ok

0 mg of nitrite
ph level of 7.5
but massive amount of ammonia...around 6-7.0

what the fuck.....

how do i get the ammonia level down...

carl

 

Right, again, slowly this time!! LOL.

Your biological filtration has broken down. This can be caused by a number of things, but mainly happens when you either over-stock the tank or more likely when you clean EVERYTHING out at once. You simply kill all the bacteria off that processes the waste. At the moment, the waste is simply rotting and producing ammonia.

Have you got many fish in there??

Get some 'Cycle'. Most good aquatics places can supply this. Use it as per the instructions. Then as the Ammonia starts to break down, it will produce Nitrite, which should go sky high, before changing to Nitrate, which is then removed by doing 20-30% water changes weekly. NO MORE OFTEN THAN THAT. Do not start water changing until you see the Nitrate levels rising and DO NOT clean anything out.

 

Not having alot of luck with tests hey mate? First your MOT, now your aquaruim.

I agree with what Christian and Beccy have said above.

 

hello,....again....lol


thanks again for your help,...
but as always, i follow expert advice to the letter,....and nothing i do seems to drop the ammonia levels...

im soooooooooooooooo bored of this now....


but anyway
thanks



carl

 

Carl, lets start with a few fundamentals.

What size aquarium?

What filter system do you have?

What fish are currently in there?

If this ISN'T Marine, it can be sorted, be patient! I lost my rag with Marine, but it's about 10 times more difficult.

 

What size aquarium?...........................4 foot wide 18 inch deep and 12 inch across

What filter system do you have?............got a fluval 4, and another unknown, equivilent to fluval 2

What fish are currently in there?............well, now that most passed on over night 2 weeks ago,....literally....coolio when i went to bed, dead in the morning....wtf...

so now theres 5 fish left......
plek
oscar
purple parrot
convict
gourami



carl

 

Right, I reckon what you ought to do is this. Buy this......

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/EHEIM-2224-EXT...QQcmdZViewItem

Then get rid of your other filters. That would be a good start. You would have nothing filtration-wise in the tank, except for a Spray-bar and an Inlet pipe (opposite ends of the tank).

What d'ya reckon? You up for spending some money?

 

ok,...thats done,...ive just bought it,....


carl

 

Good lad. Let me know when you have it.

I am hoping that it comes with some of the ceramic 'tube' shaped filter media. That stuff is the bollox. It has massive surface area, which is SO many times better than what you have.

I expect it will come with a filter 'pad' too.

External filters are slightly trickier to set up, but once you have got the hang of it, the system will be so much better for it.

 

Fabulous advice so far, i will add nothing more to it other than perhaps to post these very usefull graphs that may help you understand whats happening in your water....

 

cheers stu



quite aware as to whats hppening, just needed to know how to stop my fish carking it

 

agree with everything thats been said, just be patient it WILL come together, im busy cycling my new 600 litre aquarium, doing my head in cos i wanna add some more fish NOW

christians right about the pump/filter too, eheim are the daddy

have you got another already established tank you could transfer the fish into? that way you could cycle the problematic tank using some more hardy fish, mollies etc. and keep the current fish safe and happy.

 

have you got another already established tank






nope

 

You got that filter yet??!!

 

nope....

got an email saying it had been posted yesterday, but didnt turn up today, so hopefully tomorrow

carl

 

Good luck dude,

I have had troubles with my discus this week and have lost two of them. Got some wormer for them today which seems to have brightened their spirits up and have also made them some beeheart to eat which they seem to love. Take your time listen and understand what people tell you and it will get better.

Graham

 

dont think anybodys mentioned that over feeding is the main reason a lot of new keepers get this problem. a few drops of ammolock works well for me.

 

very true but the high ammonia and zero nitrite results kinda says the biological filtration isnt up n running yet.

 

ok, up for c&b

new bad bot filter was installed last night,.....

plek carked it just before install of new filter

have had to do 3/4 water change.....

carl

 

need to be aware to, as the amonia drops off it normally takes the ph level down with it, so may need a buffer to address that.

 

check out my bombay badboy

 

I like him he is coooool

 

not when he bites your fingers hes not

 

Carl, what did the filter have in it?

Did it have 2 modules? If so, what type of filter media is in there?

I am hoping that in the bottom of the canister, you have a media that looks like little tube shaped things? If not, what?

 

Lol, mine come looking for food at the surface and eat out of my hand.

 

did you have a red tail did you?

Mine just reached 27 inches ,yes hand feeds are the best!

 

No I have discus

 

i like them frisbee looking fish

 

yep thats them the frisbees

 

thats the one mate

ehfi mech
sub strat

what ever they mean

and a thick blue pad filter, and a more tightly packed thin white one

carl

 

OK, that's great.

It's going to take a while for that to start working. In the meantime, don't do ANY water changes and DON'T clean any part of the filter. Just sit tight and be patient. Test every few days and watch for the ammonia to begin to change to Nitrite and let me know when this happens.

Feed sparingly. Only what the fish can eat in 2-3 minutes and only once a day at the very most, infact every two days is enough.

 

So, any news? You tested lately??

 

hey christian,




tested tonight and readings are......

ammonia 0.25 ppm mg/L
ph 8.2
nitrite 0.0 ppm mg/L
nitrate 0.0 ppm mg/L



much better than this time last week...

carl

 

Fingers crossed for some Nitrite soon.

Remember DON'T DO ANYTHING except test!

You put any 'Cycle' in there yet?

How are your fish doing? Any survivors?

 

fish look spot on,.....

never seen them move as much....lmao...


thanks agian, been a great help

 

Well, you're not out of the woods yet, its early days still.

Let me know when you start to show some Nitrite.

 

okie doke,...will do,....

whats the significance of that anyways.....

 

the ehiem 2224 filter is the shit, ive got one and have had it for a few years now.

should really change the stone type things in it for that stuff you said about Christian,


is this stuff any good mate?
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/200-NEW-BLACK-...QQcmdZViewItem

 

Anything that has a large surface area is good. Eheim Efimech is the stuff I meant. Take a look for it on Google.

Carl, as for the Nitrite thing, I have explained that before!! Once you show Nitrite, the biological process has started. You need to remain patient, this will work. A small amount of Ammonia will produce a much larger amount of Nitrite and similarly, a small amount of Nitrite will produce lots of Nitrate, so expect to see some big numbers on your tests. I expect the Nitrate test to go off the scale! However, you don't really want the Ammonia level's to increase much more. If they do, then stop putting food in until they stabilise.

Go get some 'Cycle'!! I know I keep going on about it, but it's basically bacteria in a bottle and will speed things along no end. Use it as per the instructions though. Don't overdose!

By the way, you should test tap water!! My Aquarium used to have less Nitrate in it than tap-water. Imagine fish being so fussy that they don't want to live in what we drink!! Marine fish are just like that! Tap water usually shows a Nitrate level that puts it about a third of the way up the chart of a Nitrate test!!