Bamboozled?

[Psyhampster]

Today when I went to the lfs, i purchased a bottle of Detox Ammonia because my ammonia has been at about 3 the last 2 times I tested. None of the fish seem to be suffering, but i'd like to lower it anyway. I was also talked into buying some grotto rock, which the guy said would raise hardness. will this help the ammonia problem at all or possibly lead to disaster?

 

[Menagerie]

Never add chemicals to the water to reduce ammonia. The only true way to reduce ammonia is with water changes. You will need to do PCW everyday for the next few days until it comes down.

 

[Psyhampster]

oy...
can i add the detox to the water that i'm going to change in? It says it eliminates chlorine and chlorimine too, so should i just use it for treating the water?

 

[Devilishturtles]

I agree with Menagerie. NEVER add chemicals to get rid of ammonia. Daily water changes will bring your levels down. And 3 really is TOO much. Even if your fish seem fine, it will eventually start to harm them. Get it down, asap.

Good luck.

 

[Psyhampster]

ok, i'll change the water more often for a while.
again, will the rocks help the ammonia by raising the hardness, or just stress/kill the fish?

 

[hashbaz]

I've never heard of hardness removing ammonia. It might make it slightly less toxic, or slightly more toxic - I don't remember which. How does your current hardness compare to what your fish prefer?

The reason no one likes to use chemicals of any kind (except dechlorinator) is because they are unstable. For the case of ammonia - putting in a chemical to remove the ammonia will starve the bacteria that consume the ammonia. With no bacteria in your tank you will be permanently dependant on the chemical to remove the ammonia. This can lead to sharp spikes in ammonia levels if the chemical you are adding is not kept at perfect levels.

HTH Good luck!

 

[Psyhampster]

i don't have a test kit for hardness, so i'll take a sample into the good lfs to check it.
Platies- dH 10-25
Danios- dH 8-12
Rams- dH 5-12

 

[Psyhampster]

i didn't get the GH/dH checked, but i got a nitrite test kit, and it turns out my nitrites are VERY high, 1.6-33. I know this will probably kill the fish soon, so i need a way to lower it. This, combined with my high ammonia leads me to belive that my bacteria were killed off... The only thing I can think of that might have done it, is I added two drops of Dechlor straight to the tank last week.
Any ideas/suggestions?
TIA

 

[Mofo2713]

water changes, water changes, water changes. Best solution to solve the problem. Just make sure you add dechlor back to the tank when you put in the new water. I would do 25-35% pwc everyday until nitrites fall to 0. Sounds like you are in the middle of a cycle. Your bacteria did not get killed. That is part of the cycle. High ammonia ---> high nitrites ---> nitrates.