Ammonia level questions!

[Ima Newbie]

I need some advice on what to do about the ammonia in my tank. I have recently tested the water and my nitrite is at 0. My nitrate is at 20. So that is good...right?
Is that indication that my tank has cycled?
But when testing my ammonia level..(I use a test strip, from the local Walmart), it reads Harmful...about 3.0.
I have done water changes, and it dosnt seem to change the reading that I get.
The owner at the local pet store (where I buy all my fish) told me that I shouldnt worry too much if the fish seem to be doing ok. That it is probably a poor test kit.
I have a 55 gallon tank and I have had it now for about a month and a half. I have not had any fish deaths yet.
Should I be worried? Should I go and buy a better test kit? Should I do more water changes?
Please Help!!!!!!!

Ima Newbie

 

[TheWaterBoy]

3.0 is pretty high. I think most people who cycle w/ fish try to keep it under 1ppm. I have heard the strips are not as accurate as liquid tests. I would recomend a new test kit. Have you added anything to the tank that would cause the readings to be wrong?

Also water changes should lower ammonia. For a short period of time anyway. How big was your water change?

 

[tstenback]

Bring a sample of water to your local pet store guy and ask him to test for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate to see what he gets. It may be like he said a bad test kit which is not that uncommon(watch those expiry dates).
If the ammonia level is still high(should be 0 unless you are cycling or have recently added new fish) do water changes until you get that ammonia level down to under 1ppm. The fish may be fine now but that much ammonia for an extended period of time will stress the fish and could cause permanent damage.
If the ammonia level is not the same ie. 0 or so then get a new kit.

 

[Ima Newbie]

The last water change I did was 50%. That was 2 days ago.

 

[jams.alaskan]

Like they said, I'd have it tested at you lfs - so you can see if your strips are correst. Have you added new fish lately? That could be the cause of a mini cycle. Do 15 to 20 percent water changes daily till it is at least below 1 ppm. Your other qualities sound great. Maybe cut back on your feeding (everyother day) until you can get the ammonia down. I'm not a fan of the strips - just figure if I'm going to bother to test I want a better method. Best of luck!

ALASKA

 

[Dragonslair]

You don't say where you hail from, but if you can get hold of some ammo-rocks or something simialr this should cure your immediate problem.
What type of water are you using, tap water?
Where is the source, and have you tested the tap water if you are using tap water. If you have tested your source water and it is clear then you must look to your tank. Do you overfeed? Is your tank overloaded before cycling is complete?
Finally are your test strips out of date or damp?

 

[Ima Newbie]

I hail from Ohio. I use tap water. I always use a dechlorinator when I do water changes. I have never had my water tested, but I know that it is hard water and a high ph. I will take your advice and do daily water changes and feed every other day until it drops. I will be looking for another test kit also.
Thanks so much for your input. This sit is wonderful!
I'll let you know how things go.
Thanks!

 

[Joviella]

i have to say that i find the liquid test kits to be the best and easiest to read. hope this helps.

 

[pendragon]

Hi there Ima_Newbie.

Ammonia is poisonous to fish - no doubt. However, it's poisonous-ness is very dependant on your water's pH level (and temperature, but to a much lesser extent). Lower pH is better - it doesn't remove the ammonia from the water, but it does neutralize some (or a lot, actually) of its toxicity. Likewise, higher pH levels increase the toxicity of ammonia dramatically. There is a most excellent chart displaying the ammonia "danger zone" levels for particular water parameters in the quintessential begginer's FAQ at TheKrib.com. Scroll down to the section called How much ammonia is too much? (I tried to cut-and-paste the chart right into this post, but the formatting gets mangled so badly it becomes unreadable)

As you can see, at 77 degrees Farenheit, the "danger zone" is around 11.1 ppm at a pH of 6.5; but at a pH of 8.0, a concentration of only 0.4 ppm in that same tank is deadly. pH makes an incredible difference in the toxicity of ammonia.

Knowing your water pH and temperature, you can get a pretty good idea from this chart at what ammonia level you should allow panic to ensue. Of course, you don't really want your ammonia level to get too terribly close to the "danger zone" for the comfort of your fish, but it isn't always necessary to panic if your ammonia level gets up to 3, 4, 5, etc. ppm.

Hope that helps,

pendragon!

 

[reg2k2]

By chance, are u using Amquel? It's known to give false ammonia readings...

 

[Ima Newbie]

The test strips I used are Jungle test strips. I did a 25% water change today and checked the ammonia again and it is still at 3.0. I'm going to have my water tested in a few days. Thanks a bunch for your info.

 

[pendragon]

I did a 25% water change today and checked the ammonia again and it is still at 3.0.

Be aware that {a} if there is chloramine in your tap water, and {b} your water dechlorinator chemically "breaks" chloramine, then ammonia is the result. Some water dechlorinators also contain a component to neutralize this ammonia (e.g. Tetra AquaSafe), but many do not. If yours does not, this may be why your ammonia level is not decreasing significantly with water changes. When you add dechlorinator to the tap water, ammonia is created by the breaking of the chloramine. Then you put the new ammonia into the tank with your water change.

Generally not anything to worry about if your tank is fully cycled, but if your tank is cycling, this can really throw you a curveball, as it can appear that your ammonia level is not dropping significantly even though you just put new water in!

Just a possibility.

pendragon!