does anyone have any ideas what could have caused a nitrite spike? i did add a few plants today into the tank but that is about it. I've been running tests on a regular basis [daily since I started my CO2] and everything was running 0's except for the nitrate which was at 15 ppm. I always wash and rinse my hands thoroughly so I'm not sure what happened. Unfortunately it killed almost all of my fish
nitrite spike
- Thread starter sardesign
- Start date
no new fish... and never overfeed. i only put in enough food that the fish can eat in about a minute until it's all gone. even with a little extra food, I can't imagine having a nitrite spike of 0.25 ppm.
hey that has happened to me b 4. Do yoou have any drift wood that has been in there for a while? Because that was the reason for mine if you don't then you might have a spot in the back of the tank that you done throughly vacuum . I wpuld just try adding sum nitrifying bacteria . Sorry if I had a lot of spelling mistakes b cuz I'm typing this from my iPhone
fish guru:
i did add a small piece of driftwood too. I also made a little mess of the existing gravel while I was insert the plants. Possibly released some anaerobic bacteria which killed off a bunch of the "good" bacteria? who knows at this point... all i have now is 11 dead fish and 3 lone survivors [only because I had a clean garbage can handy and lots of water conditioner].
i did add a small piece of driftwood too. I also made a little mess of the existing gravel while I was insert the plants. Possibly released some anaerobic bacteria which killed off a bunch of the "good" bacteria? who knows at this point... all i have now is 11 dead fish and 3 lone survivors [only because I had a clean garbage can handy and lots of water conditioner].
I would lean toward the anerobic decay and a hydrogen sulfide spike. When you stirred it the gravel up, did you notice a 'foul' smell? I think the hydrogen sulfide (byproduct from anerobic decay) can lead to a very quick fish kill.
Concerning the new plants, I know when I buy fertilzer for my yard, one of the numbers on the bag is "nitrogen". Anyone know if that is linked to 'nitrites' or 'nitrates'? Could fertilizer in the plants contribute to nitrite spikes? Something I have wondered about.
Concerning the new plants, I know when I buy fertilzer for my yard, one of the numbers on the bag is "nitrogen". Anyone know if that is linked to 'nitrites' or 'nitrates'? Could fertilizer in the plants contribute to nitrite spikes? Something I have wondered about.
how do i avoid the hydrogen sulfide spike in the future. I do remember smelling sulfur but i thought that was my seachem prime [which smells like sulfur]. it's fairly difficult to gravel vac around all of the plants + rocks + driftwood.
I try to stir up the back of my tanks with a stick in the tight spaces every once in a while. I try to arrange my tank so that it is cleanable. I thought that hydrogen sulfide buildup was really only a danger when sand that would compact, but my problem came with gravel. I also believe that my problem started to develop after trying to use a black grit (sandblast grit) as a substrate. Looked great, but was too sharp for my corys. when I changed that substrate, I really smelled the sulpher, but the fish were out of the tank. I did not capture all of it and think that the anerobic bacteria was still in the remaining substrate which spread to underneath a few ornaments. When I did a 'deep cleaning' I think I released it.
I have one tank with pool filter sand. It has a few places that are very difficult to mix up. I bought a dozen Malasysian Trumpet Snails (MTS). They burrow in the sand and help mix those hard to reach places. Still waiting to see how that works. (I was afraid of snails over-running my tank, but was told that if I saw my snail population going out of control it is probably due to overfeeding.
Hope this helps. Sorry if I rambled.
I have one tank with pool filter sand. It has a few places that are very difficult to mix up. I bought a dozen Malasysian Trumpet Snails (MTS). They burrow in the sand and help mix those hard to reach places. Still waiting to see how that works. (I was afraid of snails over-running my tank, but was told that if I saw my snail population going out of control it is probably due to overfeeding.
Hope this helps. Sorry if I rambled.
I am running an EHEIM 2028
OK... i'll get something to poke around the substrate and i'll try to do a better job gravel vacuuming. Do you think it will be that much of a problem if I don't get everywhere? Do you think just a little build up will be dangerous?