10 Gallon Tank Nitrate test results suspect

hi,

is there a standard way to test nitrate test?

i suspect my nitrate test kit is bad. my tank is cycled (1 year old tank). I completely cleaned out my tank 4 weeks ago (50% water change, scrubbed the walls and removed the plants and substrate), and have not had a water change since. About 4 weeks ago, i tested every week, and got <10ppm nitrate results everytime. It has no plants, and my tank is heavily stocked with neon tetras, guppies, and platies...and i have been feeding them alot of pellot food. so i expect the nitrate to get higher and higher. But it is not budging. Also, ammonia and nitrite always zero. (Not sure how accurate these test are, though)

Fish is always happy and healthy.

i suspect the nitrate test kit is useless. i want to find the maximum water change interval. i guess i will continue to not change water and test weekly.

what are symtoms of nitrate poisoning?

 

Hi,

Not sure how to test your nitrate test unless you get some more solution, and compare them.

Are you testing for ammonia and nitrite as well as nitrate? I am sure that you lost some beneficial bacteria when you got rid of the substrate, but the majority of the bb is usually located in/on the filter media.

Symptoms of nitrate poisoning include lethargy, loss of color, loss of apetite, breathing problems, erratic swimming - sideways or upside down, laying on the bottom of the tank, and the most severe symptom is when the fish curls up with a curved spine. To treat nitrate poisoning, do a very large water change - like 50%, and then continue to test.

Hope this helps!

 

Hi,

Not sure how to test your nitrate test unless you get some more solution, and compare them.

Are you testing for ammonia and nitrite as well as nitrate? I am sure that you lost some beneficial bacteria when you got rid of the substrate, but the majority of the bb is usually located in/on the filter media.

yes, i tested for ammonia and nitrite, everyweek. Always zero.

I have a well seasoned filter. So, it should be converting fish poop into nitrate very efficiently. So, i expect to have alot of nitrate in the water by now.
.

hi,

i am wondering if there is a way to quickly create alot of nitrate in a test environment. Then i can verifiy that my nitrate test kit is good or bad.

 

Can you get water tested by a fish store?

I would try a different brand of test kit personally. API or NT labs are reliable.

 

I think based on the tank setup and heavy stocking I’d be doing regular water changes irrespective of nitrate readings. Water changes are about more than just nitrate removal remember.

 

Most of the two-part nitrate tests work by using zinc particles to reduce nitrates to nitrite and then testing for nitrites. Because the zinc particles tend to sink to the bottom of the bottle, it is necessary that you follow the procedure precisely with respect to shaking the bottles and shaking the test vial after you add the reagents. If you deviate from the instructions, you might get false test results.

The nitrate test which done properly should give proper results. While it might be an indicator of unwanted substances in the tank, it might not be. For example, a heavily planted tank might have low nitrates, but have high levels of other contaminants.

When you state that you want to test nitrates to determine the "maximum water change interval", you are looking at it from your point of view and not from the point of view of the fish inhabitants. Your objective should be to keep the inhabitants healthy and happy. Following a schedule of minimal water changes will not accomplish that. You might survive eating a few scraps of food every few days, but you are going to end up malnourished if you continue to follow that plan. Likewise, doing water changes as infrequently as possible will not produce an aquarium that flourishes. If you do not have the time to maintain your aquarium, you should get rid of it.

Some of the members here do water changes weekly. Tetra, the largest supplier of aquarium products in the world, recommends changing 30% of the water every 30 days. If you change less than 30%, you should do it more frequently.

 

The best defense against fish disease really is weekly water changes. I change 40 to 50% every week regardless of the water parameter readings. It really is the only way to protect your fish.

I hope you get everything figured out!

 

I didnt know weekly water change is a good thing.
I was under the impression that water change stresses out the fish...so do as less often as possible.

i have lots of free time. I have no problem with doing weekly water change, if that is the right thing to do.

 

Water changes shouldn't stress them too much as long as you aren't removing them from the tank when you do your water changes. Also, using a good dechlorinator/water conditioner is highly recommended. I am not sure about your source water quality, but the conditioner will help a lot.

 

I didnt know weekly water change is a good thing.
I was under the impression that water change stresses out the fish...so do as less often as possible.

i have lots of free time. I have no problem with doing weekly water change, if that is the right thing to do.

When you change water every week it also keeps your tank water closer to your source water. So you don't have crazy parameter swings all the time. It replaces trace minerals your fish need and actually makes it less stressful because the water isn't changing too much.

 

Large water changes done infrequently can be highly stressful to your fish. Frequent water changes, whether large or small, tend to keep things constant. Once a month is as long as you should go between water changes. More frequent changes are even better.

 

Frequent water changes don't stress the fish as long as the temperature of the water added is similar.
There's much less variation with water quality when water changes are done frequently than when it's put off until it has to be done, the water is more stable and less stressful for the fish with certain exceptions, like water temperature, or really bad starting water that needs to be amended for KH or pH.
If your water is clean and low you can even do 90+% water changes each time as long as the temp is the same and have no ill effects for the fish, but you are rebalancing nutrients like phosphates or magnesium, while also removing contaminants or bad organisms/bacteria that may appear in the tank. All in all frequent water changes are good for balance and stability, even large ones. It's the "this place is getting dirty, I better test it, yikes, I better change a lot of water!" That's stressful for the fish to acclimate to.

And nothing wrong with testing the water frequently to know how long you have, how fast thing build up, and set a bar where a water change is a must. Knowing where it stands and projecting it out to a future date,, is better than having no clue, and something coming up, you're more likely to do what's needed early or make time to do it than if from the pov of "I'm sure it will be OK for another week" when maybe it's not gonna be OK for another week.

 

Most of the two-part nitrate tests work by using zinc particles to reduce nitrates to nitrite and then testing for nitrites. Because the zinc particles tend to sink to the bottom of the bottle, it is necessary that you follow the procedure precisely with respect to shaking the bottles and shaking the test vial after you add the reagents. If you deviate from the instructions, you might get false test results.

If the Nitrate test is actually testing for nitrite, does this mean that you cannot get an accurate nitrate test if there are already nitrites present?

For example, in a partially cycled tank, we often see people testing for nitrates while nitrites are still present.

 

If the Nitrate test is actually testing for nitrite, does this mean that you cannot get an accurate nitrate test if there are already nitrites present?

For example, in a partially cycled tank, we often see people testing for nitrates while nitrites are still present.

Yep, exactly!

 

I have a tough time telling 20ppm vs 40ppm. Maybe my eyes aren't good enough, but the colors on the master test kit booklet look the same to me. I'm marking it 20, but it could be 15...it's could be 50... My understanding is it doesn't really matter unless it gets really high.

10% water changes per day seem to be my sweet spot on this 2.5 gallon tank. I'm not doing weekly maintenance at this point...just daily water changes. I don't get much algae on the glass I'm not seeing any change in nitrates from day to day now. I don't know that I'm going to need anymore easy green. My plants look great and Sonic the Betta seems very happy...the mystery snail is doing his thing.

 

No, it's not you. Those charts are are constant complaint around here. If you keep the nitrates out of the red you will be good.

With the API tests, make sure you are doing the test the same way each time. That includes when you read it. According to API, the tube should not touch the card and you should use a consistant distance from the card each time as well as the same lighting.

 

There are some colorimeters that can measure the colors more accurately than comparisons to color charts. However, the cost of those meters is higher than most amateur fishkeepers would be willing to pay. However, the "safe" level is low enough that you should have no trouble.

One thing you can do if the test has gotten up into a range that is too high for you to read is to do a dilution first. For example, If you think your nitrate test might be 100 ppm, you can dilute 1 ml of tank water with 4 ml of distilled water and then run your test. That would be a 5:1 dilution. If the test came back around 10 ppm on the color chart, you would multiply that result by 5 to get the actual test result of 50 ppm. However, for all practical purposes if you are above 40 ppm, you should be doing water changes until the test falls below that level, so it really does not matter whether the actual result is 50 ppm or 100 ppm; either result is too high.