Nitrites High

[fishnewbie]

Help! I have had a 6 gallon tank for 12 days now. The nitrite levels were really high so I did a 25% water change. Tested again and the nitrite levels were less but still high. So I did another 25% water change. Heard you are not supposed to do more than 50% water change. The fish are still sluggish and the levels of nitrite are still up there. Not sure if there is a chemical way to get the levels down until beneficial bacteria builds up. When can I do another water change? I have 3 mollies in the tank.

 

[Allivymar]

Welcome to AquariumAdvice fishnewbie

Ooo you're in luck. The treatment for nitrite poisoning, besides water changes, is salt. That's especially fortuitous in your case, as mollies really need salt anyway. I'd suggest a tablespoon of aquarium or rock salt (not table salt) for your 6g.

How are your ammonia levels btw? Unfortunately, there is no treatment for ammonia poisoning.

 

[ADCISCO]

You beat me to it Alliv.....I have had major problems just like yours. Took me forever to get my tank lined out. Just keep up the water changes everyday and add some salt. It took me a few weeks to get my water to normal and now all is well at last!

 

[fishnewbie]

Thanks for the advice Allivymar and Adcisco

I'll try the salt first thing tommorrow. I just checked the ammonia levels and it seems to be between .25 and .50. It appears to be a pale yellow but it's hard to tell because it has so many particles of grey matter floating in the test tube that show up 10 seconds after adding the chemical to the test tube. Is that normal, or a really bad sign?

You said mollies need salt. Once the tank is stabilized, how much should I add and how often.

Thanks again, for the quick response and great advice.

 

[Allivymar]

You're welcome fishnewbie

Keep up those water changes; you really don't want any ammonia or nitrites in the water, and like I said earlier there is no treatment for ammonia (it burns the fish, especially the gills and they can't breathe). Not sure what the particles are; is your filter clogged and not cleaning debris from the tank water?

Low end (slightly brackish) salt levels would be around 1.002; generally this lower level is used if you have plants. Otherwise levels between 1.008-1.010 is generally a happy level for mollies, although they can handle full saltwater levels as well. You'll need to grab a hydrometer to check the salt levels; Seatest makes one which can read salt levels that low (its about $11). Start off slow. Maybe 2 tablespoons to begin with, and test and see what the levels are so you'll know how much more to add.

Also, do know that mollies can be from 3"-6" adult size (average 4"); you will most likely need a slightly larger tank for them as they reach adult size.

 

[fishnewbie]

I have one dalmation molly,one gold dust molly, and an orange one with black marks (don't know the type). The Petco sign where I bought them said adult size of 2 1/2 inches each. Do you think this is correct or don't they have a clue ? Is there any websites that would give molly specifics?
thanks again.

 

[Allivymar]

There are tons of em; I just did a google search as I'm not a molly expert and oi LOL what a list.

They may remain small; again, as I'm no Molly expert and I don't know what type of mollies were used to create those breeds; hopefully someone with more molly experience then I will chime in here Black mollies get to be around 3" (so Petco wasn't far off ), orangefins get to be around 4 1/2", sailfins around 6". I do know they need salt, and can be absolutely prolific (another reason to consider a larger tank LOL its gonna get crowded in there).

 

[ADCISCO]

Hey fishnewbie...I had the small particles floating around in my test too. You used the liquid drops I take it? Mine did the same thing but when your water starts to get back to normal those will go away and the water in the tube will be perfectly clear. It about drove me crazy too. Just hang in there and do your water changes it will line out in a week or so....just be patient...and believe me its hard just ask allivymar how impatient I was!!!!! But it finally paid off!

 

[sweetsuvvyb]

Just an FYI about the ammonia test....if you're using a test that has mercuric chloride, the floaty drops are the precipitate formed when you have a positive ammonia test...kinda gotta shake it up to get a sense of how yellow it is. If you get no floaty stuff...means you're ammonia-free!

Also, that stuff is pretty durn toxic (i was actually surprised they even sell it), so if you've got kids around, reeeaaally make sure they don't have access to it, and please don't throw the stuff in the garbage..if for some reason you're throwing it away, that reagent should be disposed of as a HazMat (ie...with your paints and household chemicals), as it's an environmental contaminant...if it get's into the waterways it'll poison aquatic life (which is kinda ironic, isn't it?)

 

[Allivymar]

Oh wow. I never knew that sweets! Do all Nessler tests contain mercuric chloride?? Eeeek...nasty toxic stuff too.

Have a few kudos for teaching me something new today

 

[sweetsuvvyb]

I don't know if they all do...hopefully they don't...it just happens that mercury is a really good precipitate (you need something heavy), and is also pretty inexpensive. Might also have something to do with how easy it is to get that yellow dye in there.

thanks for the Kudos...i should email my profs and let them know that all the chemistry DID pay off...

 

[fishnewbie]

Well, now I'm really frustrated :? I did a 2 gallon exchange on my 6 gallon tank today and in the bucket I treated the new water for chlorine and then added a tablespoon of Red Sea salt. I added this back into the tank and checked 3 times today for nitrites. Each time it was the same as yesterday - about .2 ppm. How long does the salt take to react with the nitrites?

The ammonia is still also around .25 to .50. I saw a product in the store today called Ammonia Clear Tank Buddies by Jungle Co. - They're a tablet that you toss into the tank. Has anyone used these and do they work?

Also - Sweets , you mentioned disposal of the ammonia test drops - does that include the drops in the test tube I used for the test - or can I just toss the results down the drain when I'm done?

 

[sweetsuvvyb]

The salt won't lower your nitrite levels. What it does do is make it so those high nitrite levels don't suffocate your fish (in fish, nitrite kinda acts like carbon monoxide does in people...gets stuck in their oxygen-carrying blood cells, so they don't get the oxygen. salt prevents this from happening).

I'd personally steer clear of any extra additives (except the dechlorinator) in your tank now, and in general. Stick with the water changes + salt. There are a ton of products that will remove, or change the ammonia to a less toxic form....but then you kill off your biofilter (the bacteria you want to encourage to "eat" the ammonia and nitrites).

Down the drain is fine for the test tube water....just be careful not to do it in the kitchen sink if there's dishes around. Just don't want to dump the whole bottle of reagent, or throw it in the trash where someone might come into contact with it. I'm probably far more paranoid about it than is necessary, to be honest...but it's the chem background at work!

 

[fishnewbie]

Thanks Sweetsuvvyb

The chemistry info you're providing on this site is great. At least I feel better about the nitrite readings now. Trying to be patient but its hard looking at those fish. They're not doing well.

Why aren't you suppose to change out more than 50% of the water? Is it because of stress to the fish? Should I be doing more than 30% per day if nitrites are still at .25 to liven up the fish?

 

[sweetsuvvyb]

I would worry more about the ammonia readings than the nitrites...since you have no way to protect your fish from it when you're cycling the tank, but like i was talking about above, the salt you added (and can keep adding each time you do a water change), will protect them from the nitrites.

Mostly it's a balance of leaving enough ammonia and nitrites in the tank to get those bacteria colonies going, but removing enough so as not to harm your fishies. Plus you don't want to end up with a drastic change in tank temperature or pH by adding a ton of new water.

Hopefully your little guys will perk up soon...I know how hard it is to see them doing less than perfect!

 

[Allivymar]

What sweets said LOL

Just one note; when you add salt during water changes, only add enough salt to cover the amount you've changed (ie: do a 20% water change, add only 20% of the salt you'd use for the whole tank). Otherwise you'll really kick those salt levels way up.