Nitrites and Nitrates through the roof

Hi all.

I really hope someone can help. Ive had my tank set up for about 6 months now without any problems but the last week the waters been getting really cloudy and the siamese fioghters just laying around on the bottom most of the time. Ive just done a test on the water and nearly fell over the ph is slightly above normal and ammonias fine but the nitrites and nitrates are so through the roof that i cant tell you what their actual readings are.

Its a 40 litre tank with 1 fantail, 1 cat, 1 upside down cat, 1 male siamese fighter and 5 mollies in it. Ive added nothing new excepty changed the charcoal in the filter 2 weeks ago. I have no algae or anything like that in the tank either.

Im lost can anyone give me a clue? Im thinking of adding a few plants and water changes but thats as far as i know.

Tell a lie. I had to change the air stone about a week ago

Welcome to our forum. The water changes and live plants will help, but the fish in your aquarium are not very compatible in terms of the water conditions they need.

How often do you change part of the water? The usual recommendation is about 20 percent every week. The aquarium is fairly small and close to its maximum biological load, so careful maintenance is especially important. Nitrite (NO2) is toxic to fish and is produced by things like over feeding, over crowding and waiting too long between partial water changes. Even if my assumptions are not correct, you can lower nitrite to zero by a series of partial water changes. Twenty or twenty-five percent a day for several days should eliminate the problem. Be sure to use a good water conditioner like Stress Coat. It seems like the ammonia would also be high. Are you sure the test results are accurate?

Please keep us updated.

I do a 20% water change every week as it is. Part of the reason im so confuused. I took a water sample to the local aquarium shop this morning and he couldnt get the results either. Ammonia fine nitrates well over 100 he didnt look at the nitrites after that.
Gave me some Water prime that removes the chlorine etc and the nitrates and nitrites. Also got a few live plants (wish i had done so sooner) and things are looking up the siamese is swimming with everything else again and the fish love the plants.

All i can think of now is that a cat got something in their somehow.

My next tank will be finished and ready next week after a 4 week cycle for it so im putting the mollies in that and the fantail in the pond i think.

It sounds like the maintenance issue is OK. Some city water supplies have high nitrate levels, so it could be in your tap water. If that's the case, distilled or reverse osmosis water can be used for some of the partial water changes. It's also possible that the pet shop water test was not accurate.

Nitrate (NO3) is present in most aquariums, but another nitrogen compound, nitrite(NO2), is toxic. It may be a good idea to buy an inexpensive water test kit. If nitrite was reading off the scale, all of the fish would probably be dead. If they look healthy and are always hungry, the fish are in good shape.

Im now looking into getting a good water test kit for the tanks. Any advice?

I must admit to being very surprised to finding them alive after what little sleep i did get but they all seem healthy and have a very healthy appetite.

Those quick dip strips have a reputation for not being precise, but they are easy to use and they provide enough information to check your maintenance effectivity. Is that a good word? The dip strips do not check for ammonia. That requires another little kit that has a small test tube, one or two reagents, and a color chart. The dip strips and ammonia kits each cost less than ten dollars (approximately). A thermometer should also be part of the test kit, because temperature is an important water parameter. Once an aquarium is balanced and stable, frequent water tests are not necessary.

If you are going to buy lots of aquarium supplies, you may want to check out some of the on-line stores.

My tempratures never fluxuate thankfully as i have a thermoter constantly on the tank side and that alwats reads 25oC. I want to get everything ill possibly need now as both our aquarium shops except pets at home are closeing soon so i can get everything for next to nothing anyway (as long as the right ppl are working). Think the main of my problem may be that i just have to many fish in the tank. Thats the only thing that would make any sense.

Keeping the aquarium's biological load at its maximum leaves very little safety margin. If it has fewer fish than it can reasonably handle, little mistakes will not turn into disasters.

Please keep us up to date on all your aquarium bargains.