Nitrites

[jrawk1120]

So I’m a little confused at my elevated nitrites and my almost undetectable ammonia

I use the Hanna Marine Master.

My readings today

Salinity - 1.025
Ammonia - .08ppm
Nitrites - 36ppb
Nitrates - 26.8ppm
Alk - 9.3dkh
Calcium - 590ppm
Magnesium - 1520ppm
Ph - 7.7

So my apex registers my Ph at 8.26 currently, so I’m not sure of the discrepancy there.

My nitrites have gone up. Tested last week and they were at 24. So I’m not sure what is contributing to the rise.

I haven’t lost any fish, nothing dying. Water change earlier today of 10%

I have a bit of an outbreak of cyano at the moment. But I don’t think those are tied
together.

Anything I should be looking for?

 

[SOGavity]

Ammonia turns into nitrites which are then consumed by nitrates. It'll get to a point in your cycle and tank's life that you will stop testing for both ammonia and nitrites. You're still cycling your tank by the sounds of it. You'll get a spike in your nitrites as long as you have ammonia in your system. Eventually your nitrates will spike as it consumes your nitrites. Once the tank is fully cycled you'll have zero ammonia and nitrites.

 

[gsxrshane]

I don’t know a good answer for you but I know @Randy Holmes-Farley has a great article on nitrites and I don’t think you have anything to worry about.

http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2005-06/rhf/index.htm

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

That Nitrite level is very low, and even if it were 1000 times higher, would not kill fish.

Ignore nitrite. :)

 

[Dan_P]

So I’m a little confused at my elevated nitrites and my almost undetectable ammonia

I use the Hanna Marine Master.

My readings today

Salinity - 1.025
Ammonia - .08ppm
Nitrites - 36ppb
Nitrates - 26.8ppm
Alk - 9.3dkh
Calcium - 590ppm
Magnesium - 1520ppm
Ph - 7.7

So my apex registers my Ph at 8.26 currently, so I’m not sure of the discrepancy there.

My nitrites have gone up. Tested last week and they were at 24. So I’m not sure what is contributing to the rise.

I haven’t lost any fish, nothing dying. Water change earlier today of 10%

I have a bit of an outbreak of cyano at the moment. But I don’t think those are tied
together.

Anything I should be looking for?

How old is the aquarium?

Is the nitrite reading NO2-N (nitrite nitrogen) or nitrite? If the former, the actual level is 46/14 higher. This is only important with respect to first question and the slightly elevate ammonia.

 

[jrawk1120]

So I’m a little confused at my elevated nitrites and my almost undetectable ammonia

I use the Hanna Marine Master.

My readings today

Salinity - 1.025
Ammonia - .08ppm
Nitrites - 36ppb
Nitrates - 26.8ppm
Alk - 9.3dkh
Calcium - 590ppm
Magnesium - 1520ppm
Ph - 7.7

So my apex registers my Ph at 8.26 currently, so I’m not sure of the discrepancy there.

My nitrites have gone up. Tested last week and they were at 24. So I’m not sure what is contributing to the rise.

I haven’t lost any fish, nothing dying. Water change earlier today of 10%

I have a bit of an outbreak of cyano at the moment. But I don’t think those are tied
together.

Anything I should be looking for?

How old is the aquarium?

Is the nitrite reading NO2-N (nitrite nitrogen) or nitrite? If the former, the actual level is 46/14 higher. This is only important with respect to first question and the slightly elevate ammonia.

I’ll edit my post but my tank is about 8 months old.

No new additions except some birds nest

 

[jrawk1120]

Ammonia turns into nitrites which are then consumed by nitrates. It'll get to a point in your cycle and tank's life that you will stop testing for both ammonia and nitrites. You're still cycling your tank by the sounds of it. You'll get a spike in your nitrites as long as you have ammonia in your system. Eventually your nitrates will spike as it consumes your nitrites. Once the tank is fully cycled you'll have zero ammonia and nitrites.

I’m about 8 months in.

 

[jrawk1120]

That Nitrite level is very low, and even if it were 1000 times higher, would not kill fish.

Ignore nitrite. :)

Thank you. I’m pretty sure I just read your write up the other day but couldn’t think of anything it said

 

[jrawk1120]

So I’m a little confused at my elevated nitrites and my almost undetectable ammonia

I use the Hanna Marine Master.

My readings today

Salinity - 1.025
Ammonia - .08ppm
Nitrites - 36ppb
Nitrates - 26.8ppm
Alk - 9.3dkh
Calcium - 590ppm
Magnesium - 1520ppm
Ph - 7.7

So my apex registers my Ph at 8.26 currently, so I’m not sure of the discrepancy there.

My nitrites have gone up. Tested last week and they were at 24. So I’m not sure what is contributing to the rise.

I haven’t lost any fish, nothing dying. Water change earlier today of 10%

I have a bit of an outbreak of cyano at the moment. But I don’t think those are tied
together.

Anything I should be looking for?

How old is the aquarium?

Is the nitrite reading NO2-N (nitrite nitrogen) or nitrite? If the former, the actual level is 46/14 higher. This is only important with respect to first question and the slightly elevate ammonia.

8 months and it is reading it as No2-N. Good to know, thank you

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

I see no reason to continue measuring it. :)

 

[Dan_P]

I’ll edit my post but my tank is about 8 months old.

No new additions except some birds nest

As Randy indicated, this is not a dangerous situation. I’d add that seeing this much nitrite and ammonia after eight months seems unusual. I would keep measuring both, but not too often, just to confirm that both measurements are trending down.

 

[rishma]

Corals prefer to use ammonia over nitrate as a nitrogen source.

Do corals use nitrite?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Do corals use nitrite?

Might be true. They reportedly make nitrite from nitrate, so they might use nitrite directly:

The fact that nitrite is extracted from coral and algal tissue even when not present in the seawater suggests that the nitrate consumed is reduced by metabolic processes of the zooxanthellae.

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/BF01178344

 

[rishma]

Do corals use nitrite?

Might be true. They reportedly make nitrite from nitrate, so they might use nitrite directly:

The fact that nitrite is extracted from coral and algal tissue even when not present in the seawater suggests that the nitrate consumed is reduced by metabolic processes of the zooxanthellae.

https://scholar.google.com/scholar?...=#d=gs_qabs&t=1753100624461&u=#p=4m8reI6DeZ0J

Looking forward to the DIY nitrite dosing thread