ammonia won't go down!

[andrewturk1970]

Hey all,

I have had my 75 Gal tank running for nearly a month now, with a G160 Eheim filter.

I have 1 (all babies) Oscar, Green Terror, Golden Algae Eater, and an Angel fish (the kids wanted it *sigh*)

ok, here where I am having some difficulty, and Im not sure if im hurting the fish, and how to proceed.

I have been tracking the Ammonia and Nitrite every few days, and doing 33% water changes once every 4 days, and I cant get the Ammonia levels down. The Nitrite levels are always around .03, but the ammonia levels are always around 1.25 - 1.5... I even did a 50% water change the other day and no change.

How should I proceed ? The test kit says to do a water change when the ammonia is high. also to clean the filter. The store (BIG ALS-TORONTO) says that I should really only clean the filter every 3 months or so. and replace the media every 6-12 months.

Is a cleaning needed so early in the tanks life ? I would doubt it personally.... but I am asking for your advice.

thanks very much.

ps - i dont over feed.

 

[DocTim]

Seriously doubt you need to change the media. Continue the water changes to keep the ammonia down but don't disturb the substrate. Can we get some more data - what is your pH? What additives are you adding the water? YOu don't seem to have enough fish in the tank to constantly have an ammonia value that high. Are you absolutely sure your kit is good? Have you tested it on pure water?

 

[wombatwarcry]

Its funny that the last thing you mention is that you don't overfeed. It is usually one of the biggest problems. But I still feel compelled to say something about it (sorry, I have to). Those fish will do fine if you feed them what they can eat in around 30 seconds every other day. Don't listen to what the vast majority of people say to do or what companies say to feed them. I can speak to this from experience as well. The first tank I set up I was feeding like companies say (2-3 times per day what they can eat in 2-5 minutes, depending on the brand) and ammonia never went down. Started feeding like I suggest, it went from 4.0 to 0 in 3 days.

I don't think you will need to do a tank cleaning, if anything, vacuum your substrate. Those levels of ammonia aren't horrible, but long term it is rather annoying to not have it go down.

In short, get everybit of left over food/debris out of there. (sorry about the rant about feeding ha)

 

[andrewturk1970]

ok, i will try feeding every 2 days and just what they can eat in under 1 minute.
thanks and I will check the ammonia again in 3 days and get back you you guys.

PS - I do add Big Al's Bio support and also water conditioner when I do a water change.
Tap water is nil for ammonia and nitrite

 

[Bioshock]

I noticed you said 'clean the filter' when the ammonia is high. Don't know what you do to clean your filter but your better off leaving your filter/media alone and doing at least 25%- 50% water change daily until your not reading any ammonia/nitrite as these are toxic to your fish. Your tank isn't properly cycled yet is what I'd say the problem is.

 

[theicequeen]

If your tank is only a month old it might still be cycling.
My 56cube took almost 2 months to do a complete cycle.

 

[andrewturk1970]

25% - 50% daily ? wow... seems like alot of water changes. is this the norm ?

 

[Rbishop]

Are you using a liquid test kit that is in date? I would recommend testing the pH on the tank and the pH of your tap...with the tap sample sitting out overnight in a shallow dish first. What kind of substrate?

 

[KarlTh]

25% - 50% daily ? wow... seems like alot of water changes. is this the norm ?

Can be with a new tank.

 

[BettaFishMommy]

daily water changes, even twice a day if necessary, is the key to keep your fish from getting ammonia and/or nitrite poisoning. yes, it seems like a lot of work and a lot of water but the health of your fish if the thing that is important here.

and think about it this way, a 50% change on a 75 gallon is only about half a bathtub full give or take.