ammonia, Ph, nitrates

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drummerj

Aquarium Advice Activist
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Aug 31, 2006
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about half an hour ago i smelled my tank water (i like how it smells, what can i say!) and i smelled the most peculiar smell; Wet Dog. I immediately did my chemical tests and found my ammonia to be at .25, my ph 7.9 and my nitrates at 10. Finding these, I immediately did a partial water change. My tank smells nice again! What struck me as odd though, was that for the past few weeks everything has been fine, nothing out of parameters, everything going smooth. Does ammonia and Ph have a weird relationship? as in, if the ammonia is high, the Ph goes down?
 
Had it been a while since you did a water change? Is everything still alive in the tank? I know when the cycle is occuring and ammonia is high, that pH really isn't relevant, and I believe its because of the ammonia. I'm sure someone will correct me if im wrong.

I'd be more worried about why you had an ammonia spike in a cycled tank.

HTH
 
it had been approx. 4 days since the last water change, nothing died thank God, but then there isnt much in to begin with. Emerald crab, watchman goby, damsel, various hermit crabs and snails...

thanks!
 
Did you stir up the CC or add new LR? I would be concerned if you had an ammonia spike.
 
You did the right thing by doing a PWC. That was quick thinking. Now we need to find out what caused the spike.
 
i scraped algae off the back of the tank 2 or 3 days ago, but thats all ive done. The new live rock i bought is being cured in a seperate container.
 
I suspect the possibility of the CC. Do you clean that? I used to clean mine and do a PWC righ after. CC likes to hide some "nasties" and might be the culprit.....
 
SeeDemTails said:
Yet another reason why CC sucks!
LOL! Now, now, now, it is a personal preference. If done properly, it still looks great. I would not put it in my tank again, but some folks like it...
 
Elevated levels of ammonia will lower pH. Low pH will result in the retardation of the nitrifying bacteria, which causes a climb in ammonia...

What is your carbonate hardness in dKH?
 
afishyonados said:
Elevated levels of ammonia will lower pH. Low pH will result in the retardation of the nitrifying bacteria, which causes a climb in ammonia...

What is your carbonate hardness in dKH?
So, if the pH is low, it kills off the nitrifying bacteria, which would lead to the ammonia? Sorry, just wanted to put it in another way, so that my brain can wrap around it....
 
If the pH is low, the ability for the nitrifying bacteria to break down ammonia/nitrites is retarded or slowed. They will not be as effective or productive. This allows the ammonia levels to rise. It does not kill them, just slows them down or possibly makes them dormant, sometimes (in extreme situations) for up to two weeks!
 
afishyonados said:
If the pH is low, the ability for the nitrifying bacteria to break down ammonia/nitrites is retarded or slowed. They will not be as effective or productive. This allows the ammonia levels to rise. It does not kill them, just slows them down or possibly makes them dormant, sometimes (in extreme situations) for up to two weeks!
Awesome! Thanks for "dumbing" it down for me!
 
i let the salt sit in the water for 24 hours before i do a water change.
carbonate hardness? eeeyyeeaaahhh? I don't believe i have anything to test for that.
 
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