Nitrate levels...

[gixer]

it would be harmful to try and simulate the fish's natural water conditions. They would be happy in their local water condition

dont want this to go off topic.

but.

that statement although i can see your logic is complete nonsense. that is very missleading imo.

just thought that needed to be pointed out...its not always the case...far from it.

 

[Dragonslair]

Gixer.
Thank you for your comments. I have been keeping tropical and marines for over 25 years and personally I try to keep to the conditions my fish were bred in. Be it my own breeding or that of my lfs, and personally I have found that it has worked for me. I'm not saying you are wrong or I am right, just stating a fact that has worked well for me over the years. Sorry if you felt the need to correct me.

 

[gixer]

your welcome...

people could take that as meaning its ok to keep cardinals in the same water as rift lakes (seperate tanks of course) just because you lfs does?

which is far from ideal...neither would be happy..at the end of the day as hobbiest we should aim to keep our fish in the most natural conditions we can...just my opinion.

 

[Sylvia27]

OK guys.

I just tested my water before I put it in the tank.
The NH3 - NH4 level is 1.5 (toxic), so water changes right now won't do any good.

I am wondering if there might be any products on the market that take the nitrates out of the water before I put it in the tank.

Right now, I'm using super strength tap water conditioner by Aquarium Pharmaceuticals, Inc. I'm using 10 drops/gallon.

I would love to get your suggestions since I don't trust pet store owners any more.

Thanks.

Sylvia

 

[Dragonslair]

Sylvia,
I would personally recommend Nitra-Zorb from API products. If you have a read of the previous threads concerning nitrite spikes you will see that I have explained about it.

 

[Sylvia27]

Hi everyone:

I called my lfs (they are using the same tab water). They didn't recommend Nitra Zorb, but they suggested I boiled the water.
After boiling the water, the NH3-NH4 went down from 1.5 to 0.25. So that's what I'm going to do.
I also read somewhere else on this board that someone let the water stand out in a bucket for 24 hours. What was the reason for that again?

Sylvia

 

[kent]

I would say that a 1.5 ammonia is not purely toxic as long as your pH is not over 7.5 .. That 1.5 reading just gives u the amount of the presence of ammonia, in toxic and non toxic forms. If your pH is close to 8.0, this means that toxic ammonia is really high and you need to do appropriate actions..

 

[kent]

I also read somewhere else on this board that someone let the water stand out in a bucket for 24 hours. What was the reason for that again?

the reason for this is you're letting the chlorine or chloroamines to evaporate. These chemicals are toxic to the beneficial bacteria that helps in the conversion of ammonia to nitrite to nitrate...Chloroamine, specifically are toxic to the fish... But if you don't have time or you choose not to do that, then you can just put water conditioner.

 

[luxum]

the reason for this is you're letting the chlorine or chloroamines to evaporate.

Chlorine, yes, but chloramine will not evaporate, it is more stable. Unless you are positive that your water supply contains only chlorine and never chloramine, you should use a water conditioner that neutralizes chlorine and chloramines.

 

[jvis0606]

Hi, I am a new fish keeper myself and have had the same panic as you have had. I have lost 2 platies. My tank wasn't fully cycled before adding fish, but I didnt realize you could cycle without fish... anyhow, my ammonia levels have been through the roof for a couple of weeks now and it is obviously effecting my fish negatively. I am doing very frequent small water changes. I have Ammo-2 to de-toxify the ammonia. I bought a water conditioner thing called CYCLE which apparently adds a lot of the beneficial bacteria to the tank. And I condition any new water I add back to the tank. I have also tried adding salt chips (special aquarium salt chips) to the water, it decreases stress in fish, and raised the temperature a couple degrees. The remaining fish seem to be hanging on pretty well, and I hope they survive! But in general, start with strong fish like platies (I dont think gourami's are tough enough to endure the cycling process) and dont add any more fish until levels are constant. Good luck!

 

[gixer]

boiling your water is a bad idea. it will soften you water kh and gh.

not good unless you have very hard water.. I would not do this with most tap water