High nitrite levels

[giants1249er]

Here is my situation. I have a 10-gallon tank with only 3 male platies and fake plants. It is not cycled. I've had my tank for about 7 weeks. I've had the platies for about 5 weeks. They are well, fed once daily, have enough to eat within 2 minutes. The ammonia levels have been always near 0.5 to 1.0 since I've read about fishless and fish-in cycles. I've done numerous water changes with Prime daily with the exception of skipping a day once or twice since then. Most changes have been 1/4 to 1/3 of the tank. My ammonia levels still hovered between .5 to 1 until a couple of days ago. It went down to .5 the last 2 days and .25 today. I haven't done a water change for 3 days. Thought I test the Nitrite levels...it came out 5.0 on the chart. What's my next step?

 

[eco23]

Immediate, massive and frequent water changes...as in right now.
http://www.aquariumadvice.com/artic...g-but-I-already-have-fish-What-now/Page2.html

 

[giants1249er]

Immediate, massive and frequent water changes...as in right now.
I just learned about cycling but I already have fish. What now?!

Thanks, I just changed 1/3 of my tank water using Prime. Any other advice you can give me? Should I test for anything else other than ammonia and nitrite levels? LMK. Thanks.

 

[eco23]

Thanks, I just changed 1/3 of my tank water using Prime. Any other advice you can give me? Should I test for anything else other than ammonia and nitrite levels? LMK. Thanks.

The ammonia and nitrIte are really all that's important right now. I wouldn't let any pH, kH or GH levels cross your mind. The focus should be in getting the toxins low and keeping them there until the tank is stable. I personally advise doing enough pwc's to keep the ammonia and no2 at or under .25 at all times. This may take several back to back changes. Let your test kit dictate how much water to change and how often to do it. Don't let the clock be your guide...just your test kit.

A few tools which can help...first, if you don't already have one, get yourself a quality liquid test kit like an API Master kit. It'll be vital to have an accurate reading every day.

Second, continue to use the Seachem Prime at 2-3x the normal dosage for now which can be a huge help. It dechlorinates the water, but also temporarily detoxifies the ammonia and nitrIte for 24-36 hours to buy your fish time between pwc's. It only neutralizes to a certain level, so don't use it as a substitute for fresh water to keep toxins as low as possible.

Third, aquarium salt can be helpful during the nitrIte spike phase. It will help reduce the uptake of the nitrIte and help your fish make it through.

First and foremost make sure you do water changes ASAP. We've got to get the no2 down immediately. It may take several back to back changes, but shoot for .25. Having nitrItes at 5ppm is absolutely devastating to your fish, and we've got to get that level down immediately.

Just keep up the testing, perform water changes as necessary to keep toxins at or below .25, try to pick up the other tools at the lfs when you can...and we can get your fish through this. It's just going to take some diligence and commitment .

 

[giants1249er]

The ammonia and nitrIte are really all that's important right now. I wouldn't let any pH, kH or GH levels cross your mind. The focus should be in getting the toxins low and keeping them there until the tank is stable. I personally advise doing enough pwc's to keep the ammonia and no2 at or under .25 at all times. This may take several back to back changes. Let your test kit dictate how much water to change and how often to do it. Don't let the clock be your guide...just your test kit.

A few tools which can help...first, if you don't already have one, get yourself a quality liquid test kit like an API Master kit. It'll be vital to have an accurate reading every day.

Second, continue to use the Seachem Prime at 2-3x the normal dosage for now which can be a huge help. It dechlorinates the water, but also temporarily detoxifies the ammonia and nitrIte for 24-36 hours to buy your fish time between pwc's. It only neutralizes to a certain level, so don't use it as a substitute for fresh water to keep toxins as low as possible.

Third, aquarium salt can be helpful during the nitrIte spike phase. It will help reduce the uptake of the nitrIte and help your fish make it through.

First and foremost make sure you do water changes ASAP. We've got to get the no2 down immediately. It may take several back to back changes, but shoot for .25. Having nitrItes at 5ppm is absolutely devastating to your fish, and we've got to get that level down immediately.

Just keep up the testing, perform water changes as necessary to keep toxins at or below .25, try to pick up the other tools at the lfs when you can...and we can get your fish through this. It's just going to take some diligence and commitment .

Thanks for the advice. I already have the ph test, ammonia test, nitrite test, and nitrate test, and the aquarium salt...though I did not buy the master kit...I bought them separately. I've been using Prime ever since you reccommended it weeks ago so I've got the stuff available. I'll keep a closer eye on it. Thanks again for the help.

 

[eco23]

Thanks for the advice. I already have the ph test, ammonia test, nitrite test, and nitrate test, and the aquarium salt...though I did not buy the master kit...I bought them separately. I've been using Prime ever since you reccommended it weeks ago so I've got the stuff available. I'll keep a closer eye on it. Thanks again for the help.

No problem. Let me know how it's going. Honestly it's just about testing and changing water. This is a super dangerous part of the cycle...so just make sure you stay on top of it. Good luck

 

[giants1249er]

2 days ago I added about 4 ounces of aquarium salt to the tank to help against nitrite poisoning (About.com recommended 1/2 ounce salt per gallon water and weekly water change of 25% within 1 week of initial treatment). Nitrite levels still at 5.

 

[eco23]

2 days ago I added about 4 ounces of aquarium salt to the tank to help against nitrite poisoning (About.com recommended 1/2 ounce salt per gallon water and weekly water change of 25% within 1 week of initial treatment). Nitrite levels still at 5.

Man, you've really got to get those down. Thats an insanely high level and salt is only gonna do so much. I advise you do a 75% water change with Prime conditioned, temp matched water...let it circulate for about 15-20 mins and do another 75% change. You've really got to keep those levels down even if you have to change water more than once a day.

You'll have to remind me...is the tank you're doing a fishless cycle on larger? If so, it's a better idea to do a fish-in cycle in a larger tank since it will take time for the toxins to build up (you still need to do tons of water changes though.)

If the other tank is larger...I'd completely drain it a couple times to remove any ammonia you've added, let it run empty for a couple days to make sure ammo and no2 stay at zero, then move the fish over with all the media from the other tank.

We've really got to get this taken care of. I don't mean to pull the fire alarm...but 5ppm of no2 is an extremely devastating amount. I hope you've got the bucket and bottle of Prime out as we speak.

 

[librarygirl]

Agree with Eco. There's really no shortcuts here when fish are in the tank and nitrite is that high. Very large water changes (probably more than one, back-to-back) are required to get that nitrite down <.5 ASAP.

As a librarian, I have to say that the advice on About.com shouldn't be used as a primary source at all. It's a good starting point for research, but it's "advice" is often misguided. The 25% weekly pwc recommendation for nitrite poisoning is not correct, IMO. You're better off asking for advice on here.

 

[giants1249er]

9/2 pwc 1/3 of tank.
9/3 pwc 1/3 of tank in am and in pm.
9/4 Nitrites down to 1ppm. pwc 1/3 of tank in pm.
9/5 Nitrites down to 1ppm. pwc 1/3 of tank in pm.
9/6 Same...pwc 1/3 tank in pm.

 

[giants1249er]

After daily changes of pwc the past few days, I got this:
nitrite 5ppm
nitrate 20ppm

Just did about 50% pwc. Will test later again.

 

[librarygirl]

Wow, you're in the nitrite spike phase it looks like. Is that 5 ppm before or after the 50% pwc? Even if it was taken before, and you did a 50% change, the nitrite is still at 2.5 which is still too high for fish. Another very large water change is in order, I'd say as much as you can do, just leave enough water for the fish to swim in at the bottom.

 

[giants1249er]

Wow, you're in the nitrite spike phase it looks like. Is that 5 ppm before or after the 50% pwc? Even if it was taken before, and you did a 50% change, the nitrite is still at 2.5 which is still too high for fish. Another very large water change is in order, I'd say as much as you can do, just leave enough water for the fish to swim in at the bottom.

5ppm was before the wpc. Going to do the tests again now.

 

[eco23]

Wow, you're in the nitrite spike phase it looks like. Is that 5 ppm before or after the 50% pwc? Even if it was taken before, and you did a 50% change, the nitrite is still at 2.5 which is still too high for fish. Another very large water change is in order, I'd say as much as you can do, just leave enough water for the fish to swim in at the bottom.

I absolutely agree. I would personally do a 75% water change, wait 15 minutes for the water to circulate, do another 75% water change, circulate, then test at that point. We've got to get that down, 5ppm of no2 is an emergency situation. Hopefully you're using Prime, and aquarium salt will help fight off the nitrIte poisoning. You cam see the light at the end of the tunnel, there's not much left to go...but make sure you stay committed to this until the end.

 

[giants1249er]

I absolutely agree. I would personally do a 75% water change, wait 15 minutes for the water to circulate, do another 75% water change, circulate, then test at that point. We've got to get that down, 5ppm of no2 is an emergency situation. Hopefully you're using Prime, and aquarium salt will help fight off the nitrIte poisoning. You cam see the light at the end of the tunnel, there's not much left to go...but make sure you stay committed to this until the end.

I do use Prime and have aquarium salt at my disposal. I tested it again...it's down to 1...still need to go lower...going to do about a 50% wpc.

 

[giants1249er]

I've been doing pwc the past few days. Aquarium salt added on 9/10/11. Nitrite levels still hovering at 1.

 

[eco23]

I don't want to be rude, but we've said over and over that you need to do water changes more frequently and larger to reduce and keep the nitrIte at .25. They can come down...there is no reason they should be hovering around 1ppm. All you have to do is replace the water which is full of nitrItes with fresh, dechlorinated water which doesn't have any.

Remember a 50% pwc will reduce levels by half, 25% by a quarter, etc... So in this case a 75% water change to reduce the nitrItes is what needs to be done to protect your fish.

I know it's a pain in the butt, and I know the levels keep rising...but you need to start doing water changes a lot more frequently. It's not acceptable for your fish to be swimming in 1ppm of nitrIte all the time. Remember, .25 or below at all times is your goal.
http://www.aquariumadvice.com/artic...g-but-I-already-have-fish-What-now/Page2.html

 

[giants1249er]

Had the day off so I checked the nitrite levels in the morning..it was about 1...did a 90% pwc at around 11am. Rechecked about 5pm...it went down near 0.5...did a 50% pwc. Hopefully it'll stay down.

 

[eco23]

Had the day off so I checked the nitrite levels in the morning..it was about 1...did a 90% pwc at around 11am. Rechecked about 5pm...it went down near 0.5...did a 50% pwc. Hopefully it'll stay down.

You're doing the right thing now. The nitrIte spike phase is towards the end...just keep being committed a while longer. If it's jumping that quickly and you knocked it down to .25 (.5 before 50% pwc) you'll need to test again in the morning and probably do another 50% pwc.

If you don't already have a Python / Aquaeon water changer...that can be a life saver (literally).

 

[Clynnking]

Hang in there Giant! Eco and LG are some of the best on this site! I agree the water changer will change your life and save your back! PWC are a pain but you can get through this and so will your fish with your help (and your advisors here). Hang In there!!