I've tried everything and ammonia is still high!!

[Balance]

what you should do is test your tap water for ammonia.

if that shows up as nil, then try adding Aquasafe (or whatever you're using) to the tap water. then test the treated water.

at least then you would know if the ammonia source is the tap water, the treated tap water, or something in the tank.

its possible that your aquasafe has gone bad also. sometimes that stuff sits at the LFS for a LONG time. chemicals do age and change.....

it's likely that you triggered another big nitrogen cycle by adding the sharks. if thats the case, your bacteria population may take some time to rebound. the bacteria that feed on ammonia are the slowest to form...... doing a partial water change would help get rid of the ammonia, but it will defintely slow down your tanks cycle.

like froggyfox21 said, replacing the filter cartridge would probably be more harmful than helpful at this point.

it might not be a bad idea to move the sharks to your 130 gallon tank now though. with such a large tank, those sharks (and their food) wont be able to make enough ammonia to poison themselves. and if you have some of your filter equipment you can get that tanks nitrogen cycle going.....

just my $2!

 

[spikekillifish]

Unless she has an undergravel filter her bacteria is going to exist in her filter media for the most part so I would disagree with not vacuuming the gravel and doing smaller water changes.

Vacuuming an entire established tank is not recommended regardless of type of filtration. Doing so will wipe out a large amount of beneficial bacteria. It is best to only do sections at a time.

I think the question is whether or not AquaSafe changes the ammonia into a non-toxic form . . . which will screw up your ammonia tests. The ammonia tests . . . as far as I know . . .do not differentiate between toxic and non-toxic ammonia.

Some products like AmmoLock do not remove toxic ammonia (NH3), but converts ammonia to a non-toxic form (NH4+). Ammonia test kits will still test positive for ammonia, even though it is non-toxic. The biological filter will then consume the non-toxic ammonia, converting it first to nitrite and then to nitrate.

As far as AquaSafe having this capability I am not sure as AmmoLock is patented.

I would discontinue using AquaSafe (not only because it is a Tetra product which many are boycotting right now) but because little information is available on its effects on ammonia testing. According to Tetra, "AquaSafe neutralizes chlorine and heavy metals and removes chloramine by breaking down the bond between ammonia and chlorine and removing the toxic ammonia. Tap water is then fish safe. AquaSafe will not remove ammonia from an uncycled, overstocked, or underfiltered aquarium."

I would run an ammonia test on your tap water to see if this may be a source of ammonia contamination.

 

[spikekillifish]

Good advice Balance. It appears that we are on the same track here. I was putting together my post while you posted yours and did not see it until afterwards.

 

[Balance]

not a problem Spikekillifish!

my guess that there is probably some non-toxic ammonia in her tap water.

and doing anything that might harm some/all of the established bacteria will only cause the cycle to restart. that would put more stress on the established fish.

you best bet would be to get that 130 gallon going and toss most, if not all of the fish into it. a tank that size wont produce any wild ammonia/nitrite spikes. once the smaller tank has stabilized you can start slowly moving the fish back into it.

 

[spikekillifish]

Also, I'm pretty sure the box on the filter recommends changing filters every 4-6 weeks. So I am right about at the point where I need to switch. Should I do this now or wait until the tank has stabilized?

What type of filter do you have? Is the activated carbon seperate from the biological filter media?

 

[gscorvette]

Thanks for the info Spike and Balance.

Status on 130g:

I'm getting a canister and sponge filter for the tank at least to start with. I need the canister before I can put water in the tank b/c the tank is specially plumbed for filters which sit in the stand (water will spill out the holes if I put it in w/o the filter.) The filter is here in town but since good ole UPS doesn't deliver on Saturday I'm not expected to get it until the 21, Monday.

On one hand, this will give me time to take care of the scratches in the acrylic. On the other, my sharkies are probably going to have to stay in Ammonia hell until Wednesday. If I can get them to leave the package at my house when no one is home I'll be able to have them in the tank by Tuesday.

I'm going to add the rest of my BioSpira to the tank the night before putting them in and them transfer them all the next day. I want my little tank to go back to normal so I can SLOWLY add more Danios and Neons.

Here are some answers to your questions:

1) Fish seem to be doing okay. No one looks diseased or noticeably stressed. I do think the Bala doesn't like having any buddies but I can't do anything about that until 130g is set up.

2) I have an undergravel filter and a TetraTec (will look up boycott issue later - wasn't aware of this) power filter PF300 I think or maybe PF150.

New carbon catridges were placed in the UG when I set up the tank since the equipment was used. PF has two filter bags and a separate sponge for bio filtration. Tank has been up about a month and nothing has been changed thus far.

4) Tested tap water and no ammonia was found. I will stop using the AquaSafe. Should I substitute some other type of stress coat or is it all snake oil?

I think that is everything. Hopefully this is helpful. Sorry for the long post.

 

[Owen]

Do more water changes! 75% a day until your tank is over it's cycling period.

 

[FroggyFox]

...with that much filtration I would be surprised if something would throw your bacteria filtration off this far. I'm leaning towards your aquasafe being the culprit.

I would change to a new water conditioner like Stress Coat, but not because of the boycott. I say use the products if they're good and cheap and what you need. If aquasafe is doing something funky with the ammonia...then heck dont use it. If its working...then keep it.

The boycott was over a tv appearance that a tetra representative made on a major news channel that made it sound like saltwater was an easy thing to do and were in general suggesting that a "nemo tank" would be a great choice for beginners. This is bad press for them, bad choices...but it doesn't change their products in my eyes. There was a good thread on this board about it...think it was called "boycott tetra products" or something equally obvious Will look it up if you'd like.

Glad the fishies arent' seeming upset or ill and I'm glad that canister is coming on Monday!!

 

[Gomer]

it doesn't affect ammonia...how it reads that is.

I have Amquel ...and it binds ammonia...so I get false readings