Nitrate test different colors?

[toecorn]

i have been currently cycling my 10 gal tank and every-time i do a nitrate test for the 10 gal, with the first bottle its always amber and stays that way even when i add the 2nd bottle later. but when i test my cycled 6 gallon the nitrate test is ALWAYS yellow with the first bottle. im doing everything correct when shaking the bottles. in the picture yellow is the 6 gal and the amber is the 10 gal, picture was taken before i added the 2nd bottle

also i have been cycling my 10 gal for about 40 days, nitrates have been the same color for awhile

 

[StarGirl]

That is very odd. It should only be yellow with bottle #1. Never seen it change color with just the first bottle. What are your other parameters of the 6g? Maybe something else is off.

 

[toecorn]

That is very odd. It should only be yellow with bottle #1. Never seen it change color with just the first bottle. What are your other parameters of the 6g? Maybe something else is off.

my 6 gal is 0 am, 0 nitrites and around 40-80 nitrates, ph 7.6 and my 10 gal is .25 am, .25 nitrites and ph is 7.6

i did have a huugee ammonia spike above max in the 10 gal and i have done a water change but the nitrates stayed the same

 

[Dechi]

my 6 gal is 0 am, 0 nitrites and around 40-80 nitrates, ph 7.6 and my 10 gal is .25 am, .25 nitrites and ph is 7.6

i did have a huugee ammonia spike above max in the 10 gal and i have done a water change but the nitrates stayed the same

Test it with tap water, which should have low nitrates.

 

[toecorn]

Test it with tap water, which should have low nitrates.

i did test it with my 6 gal which was yellow and my 10 gal which is amber, tap water is yellow with first bottle. theres someinthing up with my 10 gal which is not yellow but amber at the start

 

[Dechi]

i did test it with my 6 gal which was yellow and my 10 gal which is amber, tap water is yellow with first bottle. theres someinthing up with my 10 gal which is not yellow but amber at the start

Maybe do a complete WC since it’s so small ?

 

[toecorn]

Maybe do a complete WC since it’s so small ?

i did a like 50% water change the other day and i still got the same result. doing a 100% wc on cycling tank wont hurt my progress?

 

[Dechi]

i did a like 50% water change the other day and i still got the same result. doing a 100% wc on cycling tank wont hurt my progress?

Oh, if you’re cycling you better wait then. You’ll lose your ammonia or nitrites.

 

[toecorn]

Oh, if you’re cycling you better wait then. You’ll lose your ammonia or nitrites.

yeah thats why i was iffy about it, i still have no clue on why all my nitrate tests start yellow but my cycling 10 gallon starts amber, and stays that why when i do the second bottle, literally doesnt change color at all

 

[Dechi]

yeah thats why i was iffy about it, i still have no clue on why all my nitrate tests start yellow but my cycling 10 gallon starts amber, and stays that why when i do the second bottle, literally doesnt change color at all

That’s strange. Maybe try to contact API customer service ?

 

[toecorn]

That’s strange. Maybe try to contact API customer service ?

i might have too, i might also take some water with me tomorrow and have it tested

 

[Dechi]

i might have too, i might also take some water with me tomorrow and have it tested

That’s a good idea ! Let us know.

 

[toecorn]

i actually found this thread from 2007 and i followed the instructions this guy said and come to find out my nitrates are in the 300-400 range! my nitrates were so high thats why they were stuck at that amber color. and the red shown below is the mixture of the tap water and tank water. so know i gotta figure out how to get my nitrates way down while my tank is cycling

 

[Dechi]

i actually found this thread from 2007 and i followed the instructions this guy said and come to find out my nitrates are in the 300-400 range! my nitrates were so high thats why they were stuck at that amber color. and the red shown below is the mixture of the tap water and tank water. so know i gotta figure out how to get my nitrates way down while my tank is cycling

Oh, ok ! You have to get them down. Just do a water change, and then another one, and another one, until they go down around 5-10 ppm.

BUT… if you have nitrates that high, it means tons of bacteria has been processed so you must be cycled.

 

[toecorn]

Oh, ok ! You have to get them down. Just do a water change, and then another one, and another one, until they go down around 5-10 ppm.

BUT… if you have nitrates that high, it means tons of bacteria has been processed so you must be cycled.

should i do the water changes consecutively or wait like a day and then do another one? and im still trying to get my ammonia and nitrites to 0

 

[Dechi]

should i do the water changes consecutively or wait like a day and then do another one? and im still trying to get my ammonia and nitrites to 0

I would get them down as quick as possible. Same day if you can. Then test your ammonia and nitrites to see how much you have left.

If there is some left, measure how much time it takes to disappear. If there is none left, add a little bit of ammonia. Slowly so you don’t overdo it, and measure the ammonia levels after 2 hours. I would go for 1 ppm max.

Then let’s see how long it takes for the tank to process that 1 ppm.

 

[toecorn]

I would get them down as quick as possible. Same day if you can. Then test your ammonia and nitrites to see how much you have left.

If there is some left, measure how much time it takes to disappear. If there is none left, add a little bit of ammonia. Slowly so you don’t overdo it, and measure the ammonia levels after 2 hours. I would go for 1 ppm max.

Then let’s see how long it takes for the tank to process that 1 ppm.

my ammonia has been at .25 for a week and .25 nitrites for a couple days

 

[Dechi]

my ammonia has been at .25 for a week and .25 nitrites for a couple days

Yes but test again after getting the nitrates down. If they are the same color, then you were cycled.

 

[toecorn]

Yes but test again after getting the nitrates down. If they are the same color, then you were cycled.

okay i will do that!

 

[toecorn]

okay i will do that!

i just tested today and this is the first time i got a actual color change on the nitrates! ammonia and nitrites did go up

Dechi

 

[KiwiWillow]

Excellent detective work to figure out what was causing the weird results. The thread had me following out of curiosity. I have been left wondering how the nitrate got so high initially. How were you going about cycling? Is there anything others can learn from that?

 

[toecorn]

Excellent detective work to figure out what was causing the weird results. The thread had me following out of curiosity. I have been left wondering how the nitrate got so high initially. How were you going about cycling? Is there anything others can learn from that?

im thinking its because i had maxed out ammonia for i think 2-3 weeks and i didnt do a water change at all and maybe that had caused my nitrates to go up so high‍♀️ i was at 0 nitrites but since doing water changes to lessen my nitrates, my nitrites have spiked up

 

[KiwiWillow]

Sounds like things are back on track now. The hobby certainly poses interesting challenges and needs patience!