help! a little ammonia and nitrite. what to do?

[merredeth]

Originally Posted by lpuzon
i'm afraid it's still the same as the other day...
ammonia bet .5 to 1
nitrite .5
nitrate between 10 to 20
spgh 1.018 (will add salt tomorrow)
salinity 25
I'm guessing a cycle is possible.
You really need to get the ammonia down to zero. That is a critical issue in my opinion.
You should raise the salinity. Are you putting the saltwater into a bucket and aerating it with a stone and heater 24 hours before putting it in your tank?
Also, what is the steps you are doing to raise the salinity. The salinity has nothing to do with the ammonia, and nite problems that I am aware of.
Out of curiosity, is your substrate crushed coral or live sand?
Denise M.

 

[lpuzon]

to raise salinity, i get water from my MT, mix the salt in, use a powerhead, then put it back in my tank. and i use CC as my substrate.

 

[merredeth]

Originally Posted by lpuzon
to raise salinity, i get water from my MT, mix the salt in, use a powerhead, then put it back in my tank. and i use CC as my substrate.
Are you letting it sit for 24 hours with the heater and powerhead going?
Denise M.

 

[lpuzon]

Originally Posted by Merredeth
Are you letting it sit for 24 hours with the heater and powerhead going?
Denise M.

yes for this last one. not the other time. is there any hope for me?

 

[merredeth]

Originally Posted by lpuzon
yes for this last one. not the other time. is there any hope for me?

There is hope but you are going to have to read the boards where the experienced people give solutions.
Because of your nitrite and ammonia level I'm sticking with the initial thoughts of water changes.
You are going to have to do it over and over again to get the levels down. Also, you might want to see if something died in the tank and is still sitting on the bottom of it.
More than likely though, you probably are going through a cycle though due to the way you handled the bioballs.
If you have any fish in the tank, my personal opinion is to move them to your LFS for the time being and let everything settle down.
Denise M.

 

[lazypinoy]

getting desperate already???

.. dang i couldnt stand all those water changes. so what are you going to do if ammonia doesnt go down??? :notsure:

 

[lpuzon]

Originally Posted by Merredeth
There is hope but you are going to have to read the boards where the experienced people give solutions.
Because of your nitrite and ammonia level I'm sticking with the initial thoughts of water changes.
You are going to have to do it over and over again to get the levels down. Also, you might want to see if something died in the tank and is still sitting on the bottom of it.
More than likely though, you probably are going through a cycle though due to the way you handled the bioballs.
If you have any fish in the tank, my personal opinion is to move them to your LFS for the time being and let everything settle down.
Denise M.

thanks for the input denise, but sadly, i do still have ammo and the other two. and another thing, my lfs wont take my fishes, even for a while. i'll just to water change everyday, but i'm afraid it's stressing my fishes.

 

[lpuzon]

Originally Posted by LazyPinoy
getting desperate already???

.. dang i couldnt stand all those water changes. so what are you going to do if ammonia doesnt go down??? :notsure:
yup, u said it! but hey, that's part of it, right? at least, that's just what i'm thinking not to get frustrated. the ammo, trite and trate's still there........ i'm still gonna do water changes, still can't find the heart to add anything to tank, you know, those "chems." or shld i now?

 

[merredeth]

Originally Posted by lpuzon
yup, u said it! but hey, that's part of it, right? at least, that's just what i'm thinking not to get frustrated. the ammo, trite and trate's still there........ i'm still gonna do water changes, still can't find the heart to add anything to tank, you know, those "chems." or shld i now?

I'm one to avoid chemicals - afterall, the fish don't need chemical additives to live in the ocean.
Water change, water change, water change is going to help.
Are you using CC or sand for your substrate? I can't remember.
Denise M.

 

[lpuzon]

Originally Posted by Merredeth
I'm one to avoid chemicals - afterall, the fish don't need chemical additives to live in the ocean.
Water change, water change, water change is going to help.
Are you using CC or sand for your substrate? I can't remember.
Denise M.

thank you, thank you for always with me.

i am trying to avoid chems, too. i'm just getting woried each day that my fishes won't stick with me if this goes longer.
but..... aha! here's my new numbers! taken 20 mins ago. :cheer:
ph 8.2
nitrite .50
trate 20
ammo .50
they went down already! i am so happy!

i am gonna do 10g water change today. i'm trying to feed them every after 2 days ( which is btw, breaking my heart!) i actually feed them this am, and they still have their appetite, good to know!. :cheer:
i bought rio200, am waiting for it to arrive, will add it in my MT to have more circulation. i'm buying mag3 for my skimmer... thinking of buying a UV (hope this works well, lazypinoy said it does...) but i don't know if i'm changing my substrates, CC, probably in the future, but not yet.
sure do hope i'm on my last 2 water changes!!!

still crossing my fingers!!!
liz :happyfish

 

[lpuzon]

lazypinoy, jdragunas, and the rest of you guys, (too many to mention), thanks!!!

 

[merredeth]

Originally Posted by lpuzon
thank you, thank you for always with me.

i am trying to avoid chems, too. i'm just getting woried each day that my fishes won't stick with me if this goes longer.
but..... aha! here's my new numbers! taken 20 mins ago. :cheer:
ph 8.2
nitrite .50
trate 20
ammo .50
they went down already! i am so happy!

i am gonna do 10g water change today. i'm trying to feed them every after 2 days ( which is btw, breaking my heart!) i actually feed them this am, and they still have their appetite, good to know!. :cheer:
i bought rio200, am waiting for it to arrive, will add it in my MT to have more circulation. i'm buying mag3 for my skimmer... thinking of buying a UV (hope this works well, lazypinoy said it does...) but i don't know if i'm changing my substrates, CC, probably in the future, but not yet.
sure do hope i'm on my last 2 water changes!!!

still crossing my fingers!!!
liz :happyfish
I'm thinking you are well on your way to bringing them down - just remember the water changes and you should see less and less - but testing right after you do a water change is pointless in my opinion - give everything a couple hours to settle down and the water circulates through the tank.
Good luck!
Denise M.

 

[lpuzon]

just like what i said, merredeth, still crossing my fingers! hahahahaha

 

[merredeth]

Originally Posted by lpuzon
just like what i said, merredeth, still crossing my fingers! hahahahaha

So have you tested again? What are the parameters?
Here's a toast to better water parameters in your tank!

Denise M.

 

[lpuzon]

yup,tested again,it's stl the same as last one.havnt done another h2o change.will do today.but i thnk my hippo has ich...

 

[merredeth]

Originally Posted by lpuzon
yup,tested again,it's stl the same as last one.havnt done another h2o change.will do today.but i thnk my hippo has ich...
Do you know what ich looks like? Can ya post a picture?
Yes, you need a water change. However if your fish has ich, it is contagious and that brings on another whole new set of problems for you.
Denise M.

 

[lpuzon]

yeah, right? boy, am i too lucky!

i'll post pix tom, they don't like having taken their pix at night...
well, i sorta assumed it's ich bec she got 3-4 pcs white crystalline white on her body. it's not nitoceable the other day, but it is yesterday and today. i can't believe ama have to do a hypo now that my ammo prob is not really done.