So, I was overfeeding...yeah. I suck. Anyway, so my nitrites were high... don't have a number. The guy at the pet store tested it and just said they were high.
So I've done three 30% water changes (which I know doesn't add up to a change of 90% water...
) and have fed my poor fish only sparingly, scooping out what they don't eat. In the tank now is one bala shark, one columbian tetra, two dwarf frogs, a small pleco and a black widow tetra. [Danios went to my ten gallon.] I lost two black widows and a bala to this idiotic mistake.
I bought a testing kit today, and everything checks out...except the nitrites. The level is somewhere between 0.8 and 1.6, I would say something like 1.0 or 0.9 most likely. I'm going to do another 30% change tonight. The tank is being treated with Melafix and Pimafix because my poor bala has a case of fin rot on his tail. So here are my questions:
1) Is there anything else I can be doing for my poor fish to bring the nitrite levels down? (I should have mentioned that I have been adding the nitrifying bacteria so those levels should be fine.)
2) The gentleman at the pet store (who I'm not sure if I really trust, but I don't have a whole lot of options where I live) told me that I could only do a 30% water change every two days. Is that true?
I appreciate any help that anyone has. I should note that oddly enough my MOST sensitive fauna (my african dwarf frogs) are happy as clams. Swimming great and NO signs of illness. Bizarre.
Anyway, thanks all!
Jade
So I've done three 30% water changes (which I know doesn't add up to a change of 90% water...
) and have fed my poor fish only sparingly, scooping out what they don't eat. In the tank now is one bala shark, one columbian tetra, two dwarf frogs, a small pleco and a black widow tetra. [Danios went to my ten gallon.] I lost two black widows and a bala to this idiotic mistake.I bought a testing kit today, and everything checks out...except the nitrites. The level is somewhere between 0.8 and 1.6, I would say something like 1.0 or 0.9 most likely. I'm going to do another 30% change tonight. The tank is being treated with Melafix and Pimafix because my poor bala has a case of fin rot on his tail. So here are my questions:
1) Is there anything else I can be doing for my poor fish to bring the nitrite levels down? (I should have mentioned that I have been adding the nitrifying bacteria so those levels should be fine.)
2) The gentleman at the pet store (who I'm not sure if I really trust, but I don't have a whole lot of options where I live) told me that I could only do a 30% water change every two days. Is that true?
I appreciate any help that anyone has. I should note that oddly enough my MOST sensitive fauna (my african dwarf frogs) are happy as clams. Swimming great and NO signs of illness. Bizarre.
Anyway, thanks all!
Jade
