Nitrate & Fish Health Issues

[Ninjouzata]

Hello. Fairly ashamed to be making this sort of post but I do need help. Sorry for the lengthiness.
 
I was gone for ~3 months and had my dad taking care of tanks for me.
 
Before that I was fairly burnt out and also was having some personal issues for a while, so the tanks got the bare minimum..feeding and 25-50% water changes a week. I never touched the filters unless they were obviously clogged. I think the lack of filter maintenance is why I'm having such high nitrates so it may be just as simple as taking care of those and then keeping up with it.
 
I also have some fish not looking quite right which may be due to this as well.
 
I have had fish disappearing for a while..never really found bodies, and didn't see fish showing symptoms of anything.
That was before I left though, and is also why my stocking is the way it is. Once everything is sorted I will either be re-homing certain ones or increasing their numbers again.
 
I'm going to post tanks and their stats along with some pictures in spoilers due to their size.
 
I know pictures aren't the most accurate but I sincerely have no idea what number to put for them.
First spoiler for each tank will be nitrate, second will be high pH if applicable, 2-3rd+ will be affected fish if applicable.
 
I do not have dimensions or temperature right now but I can get those tomorrow if they're needed/wanted.
I can also test kh/gh for the tanks I didn't test for if need be. Can add feeding as well, it's just late right now so I want to get this posted ASAP.
 
*Edit*
Wanted to add that the last water change was tuesday (5/31) and tests were taken sunday (6/5)
 
Tank #1
Stocking: 1x Black Ghost Knife, 1x Leopard Bushfish, 1x Striped Peacock Eel, 1x Half-Banded Eel, 1x Blue Phantom Pleco, 3x Angelfish, a LOT of MTS
Water Change: 25% a week
129g (488l)
pH 6.4
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate ??

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

I have a video of this tank as well as none of the fish will cooperate enough to actually get good pictures. I focused on the BGK because I was trying to see if his mouth looks messed up. The leopard bushfish unfortunately wouldn't come out but the other day I saw a few white blotches (not like ich, and not fuzzy) on his side. The striped angel looks like something may be wrong with his head and hopefully the camera shows some white stuff on his pectoral fins, although it may be some normal sparkling or something. The black angelfish issues may just be that she's beaten up by the other two.

Spoiler

https/youtu.be/KOgDO_Gxws4

 
Tank #2

Stocking: 1x Betta Ocellata, 1x Guppy, 1x Bristlenose Pleco, 4x Rummynose Tetras, 1x Albino Corydoras, 6x Sterbai Corydoras, ?x Khuli Loaches (always hiding, maybe 3 or 4..maybe 7), ?x Mystery Snails (hard to get a full count on these)
Water Change: 25-50% a week
55g (208l)
pH 6.0
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate ??

KH 1
GH 3

Spoiler

 
Tank #3
Stocking: 1x Crowntail Betta
Water Change: 50% a week
10g (38l) Betta
pH 7.6
High pH 7.8?
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 10-20?

Spoiler

Spoiler

 
Tank #4
Stocking: 2x Ranchu Goldfish (One of these has been having some issues with possibly dropsy, her thread is HERE.)
Water Change: 75% a week
29g (110l)
pH 6.4
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate ??

Spoiler

 
Tank #5

Stocking: 2x Peacock Gudgeons, 1x Espei Rasbora (has some sort of hole or spot on his side), 1-2x Marble Hatchetfish, 1x Spotted Blue-Eye Rainbowfish
Water Change: 25-50% a week
20g (75l)
pH 7.6
High pH 7.4?
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 40-80?

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

 
Tank #6
Stocking: 2x Fundulopanchax Gardneri Killifish (Both have raggedy tail, male has bent spine which was like this before I left but possibly not as severe), 1x Nerite Snail
Water Change: 25-50% a week
10g (38l) Killifish
pH 6.4
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate ??

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

 
Straight Tap Water

pH 7.6
High pH ??
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 5

KH 3
GH 3

Spoiler

 
24 Hour Tap Water (without airstone, thinking now maybe I should have added one?)
pH 7.6
High pH 7.8?
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 5

KH 3
GH 3

Spoiler

 
I'll be making a post to help with the algae in the planted section tomorrow or something, if anyone ends up noticing that issue in some of the photos.

 

[BaylorPerez]

Bacterial infections from what it looks like, try adding melafix to your tanks (extracted from tea trees if i remember correctly) as this will usually help with bacterial infections. If not you could also try something alittle harder but may work better

Bacterial infections from what it looks like, try adding melafix to your tanks (extracted from tea trees if i remember correctly) as this will usually help with bacterial infections. If not you could also try something alittle harder but may work better

Also when it comes to your filter media, i would rinse it out when you do another water change. As any leftover food/plant debri/fish waste could be what is causing the high Nitrate levels

 

[Ninjouzata]

Bacterial infections from what it looks like, try adding melafix to your tanks (extracted from tea trees if i remember correctly) as this will usually help with bacterial infections. If not you could also try something alittle harder but may work better

Bacterial infections from what it looks like, try adding melafix to your tanks (extracted from tea trees if i remember correctly) as this will usually help with bacterial infections. If not you could also try something alittle harder but may work better

Also when it comes to your filter media, i would rinse it out when you do another water change. As any leftover food/plant debri/fish waste could be what is causing the high Nitrate levels

Yeah I'm definitely going to rinse the media in dechlorinated water and do some water changes.
I'm not sure on the melafix as the leopard bushfish is an anabantoid (if you are referring to the 129g at least) and the tea tree oil is not good for them.

 

[BaylorPerez]

Bacterial infections from what it looks like, try adding melafix to your tanks (extracted from tea trees if i remember correctly) as this will usually help with bacterial infections. If not you could also try something alittle harder but may work better

Bacterial infections from what it looks like, try adding melafix to your tanks (extracted from tea trees if i remember correctly) as this will usually help with bacterial infections. If not you could also try something alittle harder but may work better

Also when it comes to your filter media, i would rinse it out when you do another water change. As any leftover food/plant debri/fish waste could be what is causing the high Nitrate levels

Then to help this will give you an idea on what may need to be done as this could also be a cause of OTS ( Old tank Syndrome ) There are various devices and procedures that can lower the nitrate level. Nitrate-adsorbing filter media and anaerobic denitrifying biofilters will remove dissolved nitrate, but they will do nothing to eliminate the cause of the problem. The simplest solution is a water change. When you remove a volume of water from your aquarium, you remove all the nitrate in that volume. So, change half the water and you’ve removed 50 percent of the nitrate.
Now, before you roll up your sleeves and dive right into a thorough cleaning of your aquarium, remember that going from polluted water to fresh, clean water can be just as harmful to your fish as the nitrates themselves. The change in the water chemistry can be a physical shock to your fish. So, if you have a very high nitrate level, start slowly. Lightly vacuum the substrate until no more than 15 percent of the water has been removed. Continue vacuuming the substrate once a day, getting a little deeper into the gravel each time and removing about 10 to 20 percent of the water. Keep testing, and once the nitrate level reaches 5 to 10 ppm, establish a maintenance routine that will keep it there.. \
 
While also doing this for your plants 
A heavily planted tank is the most natural way to have low nitrate levels, since plants will utilize much of the ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate produced in the aquarium. This is the principle behind growing and harvesting macroalgae in a saltwater sump system. The rapidly growing algae remove wastes from the water, and the regular removal of some of the algae permanently removes those substances from the system.
Mangrove plants are especially popular with marine aquarists, but they are equally effective at removing wastes from fresh water. These plants are rooted under the water, but they must grow out of the water. Remember, though, that plants can only utilize a certain amount of wastes, which is why planted tanks, like reef setups, are typically lightly stocked with fish.
slightly cleaning your plants, as in Gently running your fingers along the leaves( stems included ) can help get rid of any plant debri that is on the plant itself, Causing the plant to suffocate as some tank filters dont make a current strong enough to carry this "Debri" off the leaves of the plants. Causing them to take less, or if lucky, the same amount of tank nutrients ( Ammonia, nitrite, nitrate ). for this we cannot tell by just looking at the plants. The best bet for any aquatic plant is to have a "cleaner" fish or snail that wont eat the plant to help clean off this and help the tank and plant survive.
 Also to help clear up any issues with your Nitrate
Tank 3 is somewhere between 20-40 PPm
tank 4 is 200 Ppm + due to high color of red
Tank 5 is 120PPm to about 140Ppm 
tank 6 100 - 120PPm lower color red, not high enough to be 160+ yet
Straight Tap water is about 8.0 - 8.4, hard to tell due to color or red and blue mixing
24Hr tap is 7.9 to about 8.0 ( not to close off from the high end for cichlid tanks )

Now with the issues with the Nitrate.
 
Nitrate is what comes from the bacteria caused by nitrites. Although we tend to keep our Nitrates below 20PPm, 40 will be ok with some fish, Not all fish tolerate the same levels of Nitrates, some dont like any, some like alittle and so forth. But with the dangerous levels of 80+, you will start to see some deaths of the fish, mostly due to the Toxic effects of the Nitrate levels.
 
Keeping that in mind, more fish will be having infections, and even changed behaviors as this is changing there water parameters. The deaths or the spots you see could be attributed to this. My best bet is to put these fish in new home until these levels get sorted out. As you will expect more deaths even if you add more fish to the tanks......
 
Really sorry to hear about this OTS ( may be the route cause )  

 

[Ch4rlie]

One thing I noticed, the glass, seems to have planeria types of worms on the glass?
 
Hard to tell from soem of these pics, but that may point to water issues and/or overfeeding in the tank.
 
That may have contributed to your water quaility which in turns effects the fishes.
 
May be totally off the mark there but the old tank sydrome sounds a good theory, but i do not know much about that am afraid.

 

[Byron]

Reading through the data and seeing the photos...my first suggestion would be to do several partial water changes over several days to reduce the nitrates.  You have nitrate in the tap water, but only 5 ppm, so that is manageable, but it means being even more vigilant with nitrate accumulation in the aquaria themselves.  Partial water changes, not overstocking, not overfeeding, keeping the filter and substrate reasonably clean, live plants...all these should keep nitrates at acceptable levels [I'll come back to the problem with nitrate].
 
The tap water pH is 7.6 after 24 hours; CO2 in the tap water can result in lower pH, but dissipating it out over 24 hours, or by brisk agitation, should give you a more accurate reading, so we'll take 7.6--and by the way, stay with one pH test range to keep things simpler, and here the normal (not the high) seems more useful.  So partial water changes will need to be more gradual than would be the case if the pH was close to the tank water, but I would start with 1/3 to 1/2 the tank and then do the same the day following, etc.  If the normal tank pH is stable and closer to the tap, you will work back to this; if the normal pH (on-going, not just here with issues) is stable but lower such as the low 6's, then the water changes may not impact it as much.  See what happens, but just avoid pH changes close to a full degree, such as going from 6.0 to 7.0 in one go, which is too much.
 
Clean the filters thoroughly; once filters are clogged, the nitrification is reduced to zero as the anaerobic bacteria multiply much faster and can literally suffocate the nitrifiers.  Also clean the substrate during the water changes, in the open areas.  Keep feeding minimal for a few days to avoid adding more organics.
 
At this stage I would concentrate on improving the water in all tanks, and not complkicate matters and add more stress to the fish by using any medications.  Clean water often cures bacterial/fungal issues, though I am not sure what may be present here.  But I wouldn't worry over this yet.
 
Nitrates do impact fish.  The specifics are not fully understood, but the old myth that ammonia and nitrite are toxic but nitrate is not is just that, a myth; all three are toxic to fish.  It is just that nitrate is not immediately deadly like ammonia and nitrite, but we believe that over time, and at higher levels, it does harm fish.  Some are more susceptible than others.  A maximum level agreed by all knowledgeable sources is 20 ppm, using our test kits like the API.  The test studies carried out have shown that the higher the nitrate, and/or the longer the fish is exposed, the more detrimental the effect.  It is believed that the first effect is to weaken the fish generally.  Stress in any form does this, that is a certainty, and nitrate is stressful to fish.  Consider that none of our aquarium fish live in waters with nitrates above near-zero and this is no surprise.  So keeping nitrate as low as possible is always going to benefit fish, regardless.  Nitrate has been linked to some disease issues, and all cichlids are very susceptible to nitrate, but this area has not been well studied.  I wouldn't worry about disease relationships anyway; nitrate causes stress and keeping this minimal is always going to be better.
 
Byron.

 

[Ninjouzata]

One thing I noticed, the glass, seems to have planeria types of worms on the glass?
 
Hard to tell from soem of these pics, but that may point to water issues and/or overfeeding in the tank.
 
That may have contributed to your water quaility whihc in turns effects the fishes.
 
May be totally off the mark there but the old tank sydrome sounds a good theory, but i do not know much about that am afraid.

I do think some tanks have this, yes. Especially in the killifish tank. And yes, my dad was overfeeding them while I was away. They'll be getting a lot less now.

I thought OTS was mainly when people didn't do water changes, and I do them weekly, but I don't really know much of it either..so I guess that is a possibility.
 

Reading through the data and seeing the photos...my first suggestion would be to do several partial water changes over several days to reduce the nitrates.  You have nitrate in the tap water, but only 5 ppm, so that is manageable, but it means being even more vigilant with nitrate accumulation in the aquaria themselves.  Partial water changes, not overstocking, not overfeeding, keeping the filter and substrate reasonably clean, live plants...all these should keep nitrates at acceptable levels [I'll come back to the problem with nitrate].
 
The tap water pH is 7.6 after 24 hours; CO2 in the tap water can result in lower pH, but dissipating it out over 24 hours, or by brisk agitation, should give you a more accurate reading, so we'll take 7.6--and by the way, stay with one pH test range to keep things simpler, and here the normal (not the high) seems more useful.  So partial water changes will need to be more gradual than would be the case if the pH was close to the tank water, but I would start with 1/3 to 1/2 the tank and then do the same the day following, etc.  If the normal tank pH is stable and closer to the tap, you will work back to this; if the normal pH (on-going, not just here with issues) is stable but lower such as the low 6's, then the water changes may not impact it as much.  See what happens, but just avoid pH changes close to a full degree, such as going from 6.0 to 7.0 in one go, which is too much.
 
Clean the filters thoroughly; once filters are clogged, the nitrification is reduced to zero as the anaerobic bacteria multiply much faster and can literally suffocate the nitrifiers.  Also clean the substrate during the water changes, in the open areas.  Keep feeding minimal for a few days to avoid adding more organics.
 
At this stage I would concentrate on improving the water in all tanks, and not complkicate matters and add more stress to the fish by using any medications.  Clean water often cures bacterial/fungal issues, though I am not sure what may be present here.  But I wouldn't worry over this yet.
 
Nitrates do impact fish.  The specifics are not fully understood, but the old myth that ammonia and nitrite are toxic but nitrate is not is just that, a myth; all three are toxic to fish.  It is just that nitrate is not immediately deadly like ammonia and nitrite, but we believe that over time, and at higher levels, it does harm fish.  Some are more susceptible than others.  A maximum level agreed by all knowledgeable sources is 20 ppm, using our test kits like the API.  The test studies carried out have shown that the higher the nitrate, and/or the longer the fish is exposed, the more detrimental the effect.  It is believed that the first effect is to weaken the fish generally.  Stress in any form does this, that is a certainty, and nitrate is stressful to fish.  Consider that none of our aquarium fish live in waters with nitrates above near-zero and this is no surprise.  So keeping nitrate as low as possible is always going to benefit fish, regardless.  Nitrate has been linked to some disease issues, and all cichlids are very susceptible to nitrate, but this area has not been well studied.  I wouldn't worry about disease relationships anyway; nitrate causes stress and keeping this minimal is always going to be better.
 
Byron.

This is something I meant to specifically ask, what % water changes each day would you recommend? I don't want to shock them. I see you answered this, nevermind. 
 
I only use the high pH range if the regular one shows 7.6 since I had thought it was an indication that our pH is higher, is this not the case?
Should I test another cup by leaving an airstone in it? And is gh/kh something that would change through this or will it usually remain the same regardless of waiting 24 hours?
 
Will definitely be cleaning the filters. I usually fill a bucket with dechlorinated water and clean the media in that, and then rinse out the actual filter since there is usually gunk in the bottom.
This is the right way to do it, right? I wish there were an easier way as it really hurts my back but it needs to be done.
 
I always do vacuum the substrate so will definitely be doing that with their water changes. I do really hope their issues clear up with clean water.

 
I think I just hadn't put a lot of thought to nitrate building up in the filters, as I always read they usually just need to be cleaned once they seem clogged..and the water flow from mine rarely slows down.
I was obviously quite wrong in that thinking. After this is all sorted, should I be cleaning the filters weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, or?
 
Thank you very much for the help.

 

[Fishmanic]

I service my filter media every two weekly....i just sqeeze out the sponges in old tank water... And replace the diriest of the two floss pads and squeeze out the 2nd floss in tank water. I have bioballs in one tank and the penguin biological wheel in the other which I never clean....the filters get pretty gunky in just two weeks. I clean the entire filter housing and tubes maybe every 6 weeks. This routine works for me. I do 50% water change every week as my nitrates go to about 40 deu to high stocking levels

 

[cowgirluntamed]

Don't clean the media in dechlorinated water. It can kill your beneficial bacteria. Just rinse in old tank water real well and put back in filter. Rate of rinsing the media will depend on how messy your fish are.

 

[Byron]

I only use the high pH range if the regular one shows 7.6 since I had thought it was an indication that our pH is higher, is this not the case?
Should I test another cup by leaving an airstone in it? And is gh/kh something that would change through this or will it usually remain the same regardless of waiting 24 hours?
 

 
My comment was more for the tanks, since at present they are all below the mid 7 range, so the test kit covering this range is the one to use.  And unless the tanks end up at or higher than the tap water (after the CO2 is out-gassed), it wouldn't hurt to stay with the normal range kit.  The pH test results on the tanks is obviously during the period of issues, and I don't know where these tanks might sit normally.  If they remain lower than the tap water, definitely use the normal kit.
 
You might be able to verify the tap water pH with the municipal water authority, from their website or direct contact.  Just so you know what range to expect.  Your test with the API liquid kit after out-gassing the CO2 should be fairly reliable for our purposes.  [Before someone steps in, yes, I know there are more accurate testing methods than our simplistic aquarium kits, but this should not be necessary; we only need to know the relativity of tanks to source water, to determine what if anything may be occurring.]  Doing another test, with an airstone for 12 hours or so, won't hurt, just to confirm.
 
As for the GH/.KH, this will not change through letting the water sit.  In the aquaria, it will not likely change much, if at all (using our kits), unless the GH or KH is specifically being targeted.  ["Targeted" means using calcareous rock/sand/gravel to increase hardness, as one example.]  The pH is related to the GH and KH.  It would be good to know the GH and KH of your source water; ascertain these numbers from the water people.  Test kits are not necessary, unless one intends targeting the GH/KH for some reason.
 

Will definitely be cleaning the filters. I usually fill a bucket with dechlorinated water and clean the media in that, and then rinse out the actual filter since there is usually gunk in the bottom.
This is the right way to do it, right? I wish there were an easier way as it really hurts my back but it needs to be done.
 

I think I just hadn't put a lot of thought to nitrate building up in the filters, as I always read they usually just need to be cleaned once they seem clogged..and the water flow from mine rarely slows down.
I was obviously quite wrong in that thinking. After this is all sorted, should I be cleaning the filters weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, or?
 

 
Each aquarium is unique, biologically, even if we use the same type of substrate, plants, fish load, water changes, feeding, etc.  Sometimes this can be quite surprising.  Filters will get "dirty" accordingly.  There are two schools of thought on cleaning filters; some will say often, while others will say after they have become quite dirty.  There are pros and cons to both approaches, but I tend to favour the "more often" one.  My sponge filters on my 10g, 20g, 29g, 33g and 40g tanks are cleaned every water change, which is once every week.  The canisters on the 70g and 90g are now cleaned every two months, no longer [I have let these go 4-5 months in the past].  Over my 25 years, I have had cyanobacteria occur solely due to a dirty canister filter; I have had serious bacterial and diatom blooms occur solely due to the dirty canister; and I have had problem algae due to the dirty canister filter.  There are other causes for all these, but the poiint is that they are all linked to organics, dissolved in the water column, and a dirty filter is one such place for this to occur.
 
At this point, a few words about the purpose of filters.
 
I view filters are primarily mechanical, removing particulate matter, and producing a water flow throughout the tank.  All filters will function as biological filters, but this is not their prime role.  There are more bacteria, including nitrifying, in the substrate, and on every surface, than in the filter, and provided the tank is not overstocked (which obviously throws off the biological balance) the filter's role in biological filtration is, and should be, minimal.  A healthy substrate is far more important, as here we have all the bacterial processes at work, from nitrification to denitrification, aerobic and anaerobic, and all of this is essential to a healthy aquarium.  Live plants factor into this very much [and my comments here are assuming live plants, in case anyone is wondering].  After all, one can have a very healthy aquarium with no filter at all.  However, there are practical aspects of filtration that will help us.
 
Water flow is the important aspect of the filter, and this partially depends upon the type of fish.  The filter should be kept clean so that water flow is not impeded.  This controls the gas exchange, oxygenating the water, and ensuring a more even temperature.
 
What I am going to suggest next will not have everyone's concurrence, but it has scientific proof.  Forget rinsing filters in tank water, I have never in 25 years done this.  Under the tap is fine, and may be even more beneficial.  First, the chlorine in water does not kill off all nitrifying bacteria as one often reads [I don't know about chloramine though, if you happen to have that added to your tap water], but it may get rid of some "nasties" you don't want around.  Second, as I mentioned previously, there are more bacteria elsewhere than in the filter, and provided the tank is biologically balanced to begin with, you cannot have mini-cycles from cleaning the filter under the tap.  Live plants factor in here, again, as they are prime consumers of ammonia/ammonium anyway.  So save your back.

 

   [Now, for others reading this...in new tanks, yes, I would use tank water--it is simply a matter of being cautious; but once the tank is established (after a few months), there is no value to doing this.]
 
Byron.

 

[Ninjouzata]

Spoiler

 

I only use the high pH range if the regular one shows 7.6 since I had thought it was an indication that our pH is higher, is this not the case?
Should I test another cup by leaving an airstone in it? And is gh/kh something that would change through this or will it usually remain the same regardless of waiting 24 hours?
 

 
My comment was more for the tanks, since at present they are all below the mid 7 range, so the test kit covering this range is the one to use.  And unless the tanks end up at or higher than the tap water (after the CO2 is out-gassed), it wouldn't hurt to stay with the normal range kit.  The pH test results on the tanks is obviously during the period of issues, and I don't know where these tanks might sit normally.  If they remain lower than the tap water, definitely use the normal kit.
 
You might be able to verify the tap water pH with the municipal water authority, from their website or direct contact.  Just so you know what range to expect.  Your test with the API liquid kit after out-gassing the CO2 should be fairly reliable for our purposes.  [Before someone steps in, yes, I know there are more accurate testing methods than our simplistic aquarium kits, but this should not be necessary; we only need to know the relativity of tanks to source water, to determine what if anything may be occurring.]  Doing another test, with an airstone for 12 hours or so, won't hurt, just to confirm.
 
As for the GH/.KH, this will not change through letting the water sit.  In the aquaria, it will not likely change much, if at all (using our kits), unless the GH or KH is specifically being targeted.  ["Targeted" means using calcareous rock/sand/gravel to increase hardness, as one example.]  The pH is related to the GH and KH.  It would be good to know the GH and KH of your source water; ascertain these numbers from the water people.  Test kits are not necessary, unless one intends targeting the GH/KH for some reason.
 

Will definitely be cleaning the filters. I usually fill a bucket with dechlorinated water and clean the media in that, and then rinse out the actual filter since there is usually gunk in the bottom.
This is the right way to do it, right? I wish there were an easier way as it really hurts my back but it needs to be done.
 

I think I just hadn't put a lot of thought to nitrate building up in the filters, as I always read they usually just need to be cleaned once they seem clogged..and the water flow from mine rarely slows down.
I was obviously quite wrong in that thinking. After this is all sorted, should I be cleaning the filters weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, or?
 

 
Each aquarium is unique, biologically, even if we use the same type of substrate, plants, fish load, water changes, feeding, etc.  Sometimes this can be quite surprising.  Filters will get "dirty" accordingly.  There are two schools of thought on cleaning filters; some will say often, while others will say after they have become quite dirty.  There are pros and cons to both approaches, but I tend to favour the "more often" one.  My sponge filters on my 10g, 20g, 29g, 33g and 40g tanks are cleaned every water change, which is once every week.  The canisters on the 70g and 90g are now cleaned every two months, no longer [I have let these go 4-5 months in the past].  Over my 25 years, I have had cyanobacteria occur solely due to a dirty canister filter; I have had serious bacterial and diatom blooms occur solely due to the dirty canister; and I have had problem algae due to the dirty canister filter.  There are other causes for all these, but the poiint is that they are all linked to organics, dissolved in the water column, and a dirty filter is one such place for this to occur.
 
At this point, a few words about the purpose of filters.
 
I view filters are primarily mechanical, removing particulate matter, and producing a water flow throughout the tank.  All filters will function as biological filters, but this is not their prime role.  There are more bacteria, including nitrifying, in the substrate, and on every surface, than in the filter, and provided the tank is not overstocked (which obviously throws off the biological balance) the filter's role in biological filtration is, and should be, minimal.  A healthy substrate is far more important, as here we have all the bacterial processes at work, from nitrification to denitrification, aerobic and anaerobic, and all of this is essential to a healthy aquarium.  Live plants factor into this very much [and my comments here are assuming live plants, in case anyone is wondering].  After all, one can have a very healthy aquarium with no filter at all.  However, there are practical aspects of filtration that will help us.
 
Water flow is the important aspect of the filter, and this partially depends upon the type of fish.  The filter should be kept clean so that water flow is not impeded.  This controls the gas exchange, oxygenating the water, and ensuring a more even temperature.
 
What I am going to suggest next will not have everyone's concurrence, but it has scientific proof.  Forget rinsing filters in tank water, I have never in 25 years done this.  Under the tap is fine, and may be even more beneficial.  First, the chlorine in water does not kill off all nitrifying bacteria as one often reads [I don't know about chloramine though, if you happen to have that added to your tap water], but it may get rid of some "nasties" you don't want around.  Second, as I mentioned previously, there are more bacteria elsewhere than in the filter, and provided the tank is biologically balanced to begin with, you cannot have mini-cycles from cleaning the filter under the tap.  Live plants factor in here, again, as they are prime consumers of ammonia/ammonium anyway.  So save your back.

 

   [Now, for others reading this...in new tanks, yes, I would use tank water--it is simply a matter of being cautious; but once the tank is established (after a few months), there is no value to doing this.]
 
Byron.
 

Put quote in spoiler so the page isn't super long
 
I think I get what you're saying. And it took a bit for me to get why you mention checking with the water company, I understand now. I'll do another cup tomorrow with an airstone in it just to check
 
That's what I imagined on the GH/KH. I did test for these and have a test kit for them already, although I'm unsure what the numbers really mean (whether my water is soft, moderate, or hard).
 
That's interesting to know what can occur/be effected just by dirty filters.
 
I have heard of others rinsing filter media in the tap and being fine, but I'm paranoid. I may go this route next time we clean them though.
These are established tanks, the newest one is a year old I believe.
 
I was able to (with my dad's help) clean all of the filters and do 50% water changes on all the tanks except for the 129g today, so that one will be done tomorrow.
I imagine I should try to do another 50% on all the tanks again tomorrow or the next day as well.
 
Thank you again for all of the help, I hope this can be resolved soon.

 

[Ninjouzata]

Ah, just thinking..I'm starting up a new tank and had planned on using media from some of these tanks.
I imagine this wouldn't be a good idea since they've just been cleaned, and especially not good from the tanks that have ill fish in them?
 
I realize my current tanks need to be taken care of first but this is something I need to do as I've had the fish on hold for a while now while I was away.

 

[Ninjouzata]

Did another 50% water change on some of the tanks today. This test was from the 55g. I think it might be getting better?

Spoiler

 

[BaylorPerez]

are you taking out just the water? or actually cleaning the bottom of the tank?

 

[AbbeysDad]

Nitrates have been the bane of my most recent fish keeping efforts. It was a long time before I realized I had very high (60-80ppm) nitrates  in my well water - so my weekly water changes of up to 50% were of little help! I live in the 'country' with a 95 acre farmers field across the road.
As others have mentioned, when tank nitrates are high, you need to reduce gradually so as not to shock the fish. So you need to do numerous water changes over many days.
In the meantime you need to root out any 'nitrate factories' in the tank. In anything but a very heavily planted tank, this may mean a thorough cleaning of not only the filters, but the substrate as well. You need to remove nitrogenous waste in order for the water changes to be effective. You might also use API's Nitra-Zorb, a resin pouch that removes nitrates from the water column and can be recharged and reused several times with ordinary salt water. (Although marketed for use directly in the tank filter, I also use Nitra-Zorb in an API Tap Water Filter to filter my tap (well) water).
Although I resisted for a very long time, I have now purchased lighting to support plants and have planted my 60g in my ongoing problem to keep nitrates at bay. Plants prefer ammonia (which reduces nitrates) but will also use nitrates as a nutrient source. Although water changes and filter maintenance are still required, a heavily planted tank with an appropriate bio-load can result in low nitrates even with modest periodic partial water changes. Some have suggested that partial water changes are not even necessary, however this is not true. Partial water changes are like rain in nature. In addition to removing (flushing out) some contaminants, fresh water supplies minerals (like calcium and magnesium) that plants and fish need for good health.