pamd

In spite of twice weekly 20% water changes, the nitrates in my fully cycled (nitrites and ammonia = 0) tank recently kept hovering at 20ppm. A helpful FishLore member suggested to test the tap water, which I had been using exclusively. Straight out of the tap, nitrates were 20ppm!!!

I use the API master kit, am well aware of having to vigorously shake up and otherwise beat against a counter Bottle #2 (more "abuse" than the instructions say), so I am quite confident in the test accuracy.

No wonder my tank's nitrates had not gone down. 20ppm in + fish poop = > 20ppm!

I have been in touch with the local water company, Tucson Water, and they only test for nitrates quarterly. The 4/1/08 test showed < 2ppm. The lady I spoke with was extremely courteous and seemed very concerned when I told her about the test results and suggested that there might be bacteria or some other problem in the system that needed attention. I tested the tap water a couple of days ago, and it showed 10ppm, which is, according to her, the maximum amount of nitrates allowed by the EPA. She's not ignoring me or my concerns, but we have been playing phone tag, so I don't have anything further on the municipal water supply.

However, along the way, I decided to use a mix of spring water along with the tap water, gradually decreasing the tap water in order to not disturb the pH or mineral content too much.

Here's where my little investigation gets interesting, IMHO. Hope nobody minds my naming brands, but if you do, here's the opportunity to correct me. I bought a gallon of Arrowhead spring water. The label claims it is from "natural mountain resources." The label says Arrowhead is based in Greenwich, CT.

Arrowhead straight out of the bottle tested positive for 10ppm nitrates. This might not have bothered me so much, except the Arrowhead representative said they test the water daily, and the maximum amount allowed was .77ppm nitrates. She looked over their "tests" and again recited their parameters. When I once again stated I have a professional-quality test kit, she started to become annoyed. I was hoping to avoid a disagreeable confrontation and in the interest of getting some real information, I said, "You are seeing the parameters as they should be, but you are not seeing what is." Arrowhead's customer number is 1-800-873-7775.

So ... I went in search of some better spring water from my local Safeway and Albertson's (to those outside the U.S., they're big local grocery chains with their own brands). The Safeway branded water, called "Refreshe," tasted exactly the same to me as the Arrowhead water but I'm no culinary expert. However, it tested exactly 10ppm nitrates! The label claims it to be from Sedona Springs, Arizona, or Seven Springs, Arizona! I'm pretty sure it's regular Arrowhead!

I tossed the empty bottle of the Albertson's store brand, but it, too tasted just the same, claimed to be from some pristine Arizona spring and tested at 10ppm.

I'm pretty frustrated, trying to find suitable and safe water.

nanoman923

add chemicals such as 7.0 neutral regulator, stress coat & tap water conditioner.

also do a 15% water change EVERY MONTH and clean the filter media every 15 days. replace the filter media every month. actually, your nitrates should never be over 60ppm!

lilsoccakid

i would never mess with Ph, just leave it because fish can adjust to a ph as long as it is constant. also 15% water changes should be done WEEKLY, if not more. Only replace the filter media if its in RAGS, because it hold all the beniicial bacteria. also try to keep nitrates below 40ppm, but most people on this site wont let them over 20.

good luck!

pamd

Thanks to all for the replies. In answer to a few questions and suggestions, I'm trying to get the nitrates below 20ppm, but it's difficult if not impossible with partial water changes when replacing with water containing 10ppm. I use Prime as water conditioner, but I don't think it removes nitrates.

I have been doing 20 to 25% partial changes twice weekly.

I only replace the filter media if it's totally ragged (not often), and when I feel it needs to be cleaned, I use water taken out of the tank so as not to kill the beneficial bacteria.

The only thing I can see I'm doing wrong is the inability to find a decent water source.

I'm not one for a lot of heavy government regulation, but it appears to me that the water industry needs some, especially for bottled water. As far as I've seen, they cite figures that seem quite acceptable, but the reality is that those figures are not accurate at all. Or at least not up to date.

lilsoccakid

i think the best way for you to handle your nitrate problem would be to make the tank planted

Martinismommy

I use Sparkletts water in both my Betta tanks and my salt tank...I have not lost a single fish (knock on wood) The PH will be higher than the city water but the water is clean and pure...I use the distilled...

Hope this helps..