High Nitrites wont go down!

tref2010 · 04/20/2011, 12:32 PM

I have had my tank set up for about 2 months now and my nitrites will not go down. The nitrites appear to be around 5.0 ... I am not sure I have posted a picture below.

The tank has not finished cycling.

Salinity is about 1.018

My ammonia is at 0.

Temp is about 76 F.

My clownfish and 2 damsels have been eating and are very active.
I have seen something called nite-out II ... does anyone know if this will work? It says it lowers nitrite because it adds bacteria.
My nitrites have been high for about a month now. Please help me!

tref2010 · 04/20/2011, 12:36 PM

Actually the nitrite has been high for over a month

john miller · 04/20/2011, 12:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tref2010

I have had my tank set up for about 2 months now and my nitrites will not go down. The nitrites appear to be around 5.0 ... I am not sure I have posted a picture below.

The tank has not finished cycling.

Salinity is about 1.018

My ammonia is at 0.

Temp is about 76 F.

My clownfish and 2 damsels have been eating and are very active.
I have seen something called nite-out II ... does anyone know if this will work? It says it lowers nitrite because it adds bacteria.
My nitrites have been high for about a month now. Please help me!

If you still have nitrites you don't have enough beneficial bacteria to process what the fish are producing. Your current levels (looks like 1.0 to me) are very toxic and you could end up losing your stock.

Your salinity should be around 1.024 and your temp about 78F.

What is your current setup?

DoubleM 10 · 04/20/2011, 12:44 PM

well you need to figure out why ur trites are that high.

in the short run things like that produce would work. it will come back if you dont find the root of the problem.

it might be a while before they come down due to its only a 2 month old tank.

did you cycle the tank with the fish in their??? fish should not be added till the tank is stable.

tanks can not adjudt fast. they need time. cycles and what not are different for all people. mine lasted about 1.5 months.

all tanks adjust to what they have in them at the time. if you go from 0 to a lot it will take a while to level out.

tell us a little about the cycle process that you choose? it will help us help u

Toddrtrex · 04/20/2011, 12:44 PM

First, I would do a water change.

What do you have for filtration?
What size tank?

Any reason your salinity is so low?

Flaring Afro · 04/20/2011, 12:48 PM

So by not finished cycling do you mean you never cycled and just dropped the fish in or do you mean the fish started a new one?

When was each fish added?
How long did you cycle first if you did?
How much rock do you have and how much of it was live?
How big of a tank? (and sump if you have one)
What are you using for flow?

tref2010 · 04/20/2011, 01:04 PM

I added the fish a month after I set up the tank. I was told to add fish as it is beneficial to the cycling process.
I thought the tank was done cycling after about 1 month because there was a lot of diatoms and my ammonia dropped to 0. Ever since my nitrite has been way up there.
I have one Large LR and one Small LR. I got them both from petco fully cured. It is a 10 gallon tank. For a filter I have a whisper i10 and an azoo mignon filter/skimmer (more of a filter than a skimmer -_-). i have a small powerhead for flow (cost 17$ at petco). My salinity was low because my clown was breathing heavy and laying down ( this problem is taken care of and he is very healthy now). I am slowly raising the salinity back to about 1.023.

tref2010 · 04/20/2011, 01:09 PM

Edit: I was incorrectly reading my hydrometer. The salinity is at 1.023-1.024.

stingythingy45 · 04/20/2011, 01:35 PM

A salinity of 1.018 will do nothing for parasites.
Whomever told you that fish are needed to benefit a cycle is quite wrong.
And if I were you i'd stay away from any more suggestions from this person.
I suspect your nitrite kit may be wrong.
BTW,nitrites are not in any way dangerous to saltwater fish.

Lynnmw1208 · 04/20/2011, 01:36 PM

It doesn't sound like you cycled all the way before you added fish. ammonia turns into nitrite which then turns into less toxic nitrate.

Randy Holmes-Farley · 04/20/2011, 02:49 PM

I agree with Bob.

Nitrite at 5 ppm is not an emergency toxicity concern. Marine systems are very different from freshwater ones, where nitrite is very toxic. In marine systems, it can take hundreds of ppm to kill many fish. Clownfish, for example, need 300+ ppm to kill half of them, and some fish can take thousands of ppm nitrite.

Have you tried this kit on another tank to see if it is working correctly?

This has more:

Nitrite and the Reef Aquarium
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2005-06/rhf/index.htm

Flaring Afro · 04/20/2011, 04:11 PM

It sounds like most if not all of your knowledge is from petco, which is even worse than a lfs (usually). Did you add the fish all at once? You basically have a full tank, and they should have been added one at a time with a month or so apart from each other.

Also, you can get a refractometer on ebay for about $25 shipped. Hydrometers don't really work. They will show different readings all the time. I wouldn't be surprised if you played no part in the bad reading earlier.

evsalty · 04/20/2011, 04:20 PM

You really need to have your water tested with another test kit.

tref2010 · 04/20/2011, 05:31 PM

Hi thanks everyone for the replies and suggestions. I got my knowledge from a LFS (not petco) and online. He told me that it is better for the tank to cycle with fish. I now know he was wrong. I will buy a refractometer. The kit is an API Nitrite test kit. I don't have another tank to test it with. I will bring a water sample to my LFS and see what they are.
Once again thank you everyone for the help. Btw I did a 30% water change today.

steelhead77 · 04/20/2011, 06:15 PM

Hate to tell you this but, a 10 gallon tank is going to be very difficult to keep. There just is not enough water volume to promote stabiity. Water params can change very quickly in a tank that size. While nitrites are not that toxic to marine fish, don't be afraid to do a 50% water change if you see issues such as the one your seeing - heck, it's only five gallons.

Good Luck.

Chris155hp · 02/06/2012, 03:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Randy Holmes-Farley

I agree with Bob.

Nitrite at 5 ppm is not an emergency toxicity concern. Marine systems are very different from freshwater ones, where nitrite is very toxic. In marine systems, it can take hundreds of ppm to kill many fish. Clownfish, for example, need 300+ ppm to kill half of them, and some fish can take thousands of ppm nitrite.

Have you tried this kit on another tank to see if it is working correctly?

This has more:

Nitrite and the Reef Aquarium
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2005-06/rhf/index.htm

does this apply to soft corals such as zoas or mushrooms?

04/20/2011, 12:32 PM	#1
tref2010 Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2011 Posts: 38	High Nitrites wont go down! I have had my tank set up for about 2 months now and my nitrites will not go down. The nitrites appear to be around 5.0 ... I am not sure I have posted a picture below. The tank has not finished cycling. Salinity is about 1.018 My ammonia is at 0. Temp is about 76 F. My clownfish and 2 damsels have been eating and are very active. I have seen something called nite-out II ... does anyone know if this will work? It says it lowers nitrite because it adds bacteria. My nitrites have been high for about a month now. Please help me!

04/20/2011, 12:44 PM	#4
DoubleM 10 Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Steamwood, IL Posts: 1,432	well you need to figure out why ur trites are that high. in the short run things like that produce would work. it will come back if you dont find the root of the problem. it might be a while before they come down due to its only a 2 month old tank. did you cycle the tank with the fish in their??? fish should not be added till the tank is stable. tanks can not adjudt fast. they need time. cycles and what not are different for all people. mine lasted about 1.5 months. all tanks adjust to what they have in them at the time. if you go from 0 to a lot it will take a while to level out. tell us a little about the cycle process that you choose? it will help us help u __________________ Matt Lions, Groupers and Eels o my! Current Tank Info: Marineland 60Gal ReefReady cube, DIY led, Euroreef Skimmer Ins-80, Mag 9.5 return

04/20/2011, 12:44 PM	#5
Toddrtrex Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Carol Stream, IL Posts: 23,162	First, I would do a water change. What do you have for filtration? What size tank? Any reason your salinity is so low? __________________ Click my name and then "visit toddrtrex's homepage" for tank pictures Current Tank Info: 210g reef and 65g reef

04/20/2011, 01:35 PM	#9
stingythingy45 Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: MA Posts: 3,296	A salinity of 1.018 will do nothing for parasites. Whomever told you that fish are needed to benefit a cycle is quite wrong. And if I were you i'd stay away from any more suggestions from this person. I suspect your nitrite kit may be wrong. BTW,nitrites are not in any way dangerous to saltwater fish. __________________ Bob Current Tank Info: 90 gallon,mixed Reef,2-250 watt Optix 3 pendants(Phoenix 14K)2-54 watt T5 Super actnics ,ASM G-2 Gate/recirc mods,70 gal. basement sump,20L ref

04/20/2011, 01:36 PM	#10
Lynnmw1208 Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Brunswick, Ohio Posts: 3,306	It doesn't sound like you cycled all the way before you added fish. ammonia turns into nitrite which then turns into less toxic nitrate. __________________ equipment: Eshopps psk-200 skimmer, Mag 12 pump, 30gal sump, 2x 300w Finnex heaters, glass-holes 1500gph overflow kit with 3/4" return kits, 72" 8x36w t-5 AquaticLife light, 66lbs of LR, 150lbs of tropic eden reeflakes, 2 Koralia Evo 1400, JBJ ATO, BRS dual GFO/carbon reactors, Hydor smartwave Current Tank Info: 125gallon

04/20/2011, 12:36 PM	#2
tref2010 Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2011 Posts: 38	Actually the nitrite has been high for over a month

04/20/2011, 12:48 PM	#6
Flaring Afro Puffer Geek Join Date: Mar 2011 Posts: 325	So by not finished cycling do you mean you never cycled and just dropped the fish in or do you mean the fish started a new one? When was each fish added? How long did you cycle first if you did? How much rock do you have and how much of it was live? How big of a tank? (and sump if you have one) What are you using for flow?

04/20/2011, 01:04 PM	#7
tref2010 Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2011 Posts: 38	I added the fish a month after I set up the tank. I was told to add fish as it is beneficial to the cycling process. I thought the tank was done cycling after about 1 month because there was a lot of diatoms and my ammonia dropped to 0. Ever since my nitrite has been way up there. I have one Large LR and one Small LR. I got them both from petco fully cured. It is a 10 gallon tank. For a filter I have a whisper i10 and an azoo mignon filter/skimmer (more of a filter than a skimmer -_-). i have a small powerhead for flow (cost 17$ at petco). My salinity was low because my clown was breathing heavy and laying down ( this problem is taken care of and he is very healthy now). I am slowly raising the salinity back to about 1.023.

04/20/2011, 01:09 PM	#8
tref2010 Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2011 Posts: 38	Edit: I was incorrectly reading my hydrometer. The salinity is at 1.023-1.024.

04/20/2011, 02:49 PM	#11
Randy Holmes-Farley Reef Chemist Join Date: Apr 2001 Location: Arlington, Massachusetts Posts: 86,233	I agree with Bob. Nitrite at 5 ppm is not an emergency toxicity concern. Marine systems are very different from freshwater ones, where nitrite is very toxic. In marine systems, it can take hundreds of ppm to kill many fish. Clownfish, for example, need 300+ ppm to kill half of them, and some fish can take thousands of ppm nitrite. Have you tried this kit on another tank to see if it is working correctly? This has more: Nitrite and the Reef Aquarium http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2005-06/rhf/index.htm __________________ Randy Holmes-Farley Current Tank Info: 120 mixed reef

04/20/2011, 04:11 PM	#12
Flaring Afro Puffer Geek Join Date: Mar 2011 Posts: 325	It sounds like most if not all of your knowledge is from petco, which is even worse than a lfs (usually). Did you add the fish all at once? You basically have a full tank, and they should have been added one at a time with a month or so apart from each other. Also, you can get a refractometer on ebay for about $25 shipped. Hydrometers don't really work. They will show different readings all the time. I wouldn't be surprised if you played no part in the bad reading earlier.

04/20/2011, 04:20 PM	#13
evsalty hmmmmmm Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: NW Mesa, AZ Posts: 3,531	You really need to have your water tested with another test kit.

04/20/2011, 05:31 PM	#14
tref2010 Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2011 Posts: 38	Hi thanks everyone for the replies and suggestions. I got my knowledge from a LFS (not petco) and online. He told me that it is better for the tank to cycle with fish. I now know he was wrong. I will buy a refractometer. The kit is an API Nitrite test kit. I don't have another tank to test it with. I will bring a water sample to my LFS and see what they are. Once again thank you everyone for the help. Btw I did a 30% water change today.

04/20/2011, 06:15 PM	#15
steelhead77 Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Albany, Oregon Posts: 1,117	Hate to tell you this but, a 10 gallon tank is going to be very difficult to keep. There just is not enough water volume to promote stabiity. Water params can change very quickly in a tank that size. While nitrites are not that toxic to marine fish, don't be afraid to do a 50% water change if you see issues such as the one your seeing - heck, it's only five gallons. Good Luck. __________________ This really isn't rocket science - it's more like marine biology. Current tank info: 180 gallon AGA, 40 gallon custom sump, AquaC EV240 skimmer, PM calc reactor, 3x 250w DIY MH, PCI CL-650 Chiller, 2x Koralia 4's, 2x Koralia 2's

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