight and only did a 30% water change on that one day I didnt add conditioner. I didnt want to keep over doing it and figured tank had enough in it to counter it since I had been doing it for a week straight...

I tested the tank and tap for everything. PH, Nitirites, Nitrates and ammonia. ( not sure why I only said PH,, I tested tap for it all.)

I cleaned the filter in tank water as usual.

One problem was one, the test kit (older one) was not reading ammonia, so it was thowing us off because it was reading nitrites..
After getting a new test kit, ammonia was showing in the test. Low ammonia, but still showing. Just like Nitirites, Very low, but still there. So still a problem for me.
So tells me the filter is going to thru a cycle for what ever reason.
As for that reason, only thing I did different was take out some older bags of carbin and added new (never used) bio media in its place. So, with the cleaning, rinsing out of filters (with tank water) to clear some of the sand out and adding new media, it somehow shocked the filter and is cycling.
Now, still not understanding why the Fc5 is not speeding up the process, since its the main filter, but its still reading nitiries.
I started only doing 30% water changes the past few days. (adding conditioner).
I have always had ammonia blocker in my filters. Have since tank was est. Never had any problems when doing a cleaning. Never...
Only difference was taking carbon out, added new media in its place. (one hole basket is now new media.) Old media still in there also.

Hope it gets back to normal soon.

 

[Just Toby]

Thanks for the full reply, it helps to rule out a lot.

I think the carbon removal is unlikely to be causing this but it could have gone very biological and was the main home for the bacteria, I know that once carbon gets old it does give a good bacterial area.

It just seems very odd to me that the other bacteria did not take up the slack, the important lesson is for us to keep testing as we think we know it all but simple changes can have large impacts.

Please keep us updated.

 

[bcfd144]

Im thinking the same thing on the carbon bags. Since honestly they were in there for some time, I think they had become a area for good bacteria.
I had read a few weeks ago that when carbon goes bad, it can be more harmful to a tank than helpful. Which in away is true since the carbon can no longer do its job. Back when the carbon was put in, I believed in using carbon, but now, I dont feel its really needed and dont use it anymore. That is why I decided when I did that cleaning to pull it out and replace it with bio media.
And I agree, it seems odd that the other bacteria in the filter didnt take over, or that the Fx5 didnt also over ride the system and help get it back to normal faster. But still after almost a week and a half, its still has nitrites and a very small amount of ammonia. I am thinking that since there is ammonia block in the filter, that is keeping the ammonia down, and making it take longer to cycle. But I am also affraid to now touch the filter to take it out.
I have kept up the water changes, doing just 30% a day (adding conditioner) and just hoping it gets better soon. The rays are still in the tank, and I hope it cycles soon. Retics are hard enough to raise, let along have water issues on top of it. But since they are older retics, they are alot more hardy than a pup would be.
I did a water change today around 10am. Will test water again tonight and again in the morning. I would think that any day now, the system should be back to normal.