Killer Nitrate!

[new2salt3]

We started this hobby changing from african cichlids. We have spent so much money on fish and inverts and others only to watch most of them die. PH is okay, no ammonia, no nitrites, but our nitrates are off the charts. Everyone has said back way off feeding the fish, and liquid filter food in bottles....but they are still off the charts. We have used poly filters over and over but we cannot get rid of them. Our tank was so beautiful as we introduced new items. Now, it is bland and we just don't know what to do.

 

[loopy101]

sorry to hear about your losses!
what kind of water are you using? how often are you doing water changes?

 

[tang master]

well, a few factors can play a role in this. i had the same problem for a while. do you use crushed coral sand? reverse osmosis water? do you have porous rock? frequent water changes? how many fish/inverts do you have? and last but not least, do you have a good skimmer?

 

[sepulatian]

Originally Posted by new2salt3
http:///forum/post/3102446
We started this hobby changing from african cichlids. We have spent so much money on fish and inverts and others only to watch most of them die. PH is okay, no ammonia, no nitrites, but our nitrates are off the charts. Everyone has said back way off feeding the fish, and liquid filter food in bottles....but they are still off the charts. We have used poly filters over and over but we cannot get rid of them. Our tank was so beautiful as we introduced new items. Now, it is bland and we just don't know what to do.

Did you empty the tank out when you switched or just pour salt in? How often do you do water changes and how much do you change out?

 

[flower]

Originally Posted by new2salt3
http:///forum/post/3102446
We started this hobby changing from african cichlids. We have spent so much money on fish and inverts and others only to watch most of them die. PH is okay, no ammonia, no nitrites, but our nitrates are off the charts. Everyone has said back way off feeding the fish, and liquid filter food in bottles....but they are still off the charts. We have used poly filters over and over but we cannot get rid of them. Our tank was so beautiful as we introduced new items. Now, it is bland and we just don't know what to do.

nitrates are bad for freshwater fish like african cichlids, but not for saltwater fish. You should be able to add a fish and not have it die.