Ammonia Spike And Nitrates - The Ultimate Guide!

[@MBBTigger1357]

Thanks!

[@BobMossNanoTanks]

O my, thank you so much!

[@3DRC-707]

Fantastic video man, thanks!

[@BobMossNanoTanks]

thank you! appreciate it!

[@Jlui83]

I think I may have rushed my cycle or the cycle crashed. In my blue dream 6 gal tank. I’m reading about 2ppm ammonia. 0 nitrites, and around 30mm nitrate. I quickly dosed prime and stability. It’s day 2 now and it’s the same reading. I’m using api master test kit. Should I do a bit water change or let the nitrogen cycle do it’s thing and continue to dose with prime and stability?

[@BobMossNanoTanks]

You can do a slight water change to help lower the ammonia. If there is ammonia AND nitrates, your tank is cycled but there is something creating too much ammonia right now. Is there anything dead in there or perhaps some uneaten food tucked under some hardscape?

[@Jlui83]

@@BobMossNanoTanks it’s a minimal scape. I suspect the disruption in the substrate and I dosed Bacter ae. The water was cloudy for about 2 days. Maybe too much of that caused the spike?

[@BobMossNanoTanks]

@@Jlui83 cloudy means a bacterial bloom which usually means an issue with the cycle. Solid assumption, I would think the same.

[@Jlui83]

With all this said. Would you still feed the shrimp? Or just leave them be until this whole ordeal is over?

[@BobMossNanoTanks]

@@Jlui83 leave them be, they'll graze on biofilm.

[@ebonypegasus9864]

What are the white circles in the tanks?

[@BobMossNanoTanks]

It's the reflection of my ring lights haha!

[@BigShrimpin416]

I officially became a member! 🎉woohoo!!! 😂

[@BobMossNanoTanks]

Woooo! Welcome to the club and THANK YOU!!!

[@DanielCordone73]

Nice, well done video, I'm excited for next week's livestream 👍

[@BobMossNanoTanks]

hopefully I can get on, the baby has not been very cooperative lately...

[@MBBTigger1357]

Hello. I am presently dealing with a ammonia spike. It seems to be coming down from 2.ppm to .50 ppm- 1.0 ppm. I use quick start but mostly Stability for beneficial bacteria once a day. My tank seems to be going through a new tank syndrome. It has already ran a cycle. Now this again. 4 small corrydoras & 1 angelfish in my 90 gallon. I feed once a day. Any words of wisdom? This is my 1st time watcher. I left you a little thanks. Respectfully, Martin

[@BobMossNanoTanks]

Hmm. How did you cycle the tank? How long have the fish been in there? Sometimes when you add fish in, it takes a bit for the bacteria to build up in order to handle the new bioload.

[@MBBTigger1357]

The cycle did it’s usual. Ammonia spike,nitrite spike then 5ppm nitrate. I waited 4 days after all of that happened then added 4 Cory’s and one angelfish. This is taking place in a 90 gallon. Glad I didn’t add more fish yet. In your opinion could this be “new tank syndrome”? I cycled the tank with stability. When I ran out I switched over to API Quick Start which I have plenty of.

[@BobMossNanoTanks]

@@MBBTigger1357from what I'm reading that sounds about right. New bioload, organics spike, bacteria colonies will grow and it should level out in a couple of weeks. Just keep up the Prime dosing as well to bind the ammonia, this keeps it from hurting your animals.

[@ethanyoung4610]

Love the videos man

[@BobMossNanoTanks]

thanks so much!

[@arcticwinds6125]

Great information !!

[@BobMossNanoTanks]

thanks! took me way too long to edit, though

[@peaoat3608]

I had to get spring water for my tanks. It's a lot of spring water when you consider water changes but it's worth it. The Ph is practically zero in these so make sure to add calcium carbonate or other Ph boosting substance (but not too much).

[@BobMossNanoTanks]

You could try a cheap RO unit, it pays for itself after awhile. Depends how many tanks you have, I suppose.

[@moffia100]

What is your view on dirted tank? Is it worth it or is it too difficult to manage the ammonia and nitrate levels?

[@BobMossNanoTanks]

They can grow plants really well, but they tank a bit longer to cycle. patience is key!

[@moffia100]

@@BobMossNanoTanks What do you mean by longer cycling? Sorry I am still very new to aquariums.

[@BobMossNanoTanks]

@@moffia100 cycling is the process of establishing bacteria to process ammonia into nitrates. it typically takes 3-4 weeks in a new tank but with the added ammonia from most soils it can take up to 8. no worries, i'm always willing to answer questions. I do have a video on cycling, somewhere lol

[@24califrank]

37 gallon tank. How much water do I get out for the nitrate?

[@JackBenimble-oh7zl]

I never get nitrate spikes and I never change the water in my planted tank. And I don’t put chemical filtration in my tank. And I never have a problem with murky water because my tank is perfectly balanced.

[@amandacurry8080]

My tap water is at about 6 ph... which skramps would work best without having to alter it too much?

[@BobMossNanoTanks]

Your tap water sounds perfect for caridina shrimp, but not very fun to drink.

[@amandacurry8080]

@@BobMossNanoTanks yeahhh its pretty gross. Thank you!

[@rmyers341]

I have an Ammonia spike in my tank but my nitrite and nitrates are very low, what do I do? I did 20% water change yesterday and today but it seems to be higher

[@BobMossNanoTanks]

First, keep dosing Prime or whatever dechlorinater you have to neutralize the ammonia. Second, you need to find the source. Did something die? Is there something rotting? Did you possibly over feed? Did the bioload increase recently? Once you find the cause, it's a matter of removing it and waiting for the filter to process the ammonia.

[@jakefwtx4214]

"I keep saying Prime". Just keep doing it. They'll have to throw you some money eventually. Nitrite tests are only good for cycling. You test daily and start cussing that it's still there instead of nitrate then never think about it again.

[@BobMossNanoTanks]

ya, i wish lol. free advertising for them.

[@Tatersalade]

Solid advice bro :-)

[@BobMossNanoTanks]

thanks tater! been slow on production lately so appreciate the bits of support you toss my way. i see those twitch bits ;)

[@jdssurf]

dude i was trying to grow water sprite then realized i had a big bag of ammonia remover in my filter lol

[@BobMossNanoTanks]

That'll do it haha

[@jdssurf]

@BobMossNanoTanks it sucks alot of nutrients out that the plants need huh

[@guyclykos]

Why is the camera so shaky?

[@BobMossNanoTanks]

O wow, thanks for pointing that out, it didn't really show up in editing. I think it's from the lighting, the camera was on a tripod on the solid ground so that's really weird.

[@guyclykos]

@@BobMossNanoTanks Oh. I thought it was on a table with a pump. Odd tube lights.

[@BobMossNanoTanks]

@@guyclykos Ya, it's the first time i'm noticing it in any of my videos, must have been an off day lol

[@freehat2722]

The term is "Et Cetera" not Excetra. I want espresso not expresso.

[@BobMossNanoTanks]

I'm a simple man.

[@brennaduckworth8927]

Putting this out here for whoever may need it- bubbles in the tank can be an indicator of an ammonia spike! I didn’t know this until recently 🥲

[@BobMossNanoTanks]

I believe that's actually a biproduct of the fish trying to get oxygen in a toxic environment. Still an indicator, just explaining why.

[@brennaduckworth8927]

@@BobMossNanoTanks That makes more sense lol, good to know!