Okay, yeah, my arm starts to hurt after I'm done with the nitrate test! I'm going to do another 50% water change today because the nitrate are still 40-80.
My Dwarf Gourami is Bloated!
- Thread starter Tetar
- Start date
Did you change out your filter media? I had this exact same problem, and still cannot figure out why my nitrate is so freaking high. I have a LOT of plants in my tank too.
No, I didn't change it out. I heard that changing the filter media causes the cycle to start over. Is this true?
Not necessarily. I was wondering if maybe some organic stuff from the filter might have gotten into the tank and caused a nitrate spike.
Tifftastic
"With your powers combined . . ."
What kind of filter do you have? Part of your BB will live in your filter media and part in your gravel. If you do both gravel vacuuming and changing out media on the same day it can give you a mini cycle, but if you do one or the other you're usually fine. If you have an AC filter degunking is better than throwing out, you can gently squeeze the foam in a bucket of tank water til all the nasties are out and then put it back. If you have a filter with a cartridge, it might be time to throw it out.
If you've fasted and aren't seeing any improvements in the gourami, it might be time for medication. I would suggest adding melafix for a week and see if it helps. A word on salt, for some fish it isn't good to use long term as some arent necessarily improved by it. There's a couple good threads of commentary on the additional use of salt when not using it to treat something specific.
If you've fasted and aren't seeing any improvements in the gourami, it might be time for medication. I would suggest adding melafix for a week and see if it helps. A word on salt, for some fish it isn't good to use long term as some arent necessarily improved by it. There's a couple good threads of commentary on the additional use of salt when not using it to treat something specific.
I have a Whisper 40I Internal Filter. I'm guessing I'll change the filter media monthly? Whenever it's time to change my filter, I'll do it during a water change, but won't gravel vacuum then. I'll try to get some melafix very soon.
I probably won't use salt, because I can't find it without ordering it online. I always find ordering online more annoying than just picking up the product in the store, because then I have to pay shipping and it gets expensive quick!
Should I take my filter cartridge out when I'm medicated with melafix? The instructions that go with my filter say that the cartridge will absorb most medications and that it should be taken out.
Finally, after my 50% water change yesterday, I checked again today to see if I needed to change the water AGAIN. I'm at 10 ppm for nitrates! (Or 20 ppm, but it sure looks closest to 10.)
I have the same filter, and the cartridges are the foam pouches with charcoal stuffed in them. Charcoal can absorb medications and reduce their effectiveness, which is why it's recommended to remove the charcoal when medicating. You can remove the clip on the top of the plastic tabs and then take the plastic frame out of the foam pouch, and then empty out the charcoal and reassemble the cartridge minus the charcoal. This will still allow you to filter out debris if you want.
It's recommended to change filter media monthly, but you can rinse out the gunk between changes by squeezing or shaking the cartridge in your dump bucket - if you use one. Rinsing the filter cartridge under the tap can kill your bacteria.
It's recommended to change filter media monthly, but you can rinse out the gunk between changes by squeezing or shaking the cartridge in your dump bucket - if you use one. Rinsing the filter cartridge under the tap can kill your bacteria.
Okay, thanks, that's helpful! Do you think that I should change it monthly? I wouldn't mind saving money by replacing it every two months or so if it won't hurt the fish at all.
I change mine roughly once a month, but my tank is also heavily stocked. You might be able to get away with every two months if your tank is lightly stocked, but if you're having trouble with disease, I'd stick to once a month.
Tifftastic
"With your powers combined . . ."
Next time you replace the cartridge, look into buying the fluval/Aquaclear inserts. You can cut the foam to fit your filter, add the biobead bag and then you're only replacing your Carbon (if you use it) once a month. You would instead just clean the filter media as suggested above and that stuff will last forever. I had some that I used for about a year before it needed to be replaced, all i did was clean it once every other week. The biobeads will basically never need to be replaced, so you won't have to deal with minicycles.
Table salt, typically un-iodized is recommended, can be used. It doesn't have to be aquarium salt. I have had salt dips work to help with bloat. Its more concentrated than treating the whole tank, limited to just the fish that needs treatment and done in a way that has always been more effective for me. Take a 1 gallon bowl of tank water, mix in a tablespoon of salt (let it dissolve completely), net the fish, dip the fish (inside the net) into the bowl and hold it for 30 seconds to one minute. If the fish starts to thrash like its in pain dilute the water more, but if not just hold it in there. Do that once a day for about a week. It works pretty well for a lot of things.
Table salt, typically un-iodized is recommended, can be used. It doesn't have to be aquarium salt. I have had salt dips work to help with bloat. Its more concentrated than treating the whole tank, limited to just the fish that needs treatment and done in a way that has always been more effective for me. Take a 1 gallon bowl of tank water, mix in a tablespoon of salt (let it dissolve completely), net the fish, dip the fish (inside the net) into the bowl and hold it for 30 seconds to one minute. If the fish starts to thrash like its in pain dilute the water more, but if not just hold it in there. Do that once a day for about a week. It works pretty well for a lot of things.
