cycling tank, high nitrite

[force of habit]

cycling tank ammonia has leveled off. nitrite reading of 5.0 ppm this morning. I have prepared a 25% water change. I belive this is the right thing to do just wanted to make sure. This is the first day of high nitrite readings. How long will this phase last? Should I do daily test of this? Thanks for the help.

 

[Guest]

No water change... just let it go... it will soon tapeer off and return to 0 maybe a week or 2. Test every other day... Patience grasshopper

 

[force of habit]

I am concerned due to the fact that i mistakenly put in a flame dwarf angel fish with a damsel fish. Will the angel make it through this?

 

[MACATUA]

So I guess you were not able to house the Flame for a little while. You are so close to being done with the cycle, I would hate to slow it down with a water change. I don't have a clue what to do on this one............

 

[force of habit]

No I was not able to take the angel to the lfs. I bought it out of town and the lfs don't want anything to do with him. Poor Max. I just want to keep him alive. Both fish look good. No signs of problems. seem health and happy so far.

 

[MACATUA]

Well the ammonia is the tough part, maybe you should change the water and hope for the best. Nitrite shouldn't last long. And nitrate is easier for fish to handle. So good luck, I hope Max makes it!

 

[Biggen]

Hmm... I was getting ready to post the exact same message as Timbo did, but then I remembered you had an Angel in the tank.

Nitrite is one magnitude less toxic than ammonia. So one could say that, everything being equal, if they survived the ammonia spike, they could probably survive the nitrite spike.

The only problem here is, everything is not equal. The bacteria that convert nitrite to nitrate reproduce slower than those that convert the ammonia to nitrite. So it typically takes longer for the nitrite to spike and fall than the ammonia. Also, the fish (angel) is probably already stressed and damaged from the initial ammonia shock and now is going to have to be put back through the "chemical soup".

If I were you, I would do the 25% water change. At least that would get the nitrite down a little. Your tank will still cycle fine.

 

[Guest]

Yeah shame on me, I did not know about the Angel.

I concur with Macatua and Biggen

 

[force of habit]

Thanks guys. Just did the change. I am so glad I found this site. Everyone has been so helpful. Me only regret is that I didn't find it before I did.

 

[biotoxin]

1. angels shouldnt be put into a new tank they are better in established tanks.
2. never do water changes during a cycle. youre just taking out the beneficial bacteria you need to complete the cycle.
3. its hard to be patient with an empty aquarium, trust me it was frustrating in the beginning to just have something in there. PATIENCE is how this hobby works.

And yes this forum is the best for aquatic advice

 

[Guest]

Actually truth be told, the beneficial bacteria colonizes the substrate, rocks and surfaces. Very little bacteria is in the water column. The thing is, when you do a water change, you take away the compound that they convert, thus slowing down the rate inwhich they grow. This is what causes an extended cycle when changing water during.