The Q-tank questions - Part II
- Thread starter chrisinha
- Start date
It hasn't been 24 hours yet since I added ammonia last night, but I decided to test the water anyways.
So far the readings are:
Ammonia: somewhere inbetween 0 and .25
NitrItes: Same thing
NitrAtes: honestly I can't see the difference between 40 and 80. I hate this nitrate chart! Anyways, it's somewhere inbetween 40 and 80.
How am I supposed to take care of the nitrAtes?
So far the readings are:
Ammonia: somewhere inbetween 0 and .25
NitrItes: Same thing
NitrAtes: honestly I can't see the difference between 40 and 80. I hate this nitrate chart! Anyways, it's somewhere inbetween 40 and 80.
How am I supposed to take care of the nitrAtes?
Nitrates are the end result of the nitrifying bacteria. Most folks use water changes to get rid of them. Keep in mind, Nitrates are less toxic than ammonia or nitrites. Also, this is building up from all your dosing of ammonia. In a normal week you'll likely end up with ammonia and nitrites enough to be converted to 5-20 ppm nitrates.chrisinha said:
If you go with a planted tank, you would actually dose nitrogen to your tank for the plants to use, as plants are nitrogen fiends and need extra than the fish can produce usually.
ok, so after 24 hours i tested the water again.
nitrItes were 0, but ammonia still looked a little greenish to me... although the readings were not even .25 ppm. is it normal?? should i add more ammonia? when can i bring the fish in?
nitrItes were 0, but ammonia still looked a little greenish to me... although the readings were not even .25 ppm. is it normal?? should i add more ammonia? when can i bring the fish in?
Give it 2 more days. You've been at it this long, why risk it. I would say that more than likely it's safe for new additions, but I usually taylor my answers to err on the safe side.
Yes indeed. Bacteria have to eat, you know.chrisinha said:
Also, I am with happy, I like seeing 0 ammonia and nitrite for at least 48 hours.
I dont know what's going on... yesterday, i added ammonia after i read your post. i checked the water parameters a while ago and i have 1ppm of ammonia and 0 of nitrItes. i should have 0 ammonia! what's going on??
A small bump in the road, and the reason you try and duplicate the readings. Dose to 4ppm and see what happens tomorrow.
