High Ammonia and High Nitrite

[Scottie42585]

Hello all,

I have a 55 gal planted tank that has been setup and "cycled" for 3-4 months. I added fish after my cycle was complete (just under 2 months from setup) and saw ammonia and nitrite levels increase (just trace amounts but nonetheless) resulting in a significant loss of fish. I assumed it was because I added too many fish too quickly. I added 1 dwarf gourami after all my numbers returned to 0 for a period of time. Everything has been fine since then with 7 cory cats, 1 bristlenose pleco, and 1 dwarf gourami. I added 5 black neon tetras yesterday and woke up to traces of ammonia and nitrite again. They aren't that high but they are there. Again, I assume it is because I added fish yesterday but I don't think 5 black neon tetras are enough to overload the biofilter. What can I do to avoid this when adding fish. I eventually want to get blue rams or angelfish which are more expensive and more sensitive to water parameters and don't want to have to worry about traces of ammonia or nitrite after adding them. Any advice is greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Scott

 

[Andrew McFadden]

How did you cycle the tank? Sounds to me like maybe your just having mini cycles and it will fix and adjust itself. You should try and help it out some by water changes. Plus I'd hold off on the fish that need perfect water and let more BB build up in the tank first.

 

[leggey]

Maybe it's not the fish, maybe you are over feeding ? As left over food would give you the little spikes

 

[Andrew McFadden]

Maybe it's not the fish, maybe you are over feeding ? As left over food would give you the little spikes

True are you feeding more since there is more fish?