Water parameter help needed!

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dacjd25

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Jul 11, 2011
40
0
0
PA
Hey, I was wondering if anyone could offer some advice...

A little background info:

2 days ago I tested 5 ppm nitrIte, so I did a 60% wc, added Prime.
Yesterday, tested nitrIte still at 5 ppm, 90% wc, vacuum, added Prime.
Today, tested nitrIte @ 5 ppm, added Prime. :irked:

Details:

55g tank (running for about 2 months)
Sand substrate
Eheim 2236

Stocked with:
2" Blood parrot
3" Jack Dempsey
5" Jaguar (temporarily)
6" common pleco

Water parameters:
Ammonia: 0
NitrAte: 15ppm
NitrIte: 5.0 ppm (24 hrs after a 90% wc, and vacuuming)

Any ideas why I cannot get rid of nitrItes?
 
you may want to test your tap water & make sure its not 5ppm right out of the tap, it seems unlikely you would still have the same amount of nitrite after a 90% WC, and the presence of 15ppm nitrate suggests the nitrogen cycle has completed.
 
BlackShark11k said:
you may want to test your tap water & make sure its not 5ppm right out of the tap, it seems unlikely you would still have the same amount of nitrite after a 90% WC, and the presence of 15ppm nitrate suggests the nitrogen cycle has completed.
Click to expand...

I will check it, but I never had readings this high.
 
Tested tank water with Tetra test kit and got a much lower reading 0.25 ppm.

Totally confused now....
 
What test kit do you normally use? and was that the kit you used to test your tap?... what decor ect do you use? specific as possible helps. If you fish are acting normal.. I would guess it's likely a leak of some decor in your tank or possibly the sand. what kind? how deep is it? and did you do anything with your filter after you got the 5ppm reading? when I get odd readings I usually go down a list like this.

1. rule out a bad/fault kit. ( ie test multiple tanks or water sources to different readings)
2. rule out anything recently done ( ie within' the past 4 weeks generally, starting with the "newest" thing first)
3. Start deleating the variables ( decor/gravel/foods/ect)
4. Address the symptoms ( in your case high nitrites) until I can figure it out.

I would just keep doing water changes until you can address the cause.. going straight to nitrite removers will only patch the problem for you long-run and end up costing you alot of money generally.

I'm inclined to believe your sand might be the issue... if a nice big pleco turd got burried in the sand then got disturbed... it could cause a huge nitrite spike. particularly if it's a few inches deep.
 
The most recent thing I did was stir up the sand a little bit during a WC about a week ago. A week before that I added a piece of driftwood (the kind attached to a stone as the base). It was in a friends tank a while ago but was then in storage for a couple months. I soaked it 24 hours before using. Besides those 2 things nothing out of the ordinary. After my 2nd large WC I did rinse the sponge on my canister filter. (It was dark brown)

The fish are still eating, not as much as usual but they are eating... They are also more skittish than usual. No heavy breathing or anything tho, they seem to be ok.
 
Sorry, I forgot to include some info.

I use the API Freshwater master kit. That is what tested tap water as 0 and the tank as 5.
 
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