chrisinha
04-15-2005, 12:24 AM
My nitrItes readings have been around .25 and .5 (different tanks) I've been doing water changes daily (about 20%) for almost a week now. Can someone please tell me STEP by STEP what I have to do to keep my nitrItes down?? Yes, I am THAT stupid! :rolleyes: I promise I'm going to follow all the instructions.
BTW, nitrAtes are also <20ppm
Blinky
04-15-2005, 6:24 AM
Is this a tank that's still cycling, or an established tank experiencing a nitrite spike?
If the tank isn't overstocked and you're seeing NO2 because you're still cycling (NO3 could be in your tap water which is why you're getting readings of 20ppm), just keep up the water changes. I'd change 50% daily to get the NO2 as low as you can. If the tank is overstocked, you may need to reduce the bio-load.
Make sure you rinse filter media in tank water, rather than chlorinated tap water, or you'll kill off the beneficial bacteria you're working so hard to grow. As the cycle progresses, you'll see a drop off in NO2 and a rise in NO3, then you'll know your cycle/spike is over :)