weird (got a test kit)

Celeste

Celeste

AC Members
Oct 31, 2005
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i just got a liquid master test kit. it was only $15 at petsmart (on sale on their website, i just had them price match at the store) and i tested both my normal tap water, and my aquariums water.

my tap water is as follows:

pH: 7.8
Nitrate: 7
Nitrite: 0
Ammonia: .75

and my aquarium water:

pH: 8.4
Nitrate: 7
Nitrite: 0
Ammonia: 8 (off the chart...i put too much ammonia in, lol. going to water change some out)


howcome the pH in my tank is so high? could it be that i put too much ammonia in?
 
Put some tapwater in a container and let it sit overnite and retest, you may find that your Ph has changed.

N.
 
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Correct me if I'm wrong, but adding ammonia during a cycle would/could increase the ph too depending on the type of ammonia used.
 
ok, another question.

2 days ago i did about a 20% water change. tested, ammonia is still off the chart.

yesterday i did another 20% water change, ammonia still off the chart. i did another 50% water change right after, ammonia still off the chart.

just now, i tested first, ammonia still off the chart, did a 75% water change, test again, ammonia STILL off the chart.

what the heck is going on? why can i not get the ammonia back down? my tap water has .75 ammonia
 
Well how big is your tank (i think i saw you mention a 10G in another thread so correct me if its a different one), what kind of ammonia did you use and how much did you actually put in ?
 
its the right kind of ammonia, clear ammonia, with only water, ammonia, and chelating agent in it, no detergents or anything.

and i might have put about a cup in on accident........*looks innocent* at least theres no fish in there, huh?
 
Whoa... a cup ? To get to 5ppm in my 10G i added about half a Tbsp. Now i dont know how many Tbsp go into one cup (i am european and never quite got around to learning anything thats not metric :) ) but thats way too much.

I'd do a 90% waterchange - and if its still high another. If ammonia is way high it will actually stall the cycle (not my personal experience - just what i read/ been told).
 
I second Hannys_Papa, do a large water change...do 90% or even more...and keep doing water changes until the ammonia is at ~4ppm. Heck, if it were me, I'd probably try to get ammonia to zero and then start fresh. Then try using a medicine dropper to dose ammonia...add a small amount at a time and test. Keep track of the amount it takes to get 4ppm. Ammonia off the chart will definitely stall the cycling process.

Regarding pH, you may find it goes up during the cycle, and then may dip lower towards the mid to latter stages of cycling. Keep an eye on both pH and KH to ensure they don't drop too far and stall the cycle.
 
A cup sounds like a lot so that might be the problem. When I got my tank up and running my ammonia tested off the chart because my amquel+ was giving a false reading. It tested off the charts for 2 weeks before I got a free ammonia test and it was actually 0 ppm.
 
i did another 70% water change just now and got the ammonia down to 5ppm. this weekend i'm going to get a chunk of filter material from my parents pond and float it in the tank to jump start the bacteria growth.
 
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