WackyInsertions
Aquarium Advice Apprentice
Sorry to make yet another, but I don't think my case fits any of the others.
I have a 20g long with 7 tiger barbs, about 6 ghost shrimp, and 4 small cory cats with a 1-2 inch sand substrate. Tank is fully cycled, I do 10-20% water changes weekly, and I have two penguin filters on it each with a bio-wheel (one is for a 50 gallon and one is for a 20; together, they cycle 270 gallons per hour). I also keep several live plants and there is a small piece of driftwood. The tank gets 9 hours of light a day from a double strip, glass top.
Now, about two weeks ago, my carbon filter went very bad over the weekend and there was a horrendous algae bloom. This led to a terrible nitrate increase. I'm now consistently at 40 ppm nitrates. I'm trying to lower it because I'd like to add a few more tiger barbs and I believe my current ones are getting accumulated stress from the high levels.
Ok, so...my question. Why are my nitrates so high? I add plant supplements, which I'm thinking could possibly be raising the levels, but I only add them once a week and the nitrates are consistently high every day. I think it's a safe assumption to conclude that they would be lower about a day before I added more supplement if that is indeed the problem. Also, one of my barbs has gotten ick and another has fin damage, so I'm switching in and out of medicating with quick cure and melafix. Could those be raising it?
In case it comes up, I don't overfeed. I feed the barbs bloodworms, and they don't let even -one- of those things slip by, and for the bottom dwellers, I alternate between a pinch of flakes and shrimp pellets.
Any help would be IMMENSELY appreciated, as I'm desperate to get these nitrates down. Sorry to make this so long
I have a 20g long with 7 tiger barbs, about 6 ghost shrimp, and 4 small cory cats with a 1-2 inch sand substrate. Tank is fully cycled, I do 10-20% water changes weekly, and I have two penguin filters on it each with a bio-wheel (one is for a 50 gallon and one is for a 20; together, they cycle 270 gallons per hour). I also keep several live plants and there is a small piece of driftwood. The tank gets 9 hours of light a day from a double strip, glass top.
Now, about two weeks ago, my carbon filter went very bad over the weekend and there was a horrendous algae bloom. This led to a terrible nitrate increase. I'm now consistently at 40 ppm nitrates. I'm trying to lower it because I'd like to add a few more tiger barbs and I believe my current ones are getting accumulated stress from the high levels.
Ok, so...my question. Why are my nitrates so high? I add plant supplements, which I'm thinking could possibly be raising the levels, but I only add them once a week and the nitrates are consistently high every day. I think it's a safe assumption to conclude that they would be lower about a day before I added more supplement if that is indeed the problem. Also, one of my barbs has gotten ick and another has fin damage, so I'm switching in and out of medicating with quick cure and melafix. Could those be raising it?
In case it comes up, I don't overfeed. I feed the barbs bloodworms, and they don't let even -one- of those things slip by, and for the bottom dwellers, I alternate between a pinch of flakes and shrimp pellets.
Any help would be IMMENSELY appreciated, as I'm desperate to get these nitrates down. Sorry to make this so long