Help! Nitrites shot out of roof!

[laurendonatella]

Hi everybody and thank you for the emergent help! I’m still pretty new to the hobby and really hoping I don’t kill these fish. I have a couple fish in QT right now and I am treating with cupramine. Well I just took measurements of the water and the nitrate is out of control. Any higher and I’d be off the color chart. No Ammonia per my ammonia badge. I just finished brewing a brute container of RODI water and was getting ready to mix new salt water for the week. My question is, I use instant ocean salt and I know they recommend circulating it overnight prior to use but I really don’t want to wait overnight to change out the water. So my question is, how long do you recommend I aerate this prior to doing a water change? I’m also thinking of maybe doing a 50% water change given that nitrates are so high but I’m totally open to suggestions. Thank you so much

 

[Flexin]

How big is the tank?

 

[laurendonatella]

How big is the tank?

20 gal. I have 2 clowns, a damsel and orchid dottyback in there

 

[Flexin]

I warm and mix at the same time, I normally do 20 gal changes a shot. So it takes 6-8 hours. I test early, maybe hour 5 then test again hour 6, if i did not add any more salt, and there is no change, I'm good to go. If you only have to mix 5 gals, I've done that in an hour of course with a power head as long as my water was heated. I'm sure I'm over doing it.

For a 10 gal water change, , mix salt with water, if you have a decent powerhead and heater, once you get to temp, measure salinity, let it go another 30-60 mins and see if it goes up, if not, you should be good to go. If you measure the water right and salt to 1/2 cup per gallon (check label), you should be really close (25 or so). Others feel free to chime in, I know 6-8 hours is overdoing it, it's just my routine. But what I've noted above should get you there. You just don't want unmixed salt to go in and the salinity go up. So to that point, measure after you add the water (an hour or so later).

Water changes are my saving grace and go to....

 

[chinw76]

I have 10 fish in a 29 gallon QT tank right now. I feed them twice a day and do a 50% water change once a week. Make sure you add cupramine to the new water before putting it in the tank. I have found around 12-13 drops per 5 gallons of water worked out well with me. I would check it with a hanna copper tester to confirm my copper levels.

 

[Mastiffsrule]

Hi everybody and thank you for the emergent help! I’m still pretty new to the hobby and really hoping I don’t kill these fish. I have a couple fish in QT right now and I am treating with cupramine. Well I just took measurements of the water and the nitrate is out of control. Any higher and I’d be off the color chart. No Ammonia per my ammonia badge. I just finished brewing a brute container of RODI water and was getting ready to mix new salt water for the week. My question is, I use instant ocean salt and I know they recommend circulating it overnight prior to use but I really don’t want to wait overnight to change out the water. So my question is, how long do you recommend I aerate this prior to doing a water change? I’m also thinking of maybe doing a 50% water change given that nitrates are so high but I’m totally open to suggestions. Thank you so much

Just wondering what test kit you are using and what the level

 

[GoldeneyeRet]

Hi everybody and thank you for the emergent help! I’m still pretty new to the hobby and really hoping I don’t kill these fish. I have a couple fish in QT right now and I am treating with cupramine. Well I just took measurements of the water and the nitrate is out of control. Any higher and I’d be off the color chart. No Ammonia per my ammonia badge. I just finished brewing a brute container of RODI water and was getting ready to mix new salt water for the week. My question is, I use instant ocean salt and I know they recommend circulating it overnight prior to use but I really don’t want to wait overnight to change out the water. So my question is, how long do you recommend I aerate this prior to doing a water change? I’m also thinking of maybe doing a 50% water change given that nitrates are so high but I’m totally open to suggestions. Thank you so much

How high are your nitrates?

Nitrates arent generally a problem for fish, many fish only tanks run well over 100ppm.

 

[laurendonatella]

Just wondering what test kit you are using and what the level

The API

 

[laurendonatella]

How high are your nitrates?

Nitrates arent generally a problem for fish, many fish only tanks run well over 100ppm.

It’s actually my nitrites that are the problem. Sorry that may have been a typo on my part

 

[laurendonatella]

Just wondering what test kit you are using and what the level

The api test kit

 

[Mastiffsrule]

How did you cycle the tank/how long has it been running?

 

[laurendonatella]

Been

How did you cycle the tank/how long has it been running?

running about 6 mo but this is the first time I’m using Cupramean or any copper product and I only thought I had to watch out for ammonia increases with Cooper mean, not nitrite. But tested today and nitrites are sky high

 

[GoldeneyeRet]

Ok maybe I read wrong.

Nitrites arent too hard on fish either. Best course of action would be to add some bottled bacteria.

 

[Mastiffsrule]

Nitrites can be toxic to fish. Any Seachem prime on hand?

 

[Mastiffsrule]

Also,sorry about the questions, when you say high. API goes to 5 ppm I think. Did you go over that?

 

[Mastiffsrule]

Last question I promise. I missed you dosed cupramine. How long ago, if there is cupramine in the tank, don’t dose prime,

Prime, is a reducing agent, it has the potential to reduce the Cupramine from the safe Cu2+ form to a very toxic Cu+ form. I would go with the water changes and dose some bacteria

 

[Flexin]

Sorry, I read Nitrates.

 

[laurendonatella]

Hi- sorry was running to do a water change. So nitrite on API was testing at 5.0. I just did a 50% WC and It is still looking closer to 5.0 than any other color. I’m wondering why it didn’t come down at all. Any ideas? Fish also don’t look too happy so a little worried about them hanging in there. Thank you so much for the help!!

 

[laurendonatella]

Hi- sorry was running to do a water change. So nitrite on API was testing at 5.0. I just did a 50% WC and It is still looking closer to 5.0 than any other color. I’m wondering why it didn’t come down at all. Any ideas? Fish also don’t look too happy so a little worried about them hanging in there. Thank you so much for the help!!

And sorry came up to full strength on Cupramine on friday

 

[laurendonatella]

Think I should just put them in a 5 gal bucket of fresh saltwater and put a bubble stone in there? My clowns are drifting at the bottom which they never do- I can tell they are struggling and I’m wondering if I should just get them out even if it means loosing my dose on the Cupramine. Thoughts?