Betta Fish Forum banner

HIGH ammonia, high nitrite?

1K views 16 replies 5 participants last post by  ChoclateBetta 
#1 ·
Hi guys,

So my tank has been cycling for a little while now. In the past few days, the nitrite has spiked up like crazy. I believe it's off the charts now(purple fuchsia). The ammonia level looks very close to 8...so I'm worried the cycle is going to stop because the ammonia is out of the 4-5 range. Should I remove the shrimp? The nitrite only shot up after the ammonia got high. I haven't tested the nitrate yet. Should I do that?

As always, thank you for the help :)
 
#2 ·
BIG water change is needed! Have you not been doing water changes? If you have anything in the tank you need to keep the ammonia & nitrites below .5 preferably below .25. What size tank? I would do at least a 50% water change. Retest the water an hour or so later & do another 50% water change because your ammo & nitrites will probably only be cut in 1/2 from your original tests. Yes if the readings are too high your cycle can stall. You'll probably have to do water changes or multiple changes in a day for the next few days. IF you remove all inhabitants you can let the ammo stay at 4 but you still need to bring the nitrites down some. I would check for nitrates because that'll tell you if your cycle is progressing as it should. Are you using strips or a liquid water test? I hope this all makes sense if not ask & I'll clarify.
 
#4 ·
Oh sorry I forgot to mention I'm doing the fishless cycle. There's a decaying shrimp in there. I'm using a liquid water test and would never let the ammonia get high if there were living things in there :) There's an amazon sword and a moss ball in there, but they're doing fine.
 
#12 ·
Hi, Hallyx. Sorry I didn't see this updated post. It's been cycling for a little over two weeks, give or take a few days? I didn't seed my tank with any bacteria(like from someone elses' tank) except for something called nutrafin cycle that came with it? Is that bacteria or just a supplement?/no clue xD It came with my tank so I put it in. I put it in once or twice, but that's all. The water clouded for a few days and then went totally clear. It's clear right now and I took out the shrimp.

So as far as I know, I only used shrimp.

levels are:
ammonia: 2ppm :D yesterday it was 4ppm(day before it was 8ppm :/ really high) and the nitrate took a little while to go off the charts. this time as soon as the solution went in it went dark purple and then when i shook it, went off the charts. I removed the shrimp yesterday.
nitrite: right off the bat before I even shook it, off the charts.
Nitrate: low, about 5-10ppm.


Should I put some new shrimp back in to keep the cycle going until it's finished? I think the nitrite is just starting to work full blast.

thank you!
 
#13 ·
Sounds like you're doing fine. You might have gotten a little carried away, but your tank is correcting just fine. Cycle is not the actual nitrifying bacteria, but it helps that bacteria to grow quickly.

Before you put that shrimp back in. Let the ammonia and nitrite come down to 0.0ppm. Then change the water to bring the nitrate <10ppm.

Then drop the shrimp in for a few days to get the ammonia up to ~2.0ppm. If the ammonia goes back down and leaves higher nitrates, your tank is cycled. Give it one last big water change to drop your nitrate <10ppm, and add your stock,

Keep a close eye on the parameters for the first month or so. Change your water 50% every week.

Would you do us the favor of writing up your experience? I'd like to add it to the "Cycle Log" thread.
 
#14 ·
haha, what do you mean by carried away? xD Allowing the ammonia to shoot up?

Thank you so much for the advice. I hope I can add Fred in soon.
The nitrate was closer to 5 than it was to 10, but since the nitrite is working, I bet it's going to get high.

I will watch the levels to make sure that everything is in check.

Sure! I will definitely write up my experience once my tank is cycled.

Also, would it be okay to not change the water for about a week? I'm going on a trip from the 15th-21st and don't want to hassle Fred's sitter too much :/ It's a five gallon. Once I get back, I would do a 100% change...
hmm...maybe I should get her to do a 25%?

Again, thank you so much. You all have made this cycling thing a lot less crazy :)
 
#15 · (Edited)
I mean "carried away" as in letting all your readings get really high. I did that my first cycle and my high nitrates stalled the cycle.

Your tank ought to be fully cycled by the 15th. If your ammonia and nitrite return to 0.0ppm a day or two after you bring it up >1.0ppm and your nitrate rises, you're done. You're running a cycled tank, now. You'll never do a 100% change again.

Before you leave, do a 50% water change with light vacuum. That's the first of your forever weekly 50% changes. Make sure the sitter knows not to feed Fred more than once a day. Every other day is fine. Don't do anything else.

He'll be OK. Have a nice vacation.
 
#16 ·
The ammonia went down to 1ppm today and nitrite is really high, nitrates still haven't gone up(about 5ppm). I'm just happy that the ammonia has gone down a lot :)--I'm sure the high nitrite will break down into nitrates soon?

Ooh I forgot about that!(more food, more waste, more nitrate) Thanks for reminding me.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top