Ammoniam Nitrite And Nitrate Levels Help Needed

[tomjh]

hi all,

I am new to this hobby and i have the following fish in my 30l biorb,

I have the following fish and my water levels are as such

1 siamesse fighting fish
2 platys
3 ottos
3 neon tetra
1 rose tetra
2 tiger barbs
1 orange tailed black shark
2 red honey goramis

1 Red clawed crab


Nitrate = 20ppm
Nitrite = 5ppm
ammonia = 4 ppm


are these levels normal?

and i know the tiger barbs shouldnt be in with the fighter but they dont touch him

i have just added four fish as i tested these levels are they going to go up or what should i expect to see

any advise on matters would be ace

many thanks

tom

 

[Corleone]

Many of your fish will outgrow the tank, many others need to be kept in bigger groups.
Your tank is not cycled and your water has become toxic and will kill your fish very quickly.
Many of your fish are not suitable for cycling tanks, even done properly and safely.
Your crab requires land access and a small amount of marine salt in his tank.
Your crab is also sensitive to ammonia, and is likely to kill your fish at some point if it survives.

Your tiger barbs are leaving the betta alone because the water is too toxic and the situation too stressful for them to behave normally. With those water stats, you could actually replace every one of those fish with a male siamese fighter, and would be unlikely to see a fight for the days they survive.

My advise is to return any surviving animals to the store immediately, and start researching cycling, stocking, and compatibility, which this site has many references on these subjects.

 

[tomjh]

I have spoken to several fish shops and they have said it is ok only now have i checked the levels it seems wrong and all of the above is true,

look as i said im new to it all so please dont take the p**s
tom

 

[Colin_T]

Ammonia = 4ppm
Nitrite = 5ppm
Nitrate = 20ppm

These levels are not normal. You want the Ammonia & Nitrite to be on 0ppm at all times. And Nitrate to be as low as possible, (try to keep them below 20ppm).
The fact you have ammonia and nitrite would indicate the filters are not established and this will be stressing the fish. Reduce the feeding to once every day and do a daily 30-50% water change until the ammonia & nitrite levels come down to 0. Then do weekly water changes.
Make sure any new water going into the tank is free of chlorine and has a similar temperature & PH to the tank.

What sort of filter is in the tank?
Never wash filter materials under the tap. Only wash them out in a bucket of tank water. Keep the filter running all the time.

Tetras & barbs are schooling fishes that occur in groups of thousands in the wild. In captivity they should be kept in groups of 6 or more, preferably 10 or more of their own kind. Due to the small tank size I would not recommend getting more fish unless you remove some first.
Red claw crabs will sometimes eat fish and it is not recommended to keep them in tanks with small fish like neon tetras.
The orange tail black shark might get a bit agro when it matures. Then it will have to be moved to another tank.

 

[tomjh]

ok thanks for the advise what is the best way to do a water change
tom

 

[Colin_T]

Get a clean bucket that hasn't had any chemicals in it or been used in the laundry. Fill the bucket with tap water and add some dechlorinator (water conditioner). Stir the water up and leave it for at least 5 minutes. If the tap water is cold you can add some boiling water to the bucket to raise the temperature a bit. Use a thermometer to check the temperatures in the tank and bucket.

While you are waiting for the tap water you should turn the heater off and wait for a couple of minutes. Then drain out about 1/3 to 1/2 of the tank water. A gravel cleaner, (available from any petshop) is useful for this. It allows you to remove the gunk in the gravel along with some of the tank water. A length of clear plastic hose can also be used to drain the water out.
Drain the water into another bucket and pour the old water onto the garden. Then pour the bucket of freshly made water into the tank. You can use a smaller bucket or measuring cup to scoop the new water out and pour it into the tank if it is easier.

When the tank is full turn the heater on and make sure the filter is running.

 

[Corleone]

I have spoken to several fish shops and they have said it is ok only now have i checked the levels it seems wrong and all of the above is true,

look as i said im new to it all so please dont take the p**s
tom

Ok, then, I apologize for my troll statement, and will edit it out - most posts with such extreme stocking and water stats are made by people just looking to get others worked up. Anyway, pet stores are in the business of selling fish, not advice. Many employees are barely more experienced than yourself, others don't are and in particular boxed stores stores often give out canned flashcard style answers as approved by the corporate office, which in capitalist countries is bound by law to do what's best for the investors, not what's best for their livestock.

Your tank is about 7 US gallons. A cycled tank can support roughly 1 inch of fish per US gallon when dealing with small fish - you've got around 20 inches of fish. Water changes will reduce the levels of ammonia and nitrite, but you'll probably never get them under control with the filter biorbs use.

Your tank is uncycled, which means you need to control ammonia and nitrite, preferrably under 0.25 ppm at all times. Normally, a fish-in cycle using about an inch of fish per 5-10 gallons is only a matter of daily partial water changes for about a month. A biorob will never grow a big enough bacterial biofilter to support the fish you have - you either need a much bigger tank, or to rehome most of the fish. I'd suggest keeping the betta and shipping the rest out. At a later date you could add an apple snail, a couple white cloud minnows, shrimp, or maybe a dwarf frog.

 

[puppyjess123]

Well to start biorbs aren't much use and usually naround 30 gallons is good for a starter as it takes longer for toxins or whatever to build up. If you can't afford it etc don't worry the biorb will do (but qhwn u get into fishkeeping you'll probably get a bigger one anyway).

Your water stats are quite bad. Ammonia and nitrite should alway be 0 ppm even 0.25 is really quite bad. Also just saying nitrate should be preferably kept under 20 ppm depending on your tap water.

Bring all the fish back and do a fishless cycle. Look in miss wiggles sig (i tihnk) and that will explain it. Or you can do a fish in cycle and would recommend either something such as the betta or some neons - before getting a fish always do your research.

As for them not fighting this is why - if you felt really sick and felt like you were going to be would you want to biccer with your worst enemy - no.

Tip - Keeping fish is this keep the water good and the fish will look after them self. A filter needs to cycle (get good bacteria to keep the water clean) so fish can survive. If you choose a fish in cycle you will have to endure multiple water changes a week.

Thanks and good luck Lucy.

 

[tomjh]

just done a water change and my levels are now

nitrite 5ppm
nitrate 40ppm
ammonia 3.5ppm

is this about right?

 

[Corleone]

No. Any ammonia/nitrite over 0 is bad, any over 0.25 is bad for sustained exposure. Anything over 0.5-1 is potentially dangerous even in short term.

 

[puppyjess123]

As we said any nitrite and ammonia above 0 is bad. In about an hour or so (correct if wrong) do another water change until they are 0. Not to sure on this but i tihnk that would be the right thing to do.

 

[tomjh]

just done a water change and my levels are now

nitrite 5ppm
nitrate 40ppm
ammonia 3.5ppm

is this about right?

and the fish do seem to be abit more lively already, the barbs are "head butting" each other for want of a better word

tom

 

[puppyjess123]

A bit more lively. Sounds good. Just keep up the hard work and you'll eventually get their.

 

[tomjh]

so what happens if i go on holiday, such as in the summer i have 3 weeks off what is the best option for this?

and i have to admit it was very esy to change the water, couldnt find a second bucket so used the bin lol

many thanks for the help

tom

 

[puppyjess123]

Do you have any trusty friends/neighbours that could fish sit? Just leave instructions or the worst sorta option is going away fro a week and normally if every fish is healthy etc (not the case with you) you can get away with it. Also you can get automatic feeders and you could just get a friend to clean the tank out every week.