50% Water change too much?
- Thread starter Meiko
- Start date
The friendliest place on the web for anyone with an interest in aquariums or fish keeping!
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
Voodoo Chilli
Aquarium Advice FINatic
If you're positive you have no nitrates being added to the tank (fresh tap water or whatever you're filling the tank with)- then your tank IS cycled. My guess is either your strip tests are bad (which is highly likely), OR your filtration system is either inadequate for the fishload in the tank and/or isn't operating properly.
I'd take a sample to your LFS and have them test the nitrite and nitrate levels with a drop test. Although not perfect, they are much more accurate and reliable than those strip test kits. Good luck!
I'd take a sample to your LFS and have them test the nitrite and nitrate levels with a drop test. Although not perfect, they are much more accurate and reliable than those strip test kits. Good luck!
AtodaJ
Aquarium Advice Freak
Meiko used "Stress Zyme". That is why there are large quantities of Nitrates even though the tank never actually cycled. It makes perfect sense to me to have large Nitrate levels AND large Nitrite levels given this chemical additive. The tank is NOT cycled.
Meiko - Just perform water changes as explained earlier. Keep this up until your Nitrite levels get to zero. It is very important to get those Nitrite levels down ASAP. Because you used Stress Zyme you can't use the presence of Nitrates to determine when the cycle is complete so keep testing Ammonia and Nitrite every other day until both are at 0 for a few tests in a row. Your tank will most likely have cycled by then.
I do think the strip tests are not as reliable as the bottle tests but they won't give you a reading of 10 ppm when there isn't any Nitrite present..... they aren't that bad unless there was some serious contamination.
Good luck
Meiko - Just perform water changes as explained earlier. Keep this up until your Nitrite levels get to zero. It is very important to get those Nitrite levels down ASAP. Because you used Stress Zyme you can't use the presence of Nitrates to determine when the cycle is complete so keep testing Ammonia and Nitrite every other day until both are at 0 for a few tests in a row. Your tank will most likely have cycled by then.
I do think the strip tests are not as reliable as the bottle tests but they won't give you a reading of 10 ppm when there isn't any Nitrite present..... they aren't that bad unless there was some serious contamination.
Good luck
Meiko
Aquarium Advice Apprentice
First off, I just want to say a huge THANKS! for everyone who's helped me! ^______^
*Dances* I got all stressed with all the fiddling with tank and felt like I was totally making things worse..So I forced myself to NOT touch my tank for four days ^^;;; And whala! Nitrite and Ammonia ZERO! Yays!
But I did realise something. Big "Oopsie" on my part! I retested the Spring Water I use in my tank... And yup, it comes up with like 30-40 ppm of Nitrates! I guess I tested it wrong the first time..or something..or..uh.. I donno! ^^;
Is there something I can use in the water to get rid of the nitrates before adding it to the tank? Or do I need to just leave it out for a week or..?
Thanks again for everyone's help so far! ^______^
*Dances* I got all stressed with all the fiddling with tank and felt like I was totally making things worse..So I forced myself to NOT touch my tank for four days ^^;;; And whala! Nitrite and Ammonia ZERO! Yays!
But I did realise something. Big "Oopsie" on my part! I retested the Spring Water I use in my tank... And yup, it comes up with like 30-40 ppm of Nitrates! I guess I tested it wrong the first time..or something..or..uh.. I donno! ^^;
Is there something I can use in the water to get rid of the nitrates before adding it to the tank? Or do I need to just leave it out for a week or..?
Thanks again for everyone's help so far! ^______^
TankGirl
Aquarium Advice Addict
There is nothing that is going to remove nitrate except thriving plants, at least that I know of.
High nitrate in a tank is usually handled with frequent partial water changes, but if your water source has high nitrate (that sounds a bit high for any treated water, at least from what I know) then you might need to find another water source. Kindof defeats the purpose in one respect, don'tcha know!
High nitrate in a tank is usually handled with frequent partial water changes, but if your water source has high nitrate (that sounds a bit high for any treated water, at least from what I know) then you might need to find another water source. Kindof defeats the purpose in one respect, don'tcha know!
Meiko
Aquarium Advice Apprentice
Well... I can't find a source of water that doesn't have that much nitrate in it. X.x! My water out of faucet has that amount and the spring water from the store has it too...
AtodaJ
Aquarium Advice Freak
That is quite odd. Try getting a bottle of distilled water from the store and test that water. I'd like to see if your test can register 0ppm and distilled water will have no Nitrates.
Meiko
Aquarium Advice Apprentice
you think distilled will be ok? cause I know it has neutrients from the water taken out due to process...
AtodaJ
Aquarium Advice Freak
I didn't say to use distilled for your tank. I'd just like to see you have a test result with 0ppm Nitrates to confirm your tests are accurate.
Having both bottled spring water and tap water register 30-40 Nitrates is unusual.
If your tests end up being accurate then we can think about what the next step is.
Good luck.
Having both bottled spring water and tap water register 30-40 Nitrates is unusual.
If your tests end up being accurate then we can think about what the next step is.
Good luck.
Similar threads
