i had a very bad ammonia spike in my 35 gal.tank. amonia is now fine, but i am still doing a lot of water changes trying to get the nitrite under control. change the water, its fine for a few days then back up.all the water changing is bringing ph levels down. now at 6.8. is this a safe level or should i boost ph. also how do i get nitirite unde control.
2007-05-01 15:45:57 · 3 answers · asked by CYNDIE S 3 in Pets ➔ Fish
It depends on what kind of cichlids you have as to what the pH should be. If you have south american cichlids they will love that pH. If you have africans they would prefer a higher pH. Either way, it's safe for now and in fact better for it to be low during the cycling process. Lower pH keeps any ammonia in the tank at a far less toxic level. Once the cycle settle down and the nitrite problem goes away you could add some crushed coral to the tank or a little to the filter to raise and stabilize the pH.
MM
2007-05-01 16:22:25 · answer #1 · answered by magicman116 7 · 2⤊ 1⤋
Sounds like your tank is going through the cycle process, which is normal for newer tanks. I would do small daily water changes, and add some aquarium salt to the tank to help the fish increase their oxygen intake, nitrites inhibit their ability to absorb oxygen.
Or, if it's not a new tank and you're having ammonia and nitrite spikes, then that means you added to many fish at once, or you killed off your beneficial bacteria some how. Either way, it still needs to go through it's cycle process. You could also try a product called Prime by Seachem, it converts the ammonia, nitrites, and nitrates to a safer form the fish can tolerate without removing them so the tank can still cycle properly.
What kind of cichlids do you have in there? Most tank bred fish can handle any ph from 6.0-8.0, as long as it's stable and not fluctuating. The smaller daily water changes will help keep it more stable. I wouldn't add anything to boost the ph, that'll just cause it to rise and crash, adding more stress to the fish.
2007-05-01 15:52:38 · answer #2 · answered by tikitiki 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
you might want to boost your ph up about to about 7.5 and you should put in a few live plants in your tank to bring the nitrite under control. I would cease with the water changes for a while, because you are highly stressing your fish. Is your tank overcrowded, sounds like a lot of ammonia is being converted. You might want to remove some of your fish till the problem comes under control
2007-05-01 15:52:17 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋