Ok I got the nitrites down to 7.0....

[kades]

Which is horrible but better than 10 plus. Everything else seems ok. Doing another major water change tonight. Is that too soon in between since it will only about 12 hours between the changes?

[Mumma.of.two]

Hi, if your nitrItes are any higher than 0.25ppm you need to do a water change ASAP. You can do 50% water changes back to back if needed.

[kades]

Ok good. When I told the lps I did two 50% water changes they about croaked! I told them I was doing another 50% when I got home lol. I guess they want my fish to die. Im through listening to the lps!

[Mumma.of.two]

Originally Posted by kades

Ok good. When I told the lps I did two 50% water changes they about croaked! I told them I was doing another 50% when I got home lol. I guess they want my fish to die. Im through listening to the lps!

Good idea! The vast majority of LFS staff are uneducated, unaware or don't care.

[jlk]

Lots & lots of water changes!!!! Just make sure you dose water conditioner for you tank size & match the temp of the new water to your tank water. Let us know what you are using to test your water (strips or liquid) because the API nitrite test only tests up to 5ppm. If you are using strips, you are probably getting inaccurate readings.

[kades]

Well I haven't purchased a test kit yet...I've been going to the lps to get the water tested. They use strips for everything except ammonia. They use the droppers or vials for that.

[jlk]

Keep up with the water changes anyway, but i would question whether your nitrites are really 7. Strips are inaccurate at best. If you can invest in an API freshwater master test kit, it will be well worth it! Amazon sells them for about $10 cheaper than most lfs. The cost over the long haul winds up being pennies a test because there are over 800 tests in a kit. It will give you an exact idea of what your tanks parameters are truly reading.

[kades]

Ok I will definitely look into it. Ive ben doing water changes about 2 or 3 times a week until the ps said not to that I was making my tank take longer to cycle. Then I stopped and that's when I got the spike in the nitrites. So back to my instincts lol

[jlk]

Your tank will still cycle even if you change the water. The bacteria live mainly on your filter media/substrate/decorations. There is very little in the actual water. As your tank cycles, the water changes will be what keeps your fish alive & healthy until your tank is established. Good luck!

[kades]

Thanks for all the good advice...establishing a tank can be very hard and discouraging, but the outcome is worth all the stress and time!

[kades]

After my last water change (50%) my bp has perked up. Shes swimming around "terrorizing" the other fish lol. Shes still flashing but I'm assuming its from all the water changes. I've used the dechloranator with each water change that has the conditioners as well. The tiger barbs gills look "rusty" I don't know if it was just damage done type thing or if it can get better with the pwc and time. Oh and as for the flashing the other fish seem to be doing it as well just not as "aggressively" as the blood parrot. I've examined them as close as possible and there are no white spots or anything. Is it the water changes our do you think it could be something else?

[fort384]

What is the nitrite testing at now? If it is above 0.25 I would do another 50% change and cut it in half again. Nitrite is toxic to your fish... PWCs and clean water are the solution. So long as you are adding dechlorinator to the water and matching the temp within a degree or 2, it won't slow your cycle down much and will be safe for the fish.