My Saltwater for water changes has ammonia in it

misty7850

misty7850

Member
I use RO/DI water to make up my new batch of saltwater for the week. I make up ten gallons the same day I do my water change, for the next weeks water change. I noticed this week in testing the water before doing my water change that the new batch of saltwter had .25 ammonia in it.. I haven't changed anything in the way I mix it up or store it. it has never had ammonia in it before. I'm baffled. My RO/DI water has 0 ammonia.
My storage container is a rubbermaid kitchen wastebasket with cover. I keep it areated with AquaClear 402 powerhead. I clean my storage container once a month, between water changes. All feedback appreciated.
 
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tizzo

Guest
Is it I.O.?? Cause a while back a guy had to send all of his salt back to the company cause it had ammonia in it. Lemme go dig it up...
 
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tizzo

Guest
It was Devilboy, here's his original post...
this very frustrating.... my ammonia checked again at .5ppm, this time i took some into the lfs to have them check it they came up with .5 also. i told them it should be 0 it is my waterchange water, and the only thing i have changed is salt brands, which i bought from them. he said it is possible but asked how long i was aerating it, i told him about 36hrs he told me keep it aerating for 3-4 days and the ammonia should go away. i have no idea where he came up with that idea. as far as i know the only method of getting ammonia out of water is water changes. and if he is right then if you did get an ammonia reading in your tank, why cant you just let it go for a few days since you have water movement inside the tank and the reading would go to 0. i think he is full of crap. but thats my opinion. so guys what the heck should i do? i need to do a water change i am waaaaaaay late. i normally do one every week. HELP!!!
 
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tizzo

Guest
Anyway, he sent a sample to IO and after that I lost track of it all...
 
misty7850

misty7850

Member
Stang: I don't use a cleaning agent.. I scrub the trash can with hot water. (maybe I should use vinegar or bleach ??)
Fromoe: nope not the test kit.. The ammonia levels on my tanks are at zero.
Tizzo... as a matter of fact.. Yes it is IO.. I just switched back to IO from another brank I had tried and didn't like.. the only problem I had before with IO is the calcium levels would drop to 350-380 and I had to supplement.. This batch that showed ammonia was the first batch I mixed with the new pail of IO...
I will make a fresh batch tomorrow and test again.
thanks everyone.
 
zman1

zman1

Active Member
Did your water company start adding Chloramine? Chloramines are a combination of chlorine and a small amount of ammonia to disinfect the lines.
 
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thomas712

Guest
Tizzo... as a matter of fact.. Yes it is IO.. I just switched back to IO from another brank I had tried and didn't like.. the only problem I had before with IO is the calcium levels would drop to 350-380 and I had to supplement.. This batch that showed ammonia was the first batch I mixed with the new pail of IO...
Good ole Inconsistant Organics,...I mean IO salt, sounds like they strike again. I've had so many problems with that salt its just not funny. One of the biggest problems is the calcium that you describe which drops, and I'll bet if you check the magnesium you'll find that its very low as well, so low that you can add a suppliment of caclium till your blue in the face and it will not matter because the Mg is low and you will not be unable to maintain a good calcium level.
Everyone has their opinion but for me Oceanic has been working fine. I have to buffer it up but thats alright.
Kudos to you Misty for taking the time to test the first batch of a newly opened salt.
Thomas
 
wax32

wax32

Active Member
Originally Posted by zman1
Did your water company start adding Chloramine? Chloramines are a combination of chlorine and a small amount of ammonia to disinfect the lines.
Nice try, she stated that she uses RO water from the store.
I would test the water straight from the bottle though. However unlikely, it wouldn't hurt to rule that out.
I have to say I've been using IO since Katrina (LFS was out of the Tropin Marin) and have had no problems.
 
misty7850

misty7850

Member
I actually have my own ro/di unit.. recently changed the filters out this past month.. and haven't had any problem readings with the ro water.. That is at zero ammonia.. Thanks for the input everyone.
I called my lfs who said I could bring back the bucket of IO and exchange out for another brand..
I did an experiment where I first tested the RO water on two gallons... zero ammonia, all other levels good..
I then mixed up one gallon of IO and one gallon of Oceanic (which I had a little left of from my last bucket) The Oceanic.. zero ammonia.. the IO 0.25 ammonia.. so this weekend, I'll be taking that bucket back to my lfs for exchange.
 
fishieness

fishieness

Active Member
the same thing recently happened to me. The water was also cloudy. I dumped out all 5 gallons and refiltered it. Then everything was fine. I think it was because i only had an airbubbler in there for airation and not a powerhead. The one i usualy use was in my tank because i accidentaly cracked my skimmer. Coralife is sending me another collection cup for free. I dont even have to pay shipping (hows that cor customer service?
). But that is a lot less airation so i was using that one. So i took out a powerhead from another tank (a fowlr so it doesnt need as much flow) for 24 hours and all was fine.
I think it is also because i accidentaly left the top off of the bucket all week so there could have been a lot of dust in there, causeing amonia. dust being 70% dead skin and all.....
im interested on what another batch will show up with
 
devilboy

devilboy

Member
YES Tizzo, it was me, and i have not gone back to using IO since, they did send me a new bucket of salt, but i sold it... LOL!!!! and ever since then i have been buying the catalina ocean water from *****. but i am thinking about either trying oceanic again, or trying out reef crystals, since i really dont think my corals like this water too much, but it maybe my fault for having my SG at 1.022 which is what the ocean water SG is on the box. i may just keep using it, buy some oceanic or reef crystals, and mix it with the ocean water and bring it up to 1.025
 
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