Freak Ammonia Spike / Wierd Behavior....HELP!

[ShmooBeast]

The day before yesterday my gf did a 50% water change on her puffer tank, beings that they are messy and it was pretty dirty.

Yesterday when we woke up the tank was a wee bit cloudy, but the fish all seemed fine and acted normal, so I figured it was just a tiny bit of a bacteria bloom and decided not to test or anything, and to just let it be.

Today I noticed that it had gotten extremely cloudy, and the puffers were breathing hard and swimming clustered together near the top of the water.
The tests all came out well, except ammonia which was at 4.0ppm.
There is no reason that ammonia should be high...no extra bioloud or anything, etc.

So I did a 25% water change, added some ammonia remover, and some stress relief stuff.

It has been at least 6 hours, and the puffers are still breathing fairly hard, and hanging out towards the top. The ammonia has been at 0ppm for at least 5, and the pH has remained stable.

I just wanted to know if there was anything else I could do to try and help the poor dp's...they look so sad.

I should also note, that when my gf did the water change, we do it old fashioned with a bucket, since dp's tend to be curious. She has me refill the bucket with the righ water temp and condition it.
When I conditioned it I used a chlorine and ammonia remover that is made for Ponds. She asked if this was ok, and I thought it would be fine.
Today she brought this up, and read on the Pond Conditioner label that is should only be used for ponds, and that the water should be well airated for at least an hour after use.
So ya, I think I screwed up the tank by using it. But is that what could have caused the ammonia spike.

Please help, any and all comments are welcome.

 

[ashdavid]

Not 100% sure but something in the change water seems to have killed the some of the bacteria in the filter or you could have added ammonia with your change water. It could be that that stuff dose not treat chlorine or chloramin and that could be the culprit, or it could have changed the ph and killed the bacteria. Best thing to do is test your change water for ammonia and keep doing daily water changes with the conditioner that you have used in the past until everthing settles down(I am assuming that you have done water changes in the past).

 

[ergo sum]

I would just assume there was a mistake, maybe two and treat the water correctly and do at least another 50% water change asap. Then maybe another.

 

[ShmooBeast]

All the water parameters are fine..have been for 5 hours....the ammonia was gone after the 25% change and reconditioning....

I just wondered if anyone knew what could've causes the spike...

Shouldn't the dp's be settling down, and getting better. Or could they have sustained some major damage?

I feel so awful, the dp's were my birthday gift to her this year.

 

[ShmooBeast]

It's been another day. Just wanted to update you on the dwar puffer situation.

Though the ammonia is gone, the water is still cloudy today. The puffers are still acting kind of funny, swimming differently and often close to the surface. Isn't there anything that can be done for them? Poor little guys, I'm pretty worried, and hope they make it.

I'll probably be making a 50% water change on the tank a little later today.

 

[judobadger]

what all are you testing for other than ammonia?

 

[JosephMCorbett]

Go buy a different dechlorinator/water conditioner at a fish store for aquariums and do a 50% today, tomarrow, and the next. Do not disturb the gravel or the filter. This is about the only thing I can think of. Do not rely on the test kit...obviously your fish are stressed. There is still something goofy with the water that your kit is not telling you. Maybe some trace elements from the pond dechlor.?