Nitrite out of control

[Wannaknowaboutsand]

I did a fishless cycle about 2 weeks ago.
I got fish when the cycle completed on Friday.

after putting the fish in the nitrite spiked back to .5!

I did a water change on saturday and the nitrite went back up to 1!

the next day I checked the nitrite and it had dropped to .25 again.

tonight I scrapped off some brown algae that was growing and dropped jumgle algea cleaner tabs in the water. Now the water is cloudy and the nitrite has peaked at over 3!!!! What is goin on I have one fish already starting to seclude himself and rest on the bootm of the tank! I need help!

 

[jams.alaskan]

If it were me I would lay off attacking the algea for awhile, adding the tabs may help to stress fish that are already stressed. Keep checking your levels and do water changes to help keep those levels down. Did you say that you cycled your tank for two weeks or that it ended two weeks ago? Just wondering cause without really "seeding" that tank with loads of benificial bacteria I think two weeks was kinda on the fast side...

Best of luck

ALASKA

 

[Wannaknowaboutsand]

I did add some old filter media and a couple of plants from a established tank.

I also used cycle. The tank did cycle quickly.

So another water chang e is coming.

 

[Wannaknowaboutsand]

Damn what is going on!!!

I changed the water again and now the nitrite is at 2!!!!!!

 

[jams.alaskan]

Ok, let's look at another possibility, would it be possible for you to take a sample of your tank water to your lfs? Perhaps your test is faulty? Wouldn't that be great if that is all it is?

ALASKA

 

[Wannaknowaboutsand]

Yeah it would be great but the test isn't faulty I tried it on tap water.

Ill take some in tomorrow and see what happens.

 

[Wannaknowaboutsand]

its gone over 5 now. I have no idea what made it crash

 

[tstenback]

How many fish did you add to the tank and what type? It sounds like either the tank was not completely cycled or the bio load you placed in the tank is way more than the established bacteria colony could handle. What are the readings of the ammonia and nitrate while all of this is going on? Are they stable or also fluctuating?

 

[Wannaknowaboutsand]

Ammonia is stable at 0.
Nitrate is stable at 5ppm.

Its just the nitrite that continues to go up.

The tanks is a 55 gallon mbuna.

I have six very small fish about an inch.

4 yellow labs
2 red zebras

This is all.

The nitrite is stable at 5ppm now.

The fish look fine there doesn't seem to be any symptoms of posioning. I have added about 3 tablespoons of aquarium salt and used some product that detoxifies ammonia and nitrite.

What else can I do. And keep in mind that the nitrite goes up with water changes.
The test works fine as I tested it on tap water and got a return of 0.

 

[tstenback]

Sometimes the detoxifiers screw up the tests. I dont know if that would be the situation here. However, i still feel like you are in the middle of a cycle or ammonia spike that was caused by the addition of the fish.
Also trry to remember if you added anything to the water just prior to these nitrite swings it may lead to the answer. Keep us posted and good luck.

 

[Wannaknowaboutsand]

Alright I'll wait it out. The fish seem ok they are breathing normally so Im not overly worried.

Hopefully the tank will re-cycle I guess on the nitrite pat anyway.
Thanks for your advice.

 

[Wannaknowaboutsand]

Well I did a 50% water change and the nitrite is dow to about 2.

Im completely at a loss as to whats going on.

I guess I'll just keep changing the water everyday and hope I don't lose any fish.

Does anyone else have an idea??

 

[Wannaknowaboutsand]

Scratch that its still at 5 a 50% water change and I still have a nitrite of 5 is that even possible?

I need some advice!

Can I change all the water out?

PLEASE HELP!!!

 

[tstenback]

Sure you can But, it will not solve the problem if you are still cycling. It seems that you are as when you do a water change the level in the water goes down but soon after the level of nitrite goes back up this shows that the tank is still cycling as you have tested the tap water and it contains no nitrite yet shortly after a water change it is back up. The only place the nitrite can come from is the cycle. So keep doing the water changes until it comes back down. I know you have heard it many times but patience is the key here. IMO you are in the nitrite spike of the cycle and it will work out. You can even do more water changes if you want to try to minimize the stress on your fish. Good luck Wannaknowaboutsand and keep us posted.

 

[LiQuOrIcE]

I had this aswell, since gone to a bigger tank & used a product called 'Nita-zorb' or something, its a pouch that absorbs the bad stuff and has worked a treat.