Removal Of Ammonia

[mark4785]

Hello,

I currently have a 1400 litre pond containing 15 fish of various species. For the first time I am dealing with a sudden ammonia spike after my dad thoroughly cleaned all of the filter media with tap water. This seems to have killed off all of the beneficial bacteria and so the ammonia is not being converted as per the nitrogen cycle.

Initially the ammonia reading was 0.25; I did a 50% water change to the pond as a result of this and added a pond product named 'Waterlife BacterLife P' to the water which claims to reduce the ammonia level, digest sludge and replace beneficial bacteria. The water change and product were ineffective as the ammonia level has risen to 2.0 total ammonia; 99.9% of this is less toxic ammonium (NH4) fortunately.

Should I be removing the activated carbon filter media given that this is known to absorb chemicals? I am starting to think that it is absorbing the 'BacterLife P' remedy that I am applying even though the product doesn't mention that it will conflict with anything.

I have sourced another product manufactured by Nt labs named 'Pond Aid Mature' (Url: <a href="http/www.ntlabs.co.uk/product_details.php?product_id=51" target="_blank">http/www.ntlabs.co.uk/product_details.php?product_id=51</a> ) that claims to speed up the nitrogen cycle by promptly colonizing beneficial bacteria on the filter media. Again, should I remove the activated carbon filter before applying this product?

I would appreciate any advice at this point as I am worried for the fish even though they are perfectly happy and demonstrating normal behaviour.

Note: I have never had any issues with ammonia prior to this despite the population of fish in the pond being higher than normal for such a small pond. I also don't over feed my fish. I do not wish to upgrade my pond or filter system as the current pond set-up is adequate. I would solely like to know how to replenish the beneficial bacteria in filter media that has been cleansed with tap water.

Thanks

 

[saph.st24]

add nitrifying bacterior preparation /filterstart and a change wont happen overnight but cuts down the time it takes for a filter to mature.
remove the carbon just in case
test daily before feeding and before water changes
do daily 20% dechlorinated water changes till the ammonia and nitrites settle down,
check your ph ,a high ph can cause ammonia to be more toxic
cut back on feeding even tho you dont over feed cut back any way ,remove any dying/rotting vegitation and remove uneaten food

if you know anyone whos got a pond with a mature media ask them for some this will help speed things up.

 

[mark4785]

add nitrifying bacterior preparation /filterstart and a change wont happen overnight but cuts down the time it takes for a filter to mature.
remove the carbon just in case
test daily before feeding and before water changes
do daily 20% dechlorinated water changes till the ammonia and nitrites settle down,
check your ph ,a high ph can cause ammonia to be more toxic
cut back on feeding even tho you dont over feed cut back any way ,remove any dying/rotting vegitation and remove uneaten food

if you know anyone whos got a pond with a mature media ask them for some this will help speed things up.

Thanks for your reply.

I have removed the carbon filter, and re-applied some live filter bacteria. I am now feeding them 50% less food (using low waste fish flakes as well). There is no dying or rotting vegetation in the pond; the water is crystal clear. At present there is a bag of peat in the pond lowering the PH level (PH is currently 7.5) which kills off the algae; the biological filter seems to have removed all of the dead algae but i'll see if there are any remnants still in the pond and remove it.

I believe there is a small filter sponge on the base of the pond. I placed it in the pond around 3 months ago intending for beneficial bacteria to form on it so that I could use it with my 'hospital aquarium'. Should I remove it and place it in the filter box since there is more oxygen in there for the beneficial bacteria to do its job?

When do you advice doing water changes? I don't want to inadvertently remove the live filter bacteria in removing the water.

 

[saph.st24]

hi

yes use the media in the pond this will defo help,
if your ammonia is really high you will probably be needing to to 10-20% daily water changes these should be taken from the pond not the filter to start with and should always be dechlorinated,
once youstart to get the ammonia under control and starts to lower you may notice the nitrites starting to come up, carry on with the water changes till these settle, then you will notice the nitrates these are less harmfull but you should try and keep them as low as possible,
once you have 0ppm or as close as possible but no higher then 0.25ppm ammonia and 0.15 ppm nitrites, you can start with every other day tests and water changes, then after a week or so go to a 10 -20% water change once a week ,i usually do my water change when i clean the filter you can do the same once matured, and test weekly, if at any point you see you flicking or flashing test the water for everything

 

[mark4785]

According to the API master water testing kit, the ammonia level is currently 8.0. Upon seeing this result i've started to become very suspicious of how correct the results are; expired testing kit possibly?

I switched to the Interpet master pond testing kit and used their formulas to test the 'Total Ammonia' and the water in the test tube is yellow indicating a level of 0.1 ammonia.

Right now I'd be more inclined to trust the Interpet results, not because it is a positive result but because the behaviour of every fish hasn't changed one bit; no lethargy, gasping, flicking, rapid gill movement, yawning or signs of any kind of infection/fungus. They are putting weight on and look extremely healthy and playful everything I observe them. Either there is no imbalance in the chemistry of the water or they are completely immune to a lethal amount of NH4.

Are there any other water testing kits out there which are very popular and known for accurate water analysis or do I need to continue this guessing game?!

Edit: I've treated the water with Ntlabs 'Filter bugs' and Ntlabs 'Live filter bacteria' products for 6 days now and removed some water from the pond yet the API testing kit shows the ammonia level rising still.

 

[saph.st24]

the api will be more accurate
read this
http/forum.koimag.co.uk/tm.asp?m=388899&...api&#388915

i have had my api test kits for 3 years and they read the same as new my yamitsu test kits

 

[Anna Robinson]

Can you test something else (your tapwater is the obvious thing) in order to check your test kit?

Your API ammonia testing solution should be OK for 3 years.

 

[mark4785]

Can you test something else (your tapwater is the obvious thing) in order to check your test kit?

Your API ammonia testing solution should be OK for 3 years.

I've tested some tap water for ammonia using the API test kit: it is indicating 0 ppm of ammonia.

I have re-visited the aquatics centre I bought my Interpet master water testing kit from and I was told that all of their products have been recalled due to a fault with the kit and that I'm entitled to a full refund.

Because of the product recall I have no option but to trust the API kit now!

The ammonia levels within the pond are still high; I am continuing to add live filter bacteria weekly and I am applying a fresh bag of zeolite amongst the filter media every 3 days to absorb the ammonia.

 

[saph.st24]

they have recalled them i wonder why

keep going it can take 8 weeks to get ammonia down you will get there

 

[mark4785]

I have just purchased a 'Waterlife Ammonia testing kit' and this is indicating that my ammonia level is 2.0; this is -6.0 of the result that the API testing kit gave . I really don't know what to trust anymore lol.

In the manual provided with this testing kit it shows a matrix explaining an ideal ammonia level under a range of PH levels and temperatures. My pond temperature is currently 16 degree centigrade and my PH is 8.0. It states under these readings my ammonia level should be 0.75 or under; is this reasonable?

I know the ammonia level shouldn't be above 0, but what is a 'reasonable' level?

In addition to using chemicals to lower the ammonia i've purchased a Carex Pendula pond plant which should hopefully lower it further and tackle the eventual nitrate levels. Is this a hardy plant that won't die on me? I really don't want that to start decaying under the circumstances i'm in!

 

[saph.st24]

idealy 0ppm but anything below 0.25 ppm is more acceptable
yes high ammonia and high ph together, makes the ammonia much more toxic

i still say go with your api kit another kit which gives accurate readings is tetra ammonia kit

got some of that carex pendula yes very hardy but it does drop dead leaves (as they turn yellow cut them off) they dont like deep water plant them with their roots just covered with water also dont use aquatic soil or compost plant them in pea gravel in an aquatic plant pot(give the gravel a good wash first)
gently wash any soil off the plants roots place the pea gravel all round the roots and place large pebbles on top to stop fish digging,
if you plant in aquatic soil or compost for the first 12 months the plants feed off this rather then find their food from the water

 

[mark4785]

idealy 0ppm but anything below 0.25 ppm is more acceptable
yes high ammonia and high ph together, makes the ammonia much more toxic

i still say go with your api kit another kit which gives accurate readings is tetra ammonia kit

got some of that carex pendula yes very hardy but it does drop dead leaves (as they turn yellow cut them off) they dont like deep water plant them with their roots just covered with water also dont use aquatic soil or compost plant them in pea gravel in an aquatic plant pot(give the gravel a good wash first)
gently wash any soil off the plants roots place the pea gravel all round the roots and place large pebbles on top to stop fish digging,
if you plant in aquatic soil or compost for the first 12 months the plants feed off this rather then find their food from the water

Thank you for the info'. Sadly we have planted it into the pond within a hessian sack containing 50% soil and 50% pea gravel at the top. I'll remove all of the soil tomorrow as I didn't realise that it wouldn't absorb any nutrients from the water.

Should I use pea gravel for all border plants (without any soil) or for just this particular plant?

Mark.

 

[Truck]

i cant say i would recommend API test kits...un reliable and theyre not accurate either...especially nitrate, theyre hard to use for some people too! saliferts are the way forward IMO

to get rid of ammonia you will need either:

do massive water changes or cram it with mature filter media

 

[saph.st24]

i have all my pond plants in gravel, the baskets under the water where the fish can dig are covered with large pebbles the fish cant pick up or move.
plus the weight in the baskets or hessen bags will stop them moving or knocking them over

saliferts never tried them but heard of them but cant say how well they work do they do coldwater/pond stuff too?
must say tho never had a problem with my api kits and i found it one of the easiest to use and i have used several different brands over the years,
i find it accurate but you do have to get the measurements right as you do with most test kits
ammonia
nitrites
nitrates
ph
gh
kh
and oxygen
for all my tanks and both my ponds,

 

[mark4785]

The carex pendula is around 16cm in height so it's roots have become really established; took around 15 minutes to get the soil off of the roots. I have cleaned the pea gravel by pouring a 10 litre bucket of tap water over it several times. I will observe it over the next few weeks to see how it reacts to these changes and if all goes well i'll buy a few more .

Thank you for the pointers Saph