No2 issue...

[Navyboy]

so im pretty new to this website, im not sure if i am posting in the right place, so correct me plz, if i am in the wrong place..


Need help plz!
Ammonia lvl 0-.25 ppm
NO2 lvl 2 ppm
PH LVL 7.3-7.4
NO3 LVL 0
??
Planted tanks. Well trimmed, very carefully maintained. not over crowded. tank is 3 months old.
my ammonia lvls have always been almosy non existant, my nitrite keeps climbing and my nitrate lvls are very low.
daily water changes did not help. No2 kept climbing chemicals did not help, and im out of ideas.

My Tanks.
two 7.5 gal hexa. tall tanks.
semi planted with volcanic rock.
Tank Alpha.
home to 2 serpae tetras 2 cherry shrimp 1 golden snail and a baby 1.5`` CGA.
Tank Beta.
home to 2 baby tiger barbs and 1 red wag platy, 2 micro algae eaters of some kind and 1 random stowaway snail.
both tanks have 2 banana lilies, 1 java fern.
alpha tank has wistaria and beta tank has anacharis.
both tanks have the same chemical lvls. what is wrong? how do i lower my nitrite lvls??

 

[Alyxx]

Lots and lots of water changes! How long have these tanks been running, and are they cycled? If these are fairly new tanks they may not have completed the cycling process. For now, I would do a 50% water change every day until the ammonia and nitrites drop to zero, and nitrates to less than 20 ppm. Once they drop and stay down, you can start doing weekly 50% changes instead of daily.

Also, don't rely on chemicals to fix your water. They are a quick fix and don't address the root of the problem, and are not a long term solution to water quality issues.

 

[paytertot]

It sounds like they aren't fully cycled because in the cycling process, bb turns ammo to nitrite and nitrite to nitrate

 

[Navyboy]

First thank you for the replies. I really appreciate any advice.



like i said in my post tank is 3 months old and ive been doing daily water changes for almost 2 months. never touched my filter.
my tank was fully cycled before i added fish. NO2 no3 and nh3 lvls were 0.

when i added fish i got a normal NH3 spike. followed by a n02 spike. The issue i am having is that no2 spiked 2 months ago.... and no3 never did.
and no2 is still climbing

so 2 months ago no2 spiked and no3 still has not. It doesnt make sense to me. plz help.

 

[jlk]

Your plants are most likely absorbing the nitrates thats why you never have seen them spike. The nitrite is an issue though, and as suggested, water changes are your best option here. Have you checked your tap for ammonia & nitrites as well?

 

[Navyboy]

ive been doing daily water changes for 2 months. so about 30% of my water every day for 2 months.
ammonia/nh3 lvls dont even register with my test kit in tap, nor do nitrites. and im sure my plants are using all the nitrates in my tank, but there should have still been some sort of spike.
is it possible to have bateria that converts nh3 to no2 but Not have the bateria that converts no2 to no3?
and when i do a WC the N02 lvls are very low, but then within 32 hours are right back at 2ppm.

 

[jlk]

Its alot harder to keep smaller tanks stable because toxic levels of chemicals build up very quickly (as you are seeing). It appears your first set of bacteria is decently established but your nitrite>nitrate bacteria are not. I would up your water changes in the meantime until they are established. Fish-in cycling takes alot of patience- it took over 4mths for my 1 tank to establish itself fish-in.

 

[librarygirl]

Sorry what's a CGA?

So in a 7.5 gal tank you have Serpae Tetra and the CGA and shrimp and a snail? Is this the tank with the NO2 spike?

And you have a second tank as well with NO2? Is it the same size tank?

If so you're overstocked for both tanks I'm afraid, which is probably why you're seeing consistently high levels. What kind of filters do you have on these tanks? The fish you listed need larger tanks than 7.5 gals.

What test kit are you using?

 

[Navyboy]

Its alot harder to keep smaller tanks stable because toxic levels of chemicals build up very quickly (as you are seeing). It appears your first set of bacteria is decently established but your nitrite>nitrate bacteria are not. I would up your water changes in the meantime until they are established. Fish-in cycling takes alot of patience- it took over 4mths for my 1 tank to establish itself fish-in.

so up water changes to twice a day?? PPl keep suggesting i do daily water changes but as ive posted i am doing daily water changes and have been for 2 months to keep the No2 down. i mean, i can keep the No2 controlled as of right now, due to the dwc, but i need to find out why my No2 conversion is so low. I DO agree the bateria conversion is failing from no2 to no3. im trying to figure out why. my filter is a 3''x4'' pad with 3'' wheel.

is it possible that my no2 to no3 bateria are under some kind of attack?

library girl: a CGA is the nickname ive sometimes seen for a chinese algae eaters.
the full listing for both my tanks were listed on the first post. I do not believe my tanks are overstocked. if that were the case then i would be seeing high Nh3 spikes right?

tank 1 -7.5 gal 2- 1.5 '' serpea tetra 1- 1.5'' chinese algea eater 2 -.5'' cherry shrimp and 1- approx .25'' snail. thats 1.43 gallons of water per 1 inch of fish.

tank 2-7.5 gal 2- 1'' tiger barbs 2-1'' micro algea eaters 1 1.5'' red wag platy 1 .75'' snail. thats 1.2 gallons of water per inch of critter.

both the tiger barbs and cga will out grow the tank but by then my 122 gal custom will be seasoned and they will be ready for transplant.

both tanks read about the same.
testing kit is an API freshwater master test kit. includes ph high and low, no2 no3 and ammonia.

 

[jlk]

Ah-ha! You already have a new tank in the works! That would be my next suggestion if this issue does not resolve itself. Unfortunately, the 'inch of fish per gallon' rule is a bit antiquidated & does not realistically apply to all fish especially ones with heavier bioloads. I would just up your water changes to 50% (instead of 30%) & make sure you are using a good water conditioner dosed to the size of your tank. These tanks would make great tanks for a betta or just shrimp/snails when you upgrade!

 

[Navyboy]

ya, i plan to use one for snails shrimp and maybe those new spider crabs fake crab things ive been reading so much about lately. the other will be used for fry.
and i def understand the inch per gal is a rough estimate for a basic rule of thumb and i get that its not super accurate, but im pretty positive im not over crowded, ive seen many many tanks on this site and many others that are much more crowded without issues. And the NH3 would be an issue with over crowding. nh3 to no2 has a slower rate of conversion than no2 to no3 based on a study done by CSUMB california state univ. monteray bay.

there just has to be some kind of issue with the bateria that convert no2 to no3. my GF has a 25g with like 18 tetra in it. it should be having issues not me. But she had a diff water supply and fish and plants came from a differnt LFS and she has no issues at all
but ill try the 50% for 3 weeks. if that doesnt work then ill do a full tank cleaning, replace substrate and all the water.
http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=...qIHNDQ&usg=AFQjCNGkzt25sp9pa0b6Zfxf_O74h6HS_g

 

[jlk]

I am glad you are doing your research & i wish you the luck your tank endevours! Hopefully, this issue will resolve itself on its own. Look forward to seeing pics of your new tank as well!

 

[Navyboy]

Thx jlk, im just stressing out because i cant seem to figure this out. Ive had tanks all my life and an ex GF mine owns a LFS, and were both stumped,

i Shall never again use petco to fill out my tank. Ive used her shop for years and never had an issue, i use petco for plants and BAM, something is wrong.
thx again for your help and ill post pics of everything once i have it set up.

i just wish other ppl who offer advice would follow your example and accually read the thread, ya know? oh well, guess we cant always get what we want out of life, lol.

 

[jlk]

Hey, i make mistakes on here, too (not reading threads & getting different threads mixed up etc)!! We are human! I am not a big fan of petco either...the last time i purchased something living from them (mystery snails), i wound up with horrific leech infestation! Live & you learn! Sorry, i couldnt be of more help with your no2 issue!

 

[Navyboy]

No worries. I asked my ex to bring her lab equipment over and were gonna do this bug by bug and see if i have a microorganism issue. Thanks again for your assistance.

 

[jlk]

That is wonderful that you have access to lab equipment! Im envious!!

 

[Navyboy]

hah you would surprised what you can do with a 40$ microscope and some plastice spoons! Ive spoken with a biologist at the aquarium in dubai. The accually have ponds where they just grow certain types of "bugs" to add or remove other bugs from thier system. they joke there, that if the world ended and everyone vanished aliens would find the aquarium 30000 years from now still going. they have a pretty fantastic program. Not to mention the aquarium is just amazing!

 

[jlk]

Very impressed!!! Im am curious to see what you discover with your water. Let me know if anything interesting turns up!

 

[librarygirl]

This is rather weird. You seem to be in a never-ending nitrite phase. Typically nitrates come from nitrite conversion so if there isn't nitrite conversion you probably wouldn't see nitrate. Have you tested your tap water for nitrite? Can your GF spare any filter media to help seed your tank?

 

[Navyboy]

librarygirl, that is exactly what iuve been saying from the get go. ammonia and nitrate dont even register in my tests, just nitrite. lots and lots. and it keeps raising and even after a WC it just steadly climbs. It is very very weird, ive never had this issue and neither me nor my ex ( she has a b/s in biology and co owns a LFS) have any clue. thats why i joined this site!

Ive replaced my filters with hers, and it worked albiet slowly for about 2 or 3 days as the nitrite went down, then it stopped and started climbing. she refuses to put them back in her tanks for fear of ending up with the same issues.
ive also replaced 5 of 7.5 gallons with thier water and it looked good for a day then started climbing again. i swear its almost like something is eating the NO3 "bugs"!

whats really wierd is if there were no bateria at all ("bugs") i would be drowning in ammonia. so ammonia is being converted but nitrite isnt....
and my tap water is nh3 <.25 n02< .25 and no3 <.25 with Ph around 8.3.
my tests are only 92% reliable under .25 PPM and declines as the levels decrease, so i refuse to count them as accurate under .25.
but even at .25 ppm No2 shouldnt climb to 2ppm with a functioning nitro cycle..
<--- going to start pulling out hair lol