# High NitrAtes



## ESPMike (Mar 23, 2005)

Well I had posted in a seperate thread about some problems I was having. I did another water test today and my nitrAtes have spiked up to 80! I cycled the tank before hand and they had settled at about 20, but now theyve skyrocketed. What is the best IMMEDIATE treatment. Is there something i can get at my LFS to lower the nitrates?

My Reds are swimming strangely sometimes going sideways. Im getting very worried. Ive been treating with Melafix assuming it was a parasiet of somekind till i did another test today. Its a 90 gallon tank, i raised the temp to 84, and the params are now 0, 0, 80. Thanks in advance for the replies.

-Mike


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## MR.FREEZ (Jan 26, 2004)

water changes, 20 to 30 % a every other day till you get them were they awt to be

then 30% a week min


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## ESPMike (Mar 23, 2005)

I did a 50% change immediately after posting. They were swimming oddly, almost going upsidedown before correcting themselves (one in particular). AFter this they seemed to be doing better. Today I added a dose of Melafix because of the other symptoms they had. Right after I added the Melafix the odd swimming started again. Could this be a bad reaction to the melafix? In any case I did another 25% water change once the strange swimming started and they are acting normally again. The Nitrate levels are also down.

Has anyone had problems with Melafix like this before. That seems to be the cause. I had been using it before the first occurance, then soon as i started using it again the odd swimming started again. Any thoughts?

-Mike


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## Dr. Giggles (Oct 18, 2003)

water changes














to Water Chemistry


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## Genin (Feb 4, 2003)

i wouldn't point at the melafix for the cause of the swimming. a quick question that may help us figure out the problem.... have you ever tested your tap water for nitrates and phosphate levels??? my tap water for example is high in phosphates and used to give me algae problems so now i use RO water. just a thought.


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## killerbee (Aug 18, 2004)

ESPMike said:


> I did a 50% change immediately after posting. They were swimming oddly, almost going upsidedown before correcting themselves (one in particular). AFter this they seemed to be doing better. Today I added a dose of Melafix because of the other symptoms they had. Right after I added the Melafix the odd swimming started again. Could this be a bad reaction to the melafix? In any case I did another 25% water change once the strange swimming started and they are acting normally again. The Nitrate levels are also down.
> 
> Has anyone had problems with Melafix like this before. That seems to be the cause. I had been using it before the first occurance, then soon as i started using it again the odd swimming started again. Any thoughts?
> 
> ...


Best way to get rid of nitrAtes is to do 5-10% water changes daily until the desired parameters are aquired. Then i would monitor the parameters closely and do water changes as needed. I suggest a 30-40% water change every 4-5 days.

Also p's don't like chemicals too much from what i've read here. I'm no expert but if my p's started to act strange after adding a chemical to the tank, u can be sure i will not do it again. Whether melafix is the cause i do not know, being as it is made to help fish get over disease's

The only chemicals i add are prime for water conditioning with water changes and aquarium salt by Doc's (is this a chemical?) hope all goes well for u


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## Rikimaru (May 3, 2004)

do a huge water change like 50%
And put some active coal in ur filter.
Then add some Bacteria's

It worked for me.
GL!


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## Mack (Oct 31, 2004)

Don't bother with coal or bacteria, those won't help with nitrates.

You need to do more water changes.

I would also suggest testing for nitrates out of your tap -- some areas actually have nitrates in their tap water.


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## ESPMike (Mar 23, 2005)

Well i tested my Tap for Nitrates, and it came back at 0, so thats not the problem. With a couple days of consecutive water changes I have the Nitrate levels back under control. I do weekly water changes so Im not sure what cause the spike. However the fish are still sick, and I cant get a definate diagnosis. They have white patches on their backs. Ill do my best to get pics. The growth is not cottony, and it is not small bumps like ich. It is more of almost like a white blister or coating. It looks like the skin actually turned plain white. Im extremely worried, and I have no idea what to do.

They are still eating well, very aggresively as usual, and after the smaller water change today the levels are at 0, 0, 20. They have the preveiously mentioned white growth and spend alot of time swimming at the top of the tank. The other fish in the tank (3 Giant Danios, a swordtail and a Black Convict, all resident since cycling) are all fine, just the ps are sick. Anyone have any suggestions?

-Mike


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## Piranha_man (Jan 29, 2005)

While 80ppm nitrates is higher than we like for our tanks, it isn't need for alarm or panic.
And it isn't going to cause your fish to swim oddly either.

Don't waste your time with little water changes (10-15%) daily to correct it.
Do 50% water changes every 8 hours for a couple of days and your problem will be corrected.
Period.


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## clintard_leonard (Mar 24, 2005)

Easy Balance


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## Husky_Jim (May 26, 2003)

clintard_leonard said:


> Easy Balance
> [snapback]1036329[/snapback]​


Sorry Leonard for what i want to say but Easy Balance is a completely LIE to the aquatic world!!!That thing is for the little kids who don't want to know the importance of water change!!!!!!!

Reducing Nitrates could be achieved only by regural water changes and by the addition of plants like Ceratophilum Demersum or Egeria Desna...


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## clintard_leonard (Mar 24, 2005)

have you ever used easy balance?

my test results today, 37 long with 2 rbp-

amonia-0
nitrite-0
NITRATE-40

this is after close to 3 yes 3 months with no water changes or gravel vacs, just add water every week due to evap and use easy balance as i should

everyone is skeptical till they try it


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## ESPMike (Mar 23, 2005)

Well after a few water changes the levels are under control. I do weekly water changes but for some reason or another my nitrates still crept up on me, i guess ill have to monitor it a little closer in the future. Thanks for the replies guys. The ps are still sick but I beleive it is external parasites and I am treating accordingly. Thanks for the feedback. You guys rock!!

-Mike


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## rostamizadeh (Apr 16, 2005)

Get a product called Nitrex and a Nitrex Box. Should do the trick. Dropped my nitrates from off the chart to a consistent 20ppm. I can only to water changes every 1.5 weeks, so that was the best option for me.


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## James Blake (May 18, 2005)

nitrAtes are the end biproduct of the cycle. they are less toxic to fish that ammonia, the #1 killer and nitrites which are also highly toxic. call your water company and ask them the content of your tap water. if accpetable add conditioner and do frequent water changes, i usually do 20% at a time.


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