I have a couple bags of ada Amazonia soil in 5 gallon buckets that i've been doing daily water changes on due to high levels of ammonia. is there a way to speed this up? anything besides water changes? the ammonia is right around 4.00 ppm as of last nights water test.
removing ammonia
- Thread starter BichirKing
- Start date
its in buckets because of the ammonia spike lasts for weeks as the soil matures. if it was in a tank it would kill off any fish and most plants. day 1 was 8 days ago and the ammonia was off the chart, now its 4ppm. just getting ancy to get my planted tank up.
According to the ADA soil web-site
When the soil is first put in your tank water, it releases a lot of "ammonium" (non-toxic to fish) and if so, "I believe your" test recognizes ammonium as toxic ammonia, most tests are not sophisticated enough, to separate one from the other.
because of the nitrogenous waste used to make the soil rich for plant growth.
If the beneficial bacteria in your filters are sufficient, and your tank is already sufficiently cycled, the bacteria (in theory) will also convert any toxic ammonia released from the soil.
If you are still suspicious, adding some well seasoned (cycled ) media or substrate to the soil in the bucket, and aerating it for a while, could "in theory" reduce that ammonia you are seeing.
But just a thought, in that way, aren't you reducing the point of what the soil was intended to do for a tank?
Also according to the web site, it intentionally lowers pH for better photosynthesis.
But if you use alkaline water for water changes, it reduces the soils effectiveness.
When the soil is first put in your tank water, it releases a lot of "ammonium" (non-toxic to fish) and if so, "I believe your" test recognizes ammonium as toxic ammonia, most tests are not sophisticated enough, to separate one from the other.
because of the nitrogenous waste used to make the soil rich for plant growth.
If the beneficial bacteria in your filters are sufficient, and your tank is already sufficiently cycled, the bacteria (in theory) will also convert any toxic ammonia released from the soil.
If you are still suspicious, adding some well seasoned (cycled ) media or substrate to the soil in the bucket, and aerating it for a while, could "in theory" reduce that ammonia you are seeing.
But just a thought, in that way, aren't you reducing the point of what the soil was intended to do for a tank?
Also according to the web site, it intentionally lowers pH for better photosynthesis.
But if you use alkaline water for water changes, it reduces the soils effectiveness.
thanks
duanes
I read that but I only have an API test kit. when I first put it in the bucket the ammonia was so high I wasn't to sure about adding it in. my tank is fully cycled and has been running for close to a year without any problems. it is also fairly lightly stocked. Im not sure if api can tell the difference between trapped and free ammonia. I was thinking of using ammolock or some such to maybe add an extra layer of protection???
duanes
I read that but I only have an API test kit. when I first put it in the bucket the ammonia was so high I wasn't to sure about adding it in. my tank is fully cycled and has been running for close to a year without any problems. it is also fairly lightly stocked. Im not sure if api can tell the difference between trapped and free ammonia. I was thinking of using ammolock or some such to maybe add an extra layer of protection???
The normal aquarium type API test is not sophisticated enough to tell the difference between the two.
You would probably need a much more expensive test kit, or a spectrophotometer and another battery of reagents to separate the two.
The kind of equipment I used to use in the lab, and cost more than my truck.
You could set up the tank, and add a sacrificial fish or two if paranoid, (its what I would do, if I had doubts).
What is the normal composition of your tap water?
If your tap water is hard and alkaline, it may be somewhat pointless to use it as an additive to the tank.
In my tank ph is near 8, and water alkaline, and seems to contain a lot of iron, but with the species of plants used (collected here), I can see the results of photosynthesis on a daily basis anyway.
When the sun is intense, thousands of tiny micro-bubbles are produced on plant leaves during that time.
I have tried to get photos but not been successful as of yet. I don't use soil, or ferts, but I hardly ever vac the substrate, and plant growth is lush. I guess it depends on the plant species, and if they are suited to water, and light conditions.
You would probably need a much more expensive test kit, or a spectrophotometer and another battery of reagents to separate the two.
The kind of equipment I used to use in the lab, and cost more than my truck.
You could set up the tank, and add a sacrificial fish or two if paranoid, (its what I would do, if I had doubts).
What is the normal composition of your tap water?
If your tap water is hard and alkaline, it may be somewhat pointless to use it as an additive to the tank.
In my tank ph is near 8, and water alkaline, and seems to contain a lot of iron, but with the species of plants used (collected here), I can see the results of photosynthesis on a daily basis anyway.
When the sun is intense, thousands of tiny micro-bubbles are produced on plant leaves during that time.
I have tried to get photos but not been successful as of yet. I don't use soil, or ferts, but I hardly ever vac the substrate, and plant growth is lush. I guess it depends on the plant species, and if they are suited to water, and light conditions.
our tap water sounds the same. hard water, ph is always a rock solid 8 out of the tap high in phosphates. I have plans on using stored rain water to help lower the ph. right now im leaning towards seting up a temp tank for my curviceps, add the soil to the 150g and some cheap feeders to see how it goes.
