Nitrate help

[vitacrux]

So I've had a total of four fish deaths now, the first one I thought was random but then after two more today I tested my water, ammonia and nitrites were 0 but my nitrates were off the charts, I changed 5 gallons yesterday of my 55 gal tank. Then this morning I changed another twenty with no change. So after work I changed another twenty and I have maybe decreased from 160ppm to 80ppm. I'm not sure how that is possible for it to still be that high with almost totally new water.
I tested my tap water and it reads between 0 and 5 ppm.

The tank is 55gal, up since Christmas, had some fish before, some fish just recently.temp is 76, fluval 405. Currently homes one rubber lip pleco, one rainbow shark small, electric yellow cichlid full grown, jewel cichlid full grown, electric blue johanni small, and kenyi med.

Today I bought some tetra plus easy balance, and put it in after water change. Please help me figure this out, I really don't want to lose the rest of my fish

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[ericwithac]

So I've had a total of four fish deaths now, the first one I thought was random but then after two more today I tested my water, ammonia and nitrites were 0 but my nitrates were off the charts, I changed 5 gallons yesterday of my 55 gal tank. Then this morning I changed another twenty with no change. So after work I changed another twenty and I have maybe decreased from 160ppm to 80ppm. I'm not sure how that is possible for it to still be that high with almost totally new water.
I tested my tap water and it reads between 0 and 5 ppm.

The tank is 55gal, up since Christmas, had some fish before, some fish just recently.temp is 76, fluval 405. Currently homes one rubber lip pleco, one rainbow shark small, electric yellow cichlid full grown, jewel cichlid full grown, electric blue johanni small, and kenyi med.

Today I bought some tetra plus easy balance, and put it in after water change. Please help me figure this out, I really don't want to lose the rest of my fish

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I think larger PWCs would work much better. If you did maybe a 50-75% WC that may cut them down. May have to do a few WCs before it gets back to normal.

 

[StrangelyNormal]

If you have seachem prime - a water conditioner made by SeaChem - it will help you out. SeaChem will bind the nitrate for 24-48 hours. If the nitrate is high, and you cannot do a WC because of needing to do other things, you could throw in a dose to regulate it for now. But do not dose it and then re-dose it after that 24 hour mark - Prime can be sticky with the possibility of an overdose. You need to dose, and then do a WC. But you can add extra even without the WC - you just need to do it after you dose, at some point.

SeaChem also binds nitrite and ammonia - it is most noted for it's ammonia help.

 

[BBradbury]

Your Tank and Nitrates

Hello vita...

Larger tanks need large water changes, nitrate removing media and lots of floating plants. I remove and replace 50 to 60 percent of the tank water weekly, use a good nitrate removing medium from Acurel and keep thick bunches of Hornwort and Anacharis floating on most of the tank's surface.

The large water changes keep a stable water chemistry, the medium removes nitrates from dissolved food and fish wastes and the plants use the rest of dissolved nitrogen for food and keep the water cleaner between water changes.

Pretty easy.

B

 

[BillD]

indeed, the problem here is the small water changes. Doing the small changes doesn't have the same effect as doing a large one.

 

[vitacrux]

Okay thank you guys I will try a larger one tonight. As for the nitrate media what am I looking for? Right now I've got two layers of ceramic and two layers of polyfil?

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[em1981ma]

When your tank chemistry stablises. Get used to do large weekly 50-60% waterchanges. It becomes habit after a while. I do it on 119gallon. So a 55gallon is v doable. Good luck rinse your filter media out in old tank water. This may help reduce nitrates

we're gona need a bigger tank (boat).. JAWS ~~~∆~~\o/~~

 

[FWFishTanks]

As said before, larger wcs are more effective than frequent small ones. The reason being, when you do frequent wcs, you are taking out some of the water from the previous changes with a big one, you are taking out mostly old water