Ph/ammon/nitrite all over the place :(

So I am new to this forum. I just joined so please don’t crucify me if I am doing something wrong or posting in the wrong thread.

I have two 20 gallon tanks and both have been up and running for about a year and a half. It was last week that I got two new fish (guppies) for each tank and had one die after two days so I tested the water.

First tank that had a dead fish had the following levels:
pH: 7.0-7.2
Ammonia: 0.25 ppm
Nitrite: 0 ppm
Nitrate: 20 ppm

The second tank where no fish have died had the following levels:
pH: 7.0-7.2
Ammonia: 0.25-0.50 ppm
Nitrite: 5.0 ppm
Nitrate: 20 ppm

The reason I was so shocked was because the first tank where the fish had died in, didn’t have TOO horrible of levels (I thought) but the second tank was outrageous.

I am embarrassed to even be typing this but I went to the store and got api quick start (for the second tank) and api aqua essential (for both tanks) (your all in one concentrated aquarium water conditioner, detoxifies ammonia, nitrites, and high nitrates). I also did a 20% water change on both tanks because I googled how to fix it and I did what I read online. My local fish store also tested my water and told me that it could possibly be because I recently moved and the water change was very drastic according to them.

That was about last Tuesday 9/6. So over the next days up until yesterday 9/13, the ammonia and nitrite levels got back to 0 ppm for BOTH of my tanks and I thought I was all good.

Then today 9/14, I was bored and tested my water again just to double check and these were the results:

For the first tank (where the fish DID die)
pH: 6.0
Ammonia: 0.50-1.0 ppm
Nitrite: 0 ppm
Nitrate: 20 ppm

The second tank (no dead fish)
pH: 6.0
Ammonia: 0 ppm
Nitrite: back up to 0.25
Nitrate: 20 ppm

Please help. What do I do? My ph is usually 7.0-7.2 for both tanks. I have a community of fish in both. Should I keep using the api aqua essential for lowering the nitrite and ammonia?

I found it odd that both of my ph in the tanks went down so low when I’ve never had this problem before. My boyfriend told me to test the water we use for the tanks and I noticed it was really low (same level as the tanks) and I never noticed any problems before and we use the same source every time. What do I do?

 

It would be helpful if you would fill out the emergency template. Thanks.

Are you saying that the pH of your source water is 6.0 and then goes up to 7.0 when you put it in the tank? How long after you add it to the tank do you test the tank pH? Your tap water may artificially be acidic due to dissolved CO2. Try letting it sit in a container for 24 hours and test again. The CO2 will off-gas and you can measure a more accurate pH. If that is indeed the case, then you would be best to age your water in this way for your water changes.

I don't understand how recently moving would hurt the fish. You bought fish from a local store and put them local water. I don't see how the water in your previous residence has any relevance here. If that were true it would have hurt your existing fish as they are the ones that would have experienced the change.

Aqua Essential is a water conditioner, it does not effect the ammonia or nitrite. It is for making tap water safe by neutralizing chlorine and chlorimine. If you have water with either of these chemicals (public water supply / tap water) you must always use a water conditioner when adding new water to the tank, i.e. water changes.

It's best practice to always quarenteen fish before adding to your tanks.

 

Aqua Essential is a newer conditioner from API that is supposed to do what Prime does by detoxifying ammonia and nitrites. (whether these detoxifiers work is still debatable to some. But it probably needs to be redosed after every 24 hours until everything stabilizes however.

It looks like you are going through a mini cycle atm and the cycle is also causing PH to drop along with the ammonia spike. For the first tank, since there are no more fish in there you can do a massive water change to get the PH levels back up. For the second tank you should probably do partial water changes over time to slowly raise the PH levels back up and continue to monitor.

 

It would be helpful if you would fill out the emergency template. Thanks.

Are you saying that the pH of your source water is 6.0 and then goes up to 7.0 when you put it in the tank? How long after you add it to the tank do you test the tank pH? Your tap water may artificially be acidic due to dissolved CO2. Try letting it sit in a container for 24 hours and test again. The CO2 will off-gas and you can measure a more accurate pH. If that is indeed the case, then you would be best to age your water in this way for your water changes.

I don't understand how recently moving would hurt the fish. You bought fish from a local store and put them local water. I don't see how the water in your previous residence has any relevance here. If that were true it would have hurt your existing fish as they are the ones that would have experienced the change.

Aqua Essential is a water conditioner, it does not effect the ammonia or nitrite. It is for making tap water safe by neutralizing chlorine and chlorimine. If you have water with either of these chemicals (public water supply / tap water) you must always use a water conditioner when adding new water to the tank, i.e. water changes.

It's best practice to always quarenteen fish before adding to your tanks.

Aqua Essential is a newer conditioner from API that is supposed to do what Prime does by detoxifying ammonia and nitrites. (whether these detoxifiers work is still debatable to some. But it probably needs to be redosed after every 24 hours until everything stabilizes however.

It looks like you are going through a mini cycle atm and the cycle is also causing PH to drop along with the ammonia spike. For the first tank, since there are no more fish in there you can do a massive water change to get the PH levels back up. For the second tank you should probably do partial water changes over time to slowly raise the PH levels back up and continue to monitor.

I was using the aqua essential to get the ammonia and nitrites down. It seemed to work and I was redosing every 24 hours after testing again. Now that I noticed it is up again should I continue to redose?

my first tank still has fish in it. Only one fish died which is what causes me to be concerned and test the water in the first place and my ph was fine then but not ammonia and nitrite.

I guess my question is, how do I fix my ph? What do I do from here on out to condition my water when I do a water change and I notice that my water source has a lower ph than my fish tanks usually have (which is 7.0)?

It would be helpful if you would fill out the emergency template. Thanks.

Are you saying that the pH of your source water is 6.0 and then goes up to 7.0 when you put it in the tank? How long after you add it to the tank do you test the tank pH? Your tap water may artificially be acidic due to dissolved CO2. Try letting it sit in a container for 24 hours and test again. The CO2 will off-gas and you can measure a more accurate pH. If that is indeed the case, then you would be best to age your water in this way for your water changes.

I don't understand how recently moving would hurt the fish. You bought fish from a local store and put them local water. I don't see how the water in your previous residence has any relevance here. If that were true it would have hurt your existing fish as they are the ones that would have experienced the change.

Aqua Essential is a water conditioner, it does not effect the ammonia or nitrite. It is for making tap water safe by neutralizing chlorine and chlorimine. If you have water with either of these chemicals (public water supply / tap water) you must always use a water conditioner when adding new water to the tank, i.e. water changes.

It's best practice to always quarenteen fish before adding to your tanks.

Tank
What is the water volume of the tank? I have two 20 gallon tanks
How long has the tank been running? 1 year and a half for both
Does it have a filter? Yes
Does it have a heater? Yes
What is the water temperature? 78/79
What is the entire stocking of this tank? (Please list all fish and inverts.)
Tank 1: 3 mollies, 2 guppies, 1 pygmy cory, 1 bushynose pleco, 3 rabbit snails, 2 mystery snails, a few cherry shrimp.
Tank 2: 3 cherry barbs, 3 neon tetra, 3 guppies, 1 clown pleco

Maintenance
How often do you change the water? 3-4 weeks
How much of the water do you change? 25 percent usually or a little over
What do you use to treat your water? Quick start
Do you vacuum the substrate or just the water? Vacuum substrate and some water

*Parameters - Very Important
Did you cycle your tank before adding fish? Yes
What do you use to test the water? Api master test kit
What are your parameters? We need to know the exact numbers, not just “fine” or “safe”.
Ammonia: (filled those out for both tanks)
Nitrite: (see above)
Nitrate: (see above)
pH: (see above)

Feeding
How often do you feed your fish? Every 3 days
How much do you feed your fish? Just enough where there are no leftovers and they get everything. I learned how much was too much and adjusted
What brand of food do you feed your fish? Aqueon fish flakes, omega one catfish pellets, aqueon shrimp pellets, hikari algae wafers
Do you feed frozen? No I would love to. Any recommendations?
Do you feed freeze-dried foods? No

Illness & Symptoms
How long have you had this fish? In tank 1: I have had all the fish for over a year except 1 guppy. Tank 2: I have had the clown pleco and 1 guppy for over a year, the cherry barbs and the neon tetras I have had since July and the two guppies I got on 9/2
How long ago did you first notice these symptoms? On 9/6
In a few words, can you explain the symptoms? One fish died in my first tank
Have you started any treatment for the illness? Yes
Was your fish physically ill or injured upon purchase? No
How has its behavior and appearance changed, if at all?
Explain your emergency situation in detail.
(Please give a clear explanation of what is going on, include details from the beginning of the illness leading up to now)

I need help. I have always had regular ph 7.0 and I never tested the water source before but I did use quick start when I did water change and everything was always fine. Now my ph has lowered and the ammonia and nitrite sometimes rises. How do I lower those? And bring my ph back up?

It would be helpful if you would fill out the emergency template. Thanks.

Are you saying that the pH of your source water is 6.0 and then goes up to 7.0 when you put it in the tank? How long after you add it to the tank do you test the tank pH? Your tap water may artificially be acidic due to dissolved CO2. Try letting it sit in a container for 24 hours and test again. The CO2 will off-gas and you can measure a more accurate pH. If that is indeed the case, then you would be best to age your water in this way for your water changes.

I don't understand how recently moving would hurt the fish. You bought fish from a local store and put them local water. I don't see how the water in your previous residence has any relevance here. If that were true it would have hurt your existing fish as they are the ones that would have experienced the change.

Aqua Essential is a water conditioner, it does not effect the ammonia or nitrite. It is for making tap water safe by neutralizing chlorine and chlorimine. If you have water with either of these chemicals (public water supply / tap water) you must always use a water conditioner when adding new water to the tank, i.e. water changes.

It's best practice to always quarenteen fish before adding to your tanks.

I never tested my water source before I used it. Idk why I never did. I always assumed it was fine since I would use it and then test the water itself in the tank and everything would be fine and all my levels were perfect.

I guess what the fish store person was saying was that since I moved my fish tanks and did a dramatic water change, she thought that was what caused my nitrites to spike. But she only tested my first tank where one fish DID die but I went home and tested the water myself and it was at 0ppm for nitrites. I tested my other tank for the heck of it after what she said and that tank had a 5.0 ppm. I’m pretty sure at the store there was a mixup because there was another guy who had a bunch of dead fish but I guess that’s irrelevant idk.

so what do I do to move on?

To get the ammonia down and the nitrite down and to raise my ph slowly?

And what should I do from here on out with my water source?

Should I test the water before I use it?

And then if it does have a low ph what do I do?

I thought the api aqua essential would lower my ammonia and nitrite?

 

You have some work cut out for you but it will be worth it to keep your fish friends alive.

Your 3 options to raise PH are doing
water changes if your source water has higher PH
adding crushed corals/oyster shells to your tank
Using baking soda to raise the PH (Be very careful with this if you do decide to go this route)

The least intrusive is probably the water changes.

Continue to do partial water changes on a daily basis. Maybe perform partial water changes twice a day and spread them out apart (morning and night perhaps)

And yes its a good idea to test your source water before and adding dechlorinated water so you know what your baseline is.


Your tanks are going through a mini cycle right now. You will have to wait it out until it finishes. After a water change, any readings of ammonia or nitrites up to 1 PPM, continue dosing Essentials. If you have both ammonia and nitrites present, adjust your dosing to account for both. For example if you have .5 ammonia and .5 nitrites....Dose for 1 PPM.

If at any point in time you get over 1 PPM of either, immediately do a water change to bring it back down. You don't want to eliminate all the ammonia/nitrites through a water change cuz then you your cycle will have nothing to feed on. You want the ammonia and nitrites to be converted on it's own which is why you will be detoxifying any small amounts with Essentials.

I thought the api aqua essential would lower my ammonia and nitrite?

I don't think it's supposed to "lower" it...It's there to DETOXIFY it....making it less harmful for your fish while still being there to feed the cycle. Problem is. after 24 hours....if its not eaten....then it gets released back in it's original form which makes it toxic again for the fish hence the redosing of Essentials to detoxify it again.

Also, during this time....consider cutting down on your feedings until things stabilize.

You're trying to avoid these 4 things.
Ammonia poisoning
Nitrite poisnoning
Nitrate poisoning (water change if close to 40 PPM)
PH SHOCK (hence the gradual water changes.

 

You have some work cut out for you but it will be worth it to keep your fish friends alive.

Your 3 options to raise PH are doing
water changes if your source water has higher PH
adding crushed corals/oyster shells to your tank
Using baking soda to raise the PH (Be very careful with this if you do decide to go this route)

The least intrusive is probably the water changes.

Continue to do partial water changes on a daily basis. Maybe perform partial water changes twice a day and spread them out apart (morning and night perhaps)

And yes its a good idea to test your source water before and adding dechlorinated water so you know what your baseline is.


Your tanks are going through a mini cycle right now. You will have to wait it out until it finishes. After a water change, any readings of ammonia or nitrites up to 1 PPM, continue dosing Essentials. If you have both ammonia and nitrites present, adjust your dosing to account for both. For example if you have .5 ammonia and .5 nitrites....Dose for 1 PPM.

If at any point in time you get over 1 PPM of either, immediately do a water change to bring it back down. You don't want to eliminate all the ammonia/nitrites through a water change cuz then you your cycle will have nothing to feed on. You want the ammonia and nitrites to be converted on it's own which is why you will be detoxifying any small amounts with Essentials.


I don't think it's supposed to "lower" it...It's there to DETOXIFY it....making it less harmful for your fish while still being there to feed the cycle. Problem is. after 24 hours....if its not eaten....then it gets released back in it's original form which makes it toxic again for the fish hence the redosing of Essentials to detoxify it again.

Also, during this time....consider cutting down on your feedings until things stabilize.

You're trying to avoid these 4 things.
Ammonia poisoning
Nitrite poisnoning
Nitrate poisoning (water change if close to 40 PPM)
PH SHOCK (hence the gradual water changes.

Okay, thank you so much seriously. I was about to cry last night because I have had these tanks up and running for a while and I haven't had this happen before and I have been stressing out. I do not want any of my babies to die.

I will probably go the route of doing the water change.
What do I test my tap water for besides ph?
Should I buy Seachem Prime to condition my tap water, or will API quick start do the trick?

Ahhh okay, detoxifying makes more sense to me.

I just tested my water for both tanks these are the results:
tank number 1:
ph: 6.6
ammonia: 0 ppm
nitrite: 0-0.25 ppm
nitrate: 10 ppm

tank number 2:
ph: 6.0
ammonia: 0.25-0.50 ppm
nitrite: 0 ppm
nitrate: 10 ppm

Sorry to be redundant I just want to get things done 100% perfectly.

I will perform daily water changes until my ph, ammonia, and nitrite are back to normal/under control. And then from here on out I will be using tap water, testing it before I use it, and conditioning.

And by partial water change, about what percentage do you think? 25% or 50%?

Any other tips or advice?

 

Okay, thank you so much seriously. I was about to cry last night because I have had these tanks up and running for a while and I haven't had this happen before and I have been stressing out. I do not want any of my babies to die.

I will probably go the route of doing the water change.
What do I test my tap water for besides ph?
Should I buy Seachem Prime to condition my tap water, or will API quick start do the trick?

Ahhh okay, detoxifying makes more sense to me.

I just tested my water for both tanks these are the results:
tank number 1:
ph: 6.6
ammonia: 0 ppm
nitrite: 0-0.25 ppm
nitrate: 10 ppm

tank number 2:
ph: 6.0
ammonia: 0.25-0.50 ppm
nitrite: 0 ppm
nitrate: 10 ppm

Sorry to be redundant I just want to get things done 100% perfectly.

I will perform daily water changes until my ph, ammonia, and nitrite are back to normal/under control. And then from here on out I will be using tap water, testing it before I use it, and conditioning.

And by partial water change, about what percentage do you think? 25% or 50%?

Any other tips or advice?

It depends on what your original PH of your source water is. For example if its 7 PH...Then tank 1 is not that far off so a 50% water change will probably bump it up to 6.8 or so which is ok enough change i think. Then again you should see what the ideal PH range are for your fish and whether or not they are ok with 6.6. I know it can be confusing at times but you don't want to chase an ideal PH if you don't have to. A stable PH is much more preferable. Since you have mollies and guppies, my understanding is that they do prefer the higher PH range so I understand why you would want to get it higher.

For tank 2, because your much farther away from your baseline PH of your source water....you might want to go slowly....so Maybe 25-30%? Again depends what your source water/tap water PH is.

 

It depends on what your original PH of your source water is. For example if its 7 PH...Then tank 1 is not that far off so a 50% water change will probably bump it up to 6.8 or so which is ok enough change i think. Then again you should see what the ideal PH range are for your fish and whether or not they are ok with 6.6. I know it can be confusing at times but you don't want to chase an ideal PH if you don't have to. A stable PH is much more preferable.

For tank 2, because your much farther away from your baseline PH of your source water....you might want to

I tested my tap water today and it has a ph of 8.2

 

I tested my tap water today and it has a ph of 8.2

Start 20-25% then

 

Just to be clear, you do not need to test your tap water every time you do a water change. Just once so you know what your starting with.

Also, you may not need to do daily water changes right now.. Your daily test results will tell you if it's needed. Use your tests to guide you. Ammonia or nitrite above 0.25 = need for water change.
Long term, you may want to increase your water change frequency to 25% weekly instead of every 3-4 weeks.

Adding a water conditioner, whether it's Prime or Aqua Essentials will not change the test results. You will still see the same amount of ammonia and nitrite on your tests after adding these products. If the test amounts are reduced, something else is reducing them. Whether it's detoxified or not, it will appear on the test and be available to bacteria.

I would not worry too much about the pH. As said above, stable pH is more important than "perfect" pH. The reason for smallish water changes is so that the pH 8.2 water doesn't cause a big swing in pH every time you do a water change. Fish want stable, not erratic, pH. Big swings in pH can be harmful to fish . Therefore, it's best to do smaller, more frequent water changes when there is a significant difference in pH, so you don't affect the fish adversely.

Another idea: Crushed coral will gradually stabilize the pH at about 8.2. You could help prevent swings in pH during water changes by adding crushed coral to the tanks. Then your tank water and tap water would be the same pH and the risk of pH shock is gone.

Quick Start is for cycling a new tank. There is no need to use it once your tank is cycled, but no harm now that you are dealing with a little cycle issue. Once this is all sorted out, you can save some money and discontinue it.

Also, don't be too aggressive when cleaning your tanks. The helpful bacteria mostly live attached to surfaces, so try not to clean hardscape too much. Same for substrate. Some people (me included) never vac the substrate or clean the rocks and wood. Filters do not need cleaning often, but it depends on the type of filter and the individual tank. To prevent upsetting the cycle never clean your filter and do a big tank cleaning at the same time . Filter pads rarely need to be replaced (in spite of manufacturers instructions). Remember, when you toss out a filter pad you are tossing a big part of your biological filter (cycle) and may have a set-back like your experiencing now.

I just tested my water for both tanks these are the results:
tank number 1:
ph: 6.6
ammonia: 0 ppm
nitrite: 0-0.25 ppm
nitrate: 10 ppm

tank number 2:
ph: 6.0
ammonia: 0.25-0.50 ppm
nitrite: 0 ppm
nitrate: 10 ppm


I will perform daily water changes until my ph, ammonia, and nitrite are back to normal/under control. And then from here on out I will be using tap water, testing it before I use it, and conditioning.

And by partial water change, about what percentage do you think? 25% or 50%?

Any other tips or advice?

 

Sounds like Old Tank Syndrome to me. it's been a year and a half of 25% water changes every 3-4 weeks.

What this does is only 25% of the tanks volume of water is changed each month roughly, 75% of it stays in the aquarium and gets built upon. it takes roughly 30 days for waste to completely break down into minerals and nutrients and mulm/debris/dirt, most all of this breakdown is happening in the tank and not getting removed and what is getting removed is just 25% of it with a water change, the rest of what is dissolved, the 75% of it, is building up in the water, this will create acids also, those acids will consume KH/carbonates, deplete the KH and then drop the pH lower and lower as the acids build up in the water.

Now, you also mentioned moving, and this could be a cycle crash caused by that and the biological filter dying off, but we'd need to know details on how the move was handled, if everything was drained out, if the filter material was maintained wet, or if it was dried. this may or may not be the cause it's dependent on the variables of how it was handled.

With a pH of 6-6.6, most all of the ammonia is bound as ammonium and will be non-toxic, the water temp is also good for this so I think most all of the ammonia is as ammonium and too large of a particle for the fish to absorb and cause injury, nitrites are also larger particles and aren't very concerning unless theres a lot of them. you'd really need to get.

The issue is though, the GH and KH are likely out of balance, with the GH high minerals like calcium and magnesium and the KH low to non-existent the carbonates getting depleted, and overall the Total Dissolved Solids increasing, any new additions to the aquarium can fail at acclimating to the water, go into shock and die, or all new additions as it progresses and gets worse.

Now I'm not completely sure of the cause between the two things without knowing the details of the aquarium moves that happened, but the pH drop in tank is a good indicator towards it being the Old Tank Syndrome, unless you have a ton of peat and leaf litter of course, that will drop pH also...
And you are showing the ammonia and nitrites also as the bacteria is transitioning along with the water to a lower pH, strains are dying off, others are taking over.

If it's Old Tank Syndrome (OTS) and it's a relatively new development, you might get more bacterial infections or fungus on your long term fish that needs to be dealt with, fin issues, cloudy eye, just keeps popping up and a nuissance, but they have adjusted to it. Any new fish added will struggle and go into shock and possibly die, failing to acclimate, even when taking your time and being careful to slowly acclimate many don't make it even a day and end up dying looking raggedy and beat up.

How to fix it if it's OTS? Well, water changes. if it's a new development, you'd take yout tap water pH of 8.2, and you tank pHs of 6.0 and 6.6 and you get a difference of pH 1.6 and pH 2.2, this is how much the pH needs to shift to get back to normal and the safest way to do it is through water changing.

Now, theres 100 different recommendations when raising or lowering pH, but I find keeping it under 0.5 change in 24 hours and the fish will slowly adjust to that change more than this and it can be a problem and shock them, less than this isn't a problem. In both tanks at the start you'd want to do no more than a 25% water change every 24 hours. This will dilute the entire thing, and remove mineral build up in the water and acids, and add in carbonates that will buffer the pH, but it will keep it at the beginning below that 0.5 pH rise level in 24 hours or less and safe. this also give the time necessary with that 24 hours for the bacteria colonies to adjust to the pH change and get back to speed along with the pH,
as you do this, you'd test the pH, and keep an eye on ammonia and nitrites because as the pH rises, these get more dangerous in lower amounts, you'd be looking for it to get to the halfway point to the pH 8.2 of the source water from where it's at, this is like pH 7.1 and 7.3 respectively. from this point the water changes can be increased to 50% in 24 hours. the midpoint between there and pH 8.2 (pH 7.7) then you can do 75% or even 100% water changes, if you needed to, the water will be the same as the tap waters parameters and within safe range to make that last adjustment.


And from there, you need to aim to change 100% of the tanks water volume over the course of a month, and remove excess waste every week or two, before it completely decomposes to avoid this happening again. Another option would be plants, lots of plants to use up this waste and stuff as fertilizers so they don't eventually become acids in the tank, but still water changes are going to be occasionally necessary just with less frequency because the plants will consume these build ups to a degree and stop the pile from getting out of hand over time.

I've had severe OTS with one of my tanks, it took months to recover with daily water changes. I really let it go for years, the fish I had survived the whole time, the water looked beautiful always, but I figured out the problem when adding new fish and they all died every time no matter what I did to acclimate them, they went into shock, got crazy acting weird and were dead in 6-24 hours. the thing is to do the changes in a manner it's not too drastic of a water change in 24 hours that increases the pH too much and the beneficial bacteria takes about 15 hours roughly to multiply, and they will transition also with the pH.

the reason I explained all of this to this extent is because if you don't really get all this and why to all the water changes, maybe you'll do them, and get it sorted out again, but then you'll go back to 25% once a month, and be right back there again in a year. and I'll say, I did all the water changes, it's a lot of water changes, and it gets worse to dig out the longer it's put off.

This just gets you the reason for it, the why and the how, and how to fix it and stop it from happening which is what you really need to know to have an easy time with fish and aquarium keeping and not face this situation again.

I wish you the best.

 

Okay, so I am now unsure of what to do. I did a 20-25% water change in both tanks.

I used prime to condition the tap water and I just re-tested all the levels today and they are still kind of high/getting higher as well. I also tested my tap water and the ammonia was at about 1.0 ppm. I don't know if that is a problem or not. I am just trying to figure out do I keep doing 20/25% water changes every day for the next few days to get the levels down.

Tank 1:
pH: 6.0
Ammonia: 1.0 ppm
Nitrite: Between 0-0.25 ppm
Nitrate: 10 ppm

Tank 2:
pH: 6.0
Ammonia: 0 ppm
Nitrite: 0.25 ppm
Nitrate: 10 ppm

Is my tap water ammonia level bad? I don't know if that is the reason tank 1 has the same level ammonia even after the water change and tank 2 nitrites went up from 0 ppm.

Should I keep doing 20-25% water change? I am getting worried my fish will suffer.

I also usually feed my fish every three days. Should I feed them further spread out while I try to figure out how to get the levels back to safety?

 

Your tap water must be treated with chloramines by your water company. When you use the water conditioner it will detoxify the chlorine part, but it leaves you with ammonia as a byproduct. The good new is that pH 6, ammonia is mostly in a nontoxic form (ammonium). As the pH rises the toxicity increases. At those levels and at that pH it's not an issue. Even at 1ppm and pH of 7.0 most of the ammonia is in the non toxic ammonium form.

Another factor in your aquarium is that at pH 6.0, there are different microorganisms involved in the cycle. Chances are that the bottled bacteria is having little effect because they prefer a higher pH.


**

**Aquaworld Aquarium - Article - Ammonia Toxicity and the pH Relationship

"Free ammonia is the toxic part of the Total Ammonia Nitrogen (TAN). The ledger to the right provides the line colors for 1 ppm through 5 ppm, the left side of the graph is the "True Free Ammonia" reading based on the pH value on the bottom. Notice that above the pH of 8.0 the toxicity of the TAN rapidly rises."..."Water with a temperature of 82° F (28° C), a pH of 7.0, and a TAN of 5 ppm has only .03 ppm ammonia.


When are you testing the water? do it prior to a water change, not after. Always do it at the same point, just before the water change so you can be sure you are comparing apples to apples.

 

Hello and welcome ti fishlore! Seems like your getting great help already. But just know new fish sometimes die. Just the stress of the move kills them. Next have you tested your tap water? To know your tap water you should test right out of the tap than let the water sit for 24 hrs and retest and note the differences. Test for ph,ammonia,nitrite and nitrate. This will give you an idea of what happens from tap to tank. If the ph changes in the 24 hrs you will have to store your water overnight before water changes. Now as already said it seems like your water company may have changed it’s processing treatments from chlorine to chloramine so you will need to adjust your process to remove the chloramine. It’s always best to change at least 30-50% water weekly. This keeps your tank ph close to your tap ph so water changing isn’t to shocking to the fish.

How are the fish? When changing water do you vacume the substrate? Being 20g tanks and each having a pleco the waste could be building up in them. Once a month water changes just won’t work with plecos.

 

Having ammonia after such a long time is an indicator your overall filtration is insufficient. Not just related to ammonia oxidation.

PH is lower? I wonder what the level of organic matter in your tank is, your bacteria count and your oxygen levels, especially in the substrate, if you have any substrate. My bet is, you have a decent layer of those very small pebbles...

You said you moved recently, did the substrate move considerably due to the move?

Regarding the filter; did the turnover / stength of the water flow recently got less. Or did you change anything due to the move as well?

A picture of the whole setup would help.

Not sure why the emergency template doesn't include GH and KH parameters...

 

Your tap water must be treated with chloramines by your water company. When you use the water conditioner it will detoxify the chlorine part, but it leaves you with ammonia as a byproduct. The good new is that pH 6, ammonia is mostly in a nontoxic form (ammonium). As the pH rises the toxicity increases. At those levels and at that pH it's not an issue. Even at 1ppm and pH of 7.0 most of the ammonia is in the non toxic ammonium form.

Another factor in your aquarium is that at pH 6.0, there are different microorganisms involved in the cycle. Chances are that the bottled bacteria is having little effect because they prefer a higher pH.

View attachment 859883**

**Aquaworld Aquarium - Article - Ammonia Toxicity and the pH Relationship

"Free ammonia is the toxic part of the Total Ammonia Nitrogen (TAN). The ledger to the right provides the line colors for 1 ppm through 5 ppm, the left side of the graph is the "True Free Ammonia" reading based on the pH value on the bottom. Notice that above the pH of 8.0 the toxicity of the TAN rapidly rises."..."Water with a temperature of 82° F (28° C), a pH of 7.0, and a TAN of 5 ppm has only .03 ppm ammonia.


When are you testing the water? do it prior to a water change, not after. Always do it at the same point, just before the water change so you can be sure you are comparing apples to apples.

After I tested my tap water and saw that the ammonia was at 1 ppm, I kind of had a feeling MAYBE the ammonia showing in my tank isn't toxic.

I test before the water change.

I will check out the attachment you provided.

I guess, at the end of the day, I am just worried about whether or not the ammonia level showing in my tank is toxic or not and if I should be doing water changes daily to get it down.

Hello and welcome ti fishlore! Seems like your getting great help already. But just know new fish sometimes die. Just the stress of the move kills them. Next have you tested your tap water? To know your tap water you should test right out of the tap than let the water sit for 24 hrs and retest and note the differences. Test for ph,ammonia,nitrite and nitrate. This will give you an idea of what happens from tap to tank. If the ph changes in the 24 hrs you will have to store your water overnight before water changes. Now as already said it seems like your water company may have changed it’s processing treatments from chlorine to chloramine so you will need to adjust your process to remove the chloramine. It’s always best to change at least 30-50% water weekly. This keeps your tank ph close to your tap ph so water changing isn’t to shocking to the fish.

How are the fish? When changing water do you vacume the substrate? Being 20g tanks and each having a pleco the waste could be building up in them. Once a month water changes just won’t work with plecos.

Hello, thank you! I am aware that sometimes fish just die because of the move. Yes she was a new guppy and she might have been a little young, she was on the smaller side.

Since the death of my new guppy two weeks ago, I haven't had any more fish die (thankfully).

I did test my tap water, the ph was at 8.2 and ammonia was 1 ppm. I did not test the nitrite or nitrate because I was unaware that I was supposed to, but I will start to do that from now on. I will test in the moment then let some water sit for 24 hours and then re-test, something I never did before but I will take your advice!

I actually had well water for my whole life up until I just moved to the city and now I am on city water as of the last few months.

All of my fish are fine right now. No deaths and they all seem to be acting fine and normal. I have sand substrate so I usually only vacuum up the waste on the surface and then after it is all taken care of, I will suck up some water if I feel like I haven't gotten enough out of the tank.

I said that I would change the water every 3 to 4 weeks but really it was more on the 3-week mark. But from the last 2 weeks, I feel like I am needing to do it weekly and I will definitely have to since I am changing over from RO water to my tap water from this point out.

I appreciate everything you've given me and I am looking forward to changing my habits and learning all these new things!

Having ammonia after such a long time is an indicator your overall filtration is insufficient. Not just related to ammonia oxidation.

PH is lower? I wonder what the level of organic matter in your tank is, your bacteria count and your oxygen levels, especially in the substrate, if you have any substrate. My bet is, you have a decent layer of those very small pebbles...

You said you moved recently, did the substrate move considerably due to the move?

Regarding the filter; did the turnover / stength of the water flow recently got less. Or did you change anything due to the move as well?

A picture of the whole setup would help.

Not sure why the emergency template doesn't include GH and KH parameters...

Yes, my ph has lowered, I am unsure of why. The only thing I can think of was maybe the ph changed in the water I was using. I would sometimes buy purified water and some I used RO water from a local water mill.

Hmmm, yes I did move, and do you mean like physically moved around in the tank? Yes, it did get pretty messed up and mixed up and a lot of it got accidentally sucked up and thrown out so I did mix the old sand substrate with the new sand substrate. I used all the old ornaments too, no scrubbing, just a rinse.

The filters are the same old ones I had from before the move. I have not noticed anything different in the way they work.

I can post some pictures of my tank. I do not have a GH and KH test. I will have to buy one. Do they sell them at petco? I can also purchase online if you can recommend a good one.

The longer tank in the first picture is Tank 1 and the other tank, the taller one in the second picture is Tank 2.