NO3 out of control

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
bbortko said:
1. Up wc to 50% 2x week until problem is remedied then cut back to 1 50-80% per week. Also test your tap water to ensure it isn't the problem.
2. How did you manage to fit so many filters on one tank?
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i had a 75 gallon and a 55 gallon that i stoped useing so figured y not put them all on the 120 the entire back and both side walls r lined with filters it looks crystal clear water
 
cleaning your filters so frequently isw not allowing the proper bacteria to grow and keep NO3 in check. nitrifying bacteria is anerobic (no oxygen) this takes a while to cultivate, which is why most say to let a new tank cycle for up to a month before fish etc....

clean the filters in an order about 1x a month. so if you have 4 filters then clean 1 a week, every week.

using tap water......depends on whats in your water. id call your local water dept and find out if they use chlorine/chloramines. if they do then heck no i wouldnt use tap water. prime and the likes......many of them have the possibility of killing the filtration as well causing more issues. if you do use tap water and prime type conditioners......ALL water "should" be set out, and circulated with air/pumps for 24hrs. this is to allow the excess chemicals etc. to evaporate before adding to the tank.

HTH
 
A few things come to mind

1) If you clean all your filters every week then you could be destroying the beneficial bacteria before it gets a chance to colonize. Like others have said, cut this routine WAY back.

2) Are you severely over feeding?

3) Maybe your test kit is just bad. Try changing it out and testing nitrates again.

4) Also test your water straight out of the tap.
 
NO3 is the end of the nitrogen cycle. Your NH4 and NO2 are low, so I don’t believe bacteria colonization in your tank and filter is the problem. I would reduce the filter cleaning as it is not beneficial and possibly counterproductive. You have plants that will remove some NO3, but not at the levels you have. The only way to remove NO3 quickly is with water changes, bacteria generally reduce NH4 to NO2 to NO3.

In cases of over feeding I would expect to see higher NH4 levels, but it is still possible that could at least be a factor.

Do you have a lot of bullying in your tank? Check fish fins. The bacteria and decay of damaged fins could result in high NO3. I’ve seen this happen in a bass tank with bullied fish with damaged fins, so check for damaged fins, disease, and dead fish. A dead fish can really jack up levels, but diseased fins can really throw things off also. Decay of protein based matter (like damaged fins) throws of a lot of NO3.

With your water conditions I would suspect contamination of some sort. Do you fertilize your tank for the plants? There is a lot of NO4 in a lot of plant fertilizers. Also, could your substrate be contaminated? Did you get it from a store that carries fertilizer or did you store it near any.

Your kit could be inaccurate. I use the same kit you do, but it is possible that you got a bad testing chemical. I would try to find a way to check it against another kit.

Try the following:
  1. Check for diseased, damaged, or dead fish.
  2. Stop fertilizing plants if you do.
  3. Look for possible contamination from other sources.
  4. Reduce feeding if possible, but again I would expect higher NH4 and NO3 levels if that was the case in an established tank.
  5. Keep up large water changes as that is the only way to really reduce NO3 quickly. This will also help get out any contamination or decaying matter.
Good luck.
 
NO3 is the end of the nitrogen cycle. Your NH4 and NO2 are low, so I don’t believe bacteria colonization in your tank and filter is the problem. I would reduce the filter cleaning as it is not beneficial and possibly counterproductive. You have plants that will remove some NO3, but not at the levels you have. The only way to remove NO3 quickly is with water changes, bacteria generally reduce NH4 to NO2 to NO3.

In cases of over feeding I would expect to see higher NH4 levels, but it is still possible that could at least be a factor.

Do you have a lot of bullying in your tank? Check fish fins. The bacteria and decay of damaged fins could result in high NO3. I’ve seen this happen in a bass tank with bullied fish with damaged fins, so check for damaged fins, disease, and dead fish. A dead fish can really jack up levels, but diseased fins can really throw things off also. Decay of protein based matter (like damaged fins) throws of a lot of NO3.

With your water conditions I would suspect contamination of some sort. Do you fertilize your tank for the plants? There is a lot of NO4 in a lot of plant fertilizers. Also, could your substrate be contaminated? Did you get it from a store that carries fertilizer or did you store it near any.

Your kit could be inaccurate. I use the same kit you do, but it is possible that you got a bad testing chemical. I would try to find a way to check it against another kit.

Try the following:
  1. Check for diseased, damaged, or dead fish.
  2. Stop fertilizing plants if you do.
  3. Look for possible contamination from other sources.
  4. Reduce feeding if possible, but again I would expect higher NH4 and NO3 levels if that was the case in an established tank.
  5. Keep up large water changes as that is the only way to really reduce NO3 quickly. This will also help get out any contamination or decaying matter.
Good luck.
 
stockfool said:
NO3 is the end of the nitrogen cycle. Your NH4 and NO2 are low, so I don’t believe bacteria colonization in your tank and filter is the problem. I would reduce the filter cleaning as it is not beneficial and possibly counterproductive. You have plants that will remove some NO3, but not at the levels you have. The only way to remove NO3 quickly is with water changes, bacteria generally reduce NH4 to NO2 to NO3.

In cases of over feeding I would expect to see higher NH4 levels, but it is still possible that could at least be a factor.

Do you have a lot of bullying in your tank? Check fish fins. The bacteria and decay of damaged fins could result in high NO3. I’ve seen this happen in a bass tank with bullied fish with damaged fins, so check for damaged fins, disease, and dead fish. A dead fish can really jack up levels, but diseased fins can really throw things off also. Decay of protein based matter (like damaged fins) throws of a lot of NO3.

With your water conditions I would suspect contamination of some sort. Do you fertilize your tank for the plants? There is a lot of NO4 in a lot of plant fertilizers. Also, could your substrate be contaminated? Did you get it from a store that carries fertilizer or did you store it near any.

Your kit could be inaccurate. I use the same kit you do, but it is possible that you got a bad testing chemical. I would try to find a way to check it against another kit.

Try the following:
  1. Check for diseased, damaged, or dead fish.
  2. Stop fertilizing plants if you do.
  3. Look for possible contamination from other sources.
  4. Reduce feeding if possible, but again I would expect higher NH4 and NO3 levels if that was the case in an established tank.
  5. Keep up large water changes as that is the only way to really reduce NO3 quickly. This will also help get out any contamination or decaying matter.
Good luck.
Click to expand...

Agreed, your ammonia and nitrites are 0, so your filters are fine.

I would also test your water straight from the tap to see if it's high in nitrates.
 
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