Green Flame

One of my tank's water smells a little like sulfer. What exactly does this mean? Can anyone help?

Lucy

Cool avatar. Welcome to the forum.
Is it only one tank? Is it cycled? What are the readings for ammonia, nitrite and nitrates? Do you use well water?
If you would fill out your aqaurium info, it would help the members help you..

Peterpiper

Do you have a DSB ( DEEP SAND BED ) or is the sand bed more than 1" deep?

Green Flame

Alright, I've been having some problems here with this tank. It looks like the cycle restarted so I've had to do multiple water changes and the water is cloudy right now and unfortunately the readings are not at their best. Sorry, will fill tank info, I promise.

This is a 40 gallons
Ammonia - 0.25 (very ashamed)
Nitrite - 1 (again very ashamed)
nitrate - 40
pH - 6.4

The tank is not new. I really don't know what restarted the cycle. Am attemting to deal with it as best I can.

I just also noticed that the water smelled a little like sulfer and was wondering if this was relevent to the situation.

Oh, I do have more than 1 inch of gravel. 2 maybe 2 1/2 even.

agabr123

how many fish do you have in your tank and what types? how long has it been set up? did you replace your filter media or medicate the tank recently that would send you into a mini-cycle? Nitrates are a bit high too, I'd try to get them down to around 20. Since you seem to be in a mini-cycle, I'd do daily water changes with Prime until everything settles down.

Green Flame

All levels were perfect at the beginning of the week. Then I tested the water and ammonia was 2. I reacted fast and did a water change. Then another one the next day, etc.. Ammonia is now 0.25 but Nitrites and Nitrates have went up since yesterday.
The tank houses 3 Angels, 2 Gouramis, 6 Rasboras and a Pleco. I have moved the Angels to a spare tank I sometime us as a hospital tank. It's unfortunately not cycled at the moment. I will watch them closely. This was just to help the bioload and protect the Angels.
I have used Melafix recently. Could it cause this?
And what about this sulfer smell? Any ideas?

agabr123

I don't know if the melafix could have caused the mini-cycle, but I would definitely suggest that you not use it again while your gouramis are in the tank. Melafix should put this on their label, but the main ingredient (i think it's called melealuca), is extremely harmful to labyrinth fish.

MELAFIX ALERT FOR LABYRINTH FISH....ALL PLEASE READ

How big is your pleco right now? Generally they need at least a 55+ gallon tank, so I don't know if a 40 would be too small.

Green Flame

I had actually read that Melafix warning after having used it in the tank. I immediately stopped. It turns out though, that we had been using the wrong side of the cap to measure the medication and had therefore been underdosing it. Hopefully this has protected the Gouramis because it was not the first time we had used Melafix.

The Pleco is getting big but we love him and he seems to be very peaceful. He was a gift to us when we knew nothing of fish and he was very little. He's since grown quite a bit but we're very fond of him. We will eventually get a bigger tank that's for sure.

So still no idea about this sulfer smell in the water? It wasn't there a few days ago. I just would like to know it's not something majorly wrong.

Peterpiper

Ok, this is just what I am thinking at the moment.
When we have a DSB or DGB ( S for sand and G for gravel ) what can happen is as follows,
There is a very slow, near 0 flow through the bed. On the surface or the top layer you will find the bacteria that requires oxygen, Aerobic bacteria, the ones that use the ammonia and nitrite.. lower in the sand you will find the Anaerobic bacteria, this bacteria can not live where there is oxygen, this bacteria removes nitrates from the water and releases nitrogen gas. Now Gravel can and will trap rubbish. If disturbed it can lead to a crash.
read section "Plenum Or No"
On this link
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/deepsandbeds.htm

Shawnie

has anything passed away that you havent noticed? high nitrates are a sign of too much waste so im guessing that could be playing a part in it also...id do a 50% water change with some prime to see if that helps..not to mention it will bring down the nitrates and get some of those meds out ...daily changes are needed to finish up the mini cycle anyhow

Green Flame

Thanks again Shawnie. You have previously helped me with my Red Angel but it turns out an even bigger crisis has popped up. No fish have died. I inventory them pretty much every day when I look at them. I will keep doing the water changes. I'm sure everything will be fine it was just unexpected.

And Peterpiper thank you as well. I have read the article. Do you mean to say my gravel bed might not be deep enough (it seems to be in that intermediate level) or did I perhaps disturb something by, lets say, vaccuming the bottom of the tank?

Also has anyone had any experience with Nitra-Zorb or Ammolock? Would this be a good idea to use? Read about them in the water test pamphlet.

Plus, what about that sulfer smell, Eh? What is causing that?

Green Flame

Well the cloudiness is leaving and it's only been a few hours so I guess there's some good news.

But no one will answer me about the sulfer smell thing. Help someone. At least someone tell me if they think this is a bid deal or not?

Lucy

I really can't be any help here. I had asked if you used well water, sometimes that can have an odor of sulfa.
I've also heard that different water conditioners and additives can smell.
When's the last time you changed your carbon?
I've also heard that ammonia can make a tank smell (not an ammonia smell)

Sorry, I can't be of further help, just throwing some ideas out there.

Green Flame

Well actually that was helpful. We changed our carbon 3 days ago. We have city water but I was just reminded that sometimes our drains smell of sulfer too. Possibly related. It's just the tank usually doesn't smell like that and neither does our other one. It's puzzling me.

Any experience with nitra-zorb or ammolock by any chance?

Lucy

I've never heard of nitra-zorb.

It would be a good idea to stay away from any product like ammo-lock. It does what the name implies, it locks the ammonia and can starve the bacteria.
Prime or Stress Coat+ is recommended because it detoxifies the ammonia, it makes it safer for your fish but also makes it available to the bacteria.

pepetj

Sulfur smell can come from water conditioners such as Seachem's Prime, which is perfectly safe to use. Some pH reducing products use sulfuric acid. Most water conditioners that remove heavy metals and handle ammonia can have a smell like that, Tetra AquaSafe is smelly as well, but a great product in my experience.

If you want to get rid of smelly water, consider placing activated charcoal and replace it every three weeks.

A pH of 6.4 is certainly acidic but shouldn't smell like that. I have kept (experimental conditions) pH of 5.5 and 5 without that type of problems. Do you tamper your pH? if so what method(s) do you use?

Pepe
Santo Domingo

Drew 43920

Sometimes food will get trapped under something. Like a rock, and it will spoil. This will cause a "rotten egg" smell. If you move the rock and release the gas it will be noticeable .

Green Flame

I had always tried to adjust the Ph to 7 as this is a community tank but another very helpful member of this forum pointed out that Angels like a slightly acidic water and the other fishes would also be Ok with this. It would in fact be less stressfull for them than always fluctuating the Ph to adjust it. My tap water Ph is 6.4-6.8.
I would use API Ph up but I have stopped a few days ago and leave it at 6.4.

Green Flame

I did vaccum the gravel to clean the tank. The smell did start around that time. You might have just solved it for me. Thanks.

I'm just gonna wait and see if it goes away now.

Green Flame

Thanks for the warning about Ammo-lock. I went to my LFS this morning and asked about the Nitra-zorb. You know you've got a good place when they recommend against buying the Nitra-zorb before I bring in a water sample to see what is going on in more details. They asked all the right questions, I love them.

I'll bring them the sample later today and see what they say. On a possitive note, the Ammonia level is now 0 but I still have to deal with Nitrite 2 now. This is stressing ME out.

Jess

Hi Green Flame I used to do the same but then realized that with wood in the tank it settles into a comfortable 6.4. No more fooling around with pH levels.

Martinismommy

If you use Prime I'd bet that's the smell...

Fishies-for-me

MM I use prime and my water dosn't smell...a little like a nice pond smell but even that is very faint. When I had 3 small goldies in a 1 1/2 gal tank ( blush ) before I really understood the cycle thing I had a horrid smell due to the ammonia in the water. It didn't smell like the ammonia from say a cattle barn. It was a horrible smell that permeated the whole room with a rotten almost sulpery smell. In my opinion the smell is due to ammonia in the water.

Green Flame

I have successfully removed all ammonia from the tank. Very relieved. But now Nitrites are 1-1.5 and Nitrates 40. Not so relieved. Just did a water change and vacumed the gravel some more. I will test the water again in an hour.

Now the sulfer smell is less but still somewhat there. There's no Ammonia... do Nitrites or Nitrates smell?

I do not use Prime although it has been recommended to me. So the smell can't come from there. Mmm, still puzzled.

And Jess, I'm glad someone else is doing the same with their Ph and having no problems. That makes two of you guys so it must be Ok.
You also made me remember that the only new thing in my tank was a piece of driftwood for my pleco. I had never had this in there before and all these problems started around the same time I put it in. I don't think it would be related but does anyone know for sure if this affects your water in any way?

Peterpiper

Hi Green Flame,
Good move leaving the Ph, swings and playing with it can stress the fish.
I still fell the depth of the gravel is to deep, gravel should not be used for a deep bed.
If you want to go with a DSB then the sand should be the size of suger grains, and the bed no less than 3" deep.
With the gravel in your tank the way it is now it will be producing nitrites and nitrates.
All the stuff is going between the gravel, working its way down as it rots and the bacteria get to work making nitrite and nitrate.
By reducing the depth of the gravel to 1" or less you will be able to remove the food/wast by syphoning before it can start to rot. This will infact reduce the load on the bio filter and in doing so reduce the ammont of ammonia, nitrite and nitrate in the system.
Pete

Green Flame

Well if removing some of the gravel will help I will definately do that. I had never heard of this before so thank you once more for your advice and for sending me that article.

Butterfly

Substrate that is deep or packed can form anaerobic pockets of gas and it smells like rotten eggs.
Here is a pretty good explanation of that.
http://www.theaquariumwiki.com/Anaerobic
Carol

Green Flame

Hi Butterfly,
So the sudden high levels and the sulfer smell might be connected after all. It does make sense since they started around the same time.

So if the smell is diminushing, hopefully the water conditions are about to improve as well.

Like I said Ammonia is now 0 but Nitrites are 1 and Nitrates 40. I've done a water change but they really have not improved at all today. Should I be worried?

The LFS guy recommended putting in concentrated active bacteria... but he also thought that the bubbles that form at the top of the bettas' bowls are caused by stale water. The good employees were all gone by the time I could get to the store I guess.

Is this a good course of action in your opinion?

Drew 43920

Me too. Java Ferns on driftwood.............

Butterfly

I see you are using gravel so you can vacuum it really deep/stir it and do a large water change. The object is to get the water flowing through the substrate. the gas produced in these pockets can be harmful to your fish so doing the water change is really important. Along with helping your fish it will help lower those parameters where you have time to work with them.
At this point adding live bacteria is still going to be slow going, it certainly won't hurt anything but I don't think it's going to hurry things along much either.
Carol