High Ammonia level after 10% water change

[Baigent87]

Hi Guys!!! I’m new here so take it easy on me

I’m 1 week into my cycle using 2 clownfish and a bottle of Dr Tim’s One & Only.

After testing once a day for the past week I’ve seen a large spike in ammonia (1.2) which has held strong for the past 4 days. I was advised by my local aquatics store to do a 10% water change which I’ve done, I retested after a couple of hours and the ammonia levels are still at 1.2.

The fish seem fine, darting around the tank and eating great. I’ve reduced there meals to one medium feed per day as was feeding twice a day.

Should I do another larger water change or wait for the drop in ammonia?

 

[RobB'z Reef]

Thank you for the warm welcome! Planning to do a 50% water change tomorrow morning. How long after the water change should I test?

you could test within an hour or so after changing it. That should be enough time for the water to blend and achieve equilibrium.

 

[Baigent87]

you could test within an hour or so after changing it. That should be enough time for the water to blend and achieve equilibrium.

Thank you Rob. I’m looking forward to this water change and getting this ammonia level down!

 

[Billldg]

Thank you for the warm welcome! Planning to do a 50% water change tomorrow morning. How long after the water change should I test?

I usually give it at least a couple of hours to make sure the tank volume has turned over a few times.

 

[Jeffcb]

Welcome to Reef2Reef!

 

[Salty Rambler]

Welcome to R2R! The good news is that clownfish are super hardy fish, and pretty forgiving. While high ammonia levels are definitely not good for them, they have a better survival rate than most other fish when ammonia spikes. A bigger water change and upping the oxygen levels should help them out.

 

[|Frank|]

Welcome to R2R!

 

[vetteguy53081]

Assure you are Not getting a false reading especially if you are using API test kits. I would strongly recommend water change suggested BUT before doing such, gather a water sample and take to a trusted LFS that does NOT use API test kits and see what result they come up with.

 

[vetteguy53081]

 

[BeltedCoyote]

Welcome to R2R!!!

 

[TCoach]

Welcome to R2R!!!

Do you show any Nitrite or Nitrate in your tank?

 

[BaysEndReef]

Welcome to R2R!! Always here to help!!

 

[SPR1968]

Hi and welcome to Reef2Reef!

 

[KJ]

Welcome to R2R!!

 

[Jimbhoy13]

Welcome to R2R and the salty world. What test kit are you using? Some can give misleading results. Lots of knowledgeable and helpful people here who will support and advise you when needed.

 

[Baigent87]

Assure you are Not getting a false reading especially if you are using API test kits. I would strongly recommend water change suggested BUT before doing such, gather a water sample and take to a trusted LFS that does NOT use API test kits and see what result they come up with.

I’ve herd and read that API isn’t necessarily the most reliable or accurate test kit so I’m using a RedSea test kit.

 

[Baigent87]

Welcome to R2R!!!

Do you show any Nitrite or Nitrate in your tank?

Thank you for the warm welcome! For the past 4 days my nitrate has been sitting at 5 and my nitrite level has been sitting at 0.2

 

[Baigent87]

Welcome to R2R and the salty world. What test kit are you using? Some can give misleading results. Lots of knowledgeable and helpful people here who will support and advise you when needed.

Pleased to be part of R2R! Everyone has been so helpful un judgemental and super responsive! I’m using the RedSea Marine Care test kit.

 

[brandon429]

Handy truth to consider here:


burnt fish won’t eat, they hover sideways near death unable to breathe and it’s obvious. Within two days the ammonia compounds and kills the uncycled tank

-when testing fish in cycles on seneye, a digital ammonia meter, we always find ammonia from fish totally controlled once they make it this long. Bottle bac keeps the ammonia instantly controlled, not delayed, as color tube tests seem to indicate.


conversely

on api, you get this

Sustained Ammonia spikes are misreads

The reason you think your reef tank can’t control its ammonia is due to false training from old cycling science. That and you don’t own a seneye on the tank in question: if you did, you wouldn’t ever think your ammonia was out of control...

www.reef2reef.com

based on this info, did you really have free ammonia at all? What’s your tester

post a full tank picture of your reef let’s see the burnt fish live time, see if they look like they other tank shots in the false ammonia thread.

for sure bottle bac can be shipped dead. Does it take a nine dollar tester nearly certain to misread based on Google searches to know if the bac was bad in a tank that’s been fed twenty times, and the water is still clear as of today?


the title of a thread influences the judges, not the history of comparisons between seneye and api, third neat fact. What’s the going assessment here, factoring the thread title

nobody asks to see your pics for environment proof, api is clearly never wrong in this post. Fourth handy fact

in the false alarm thread above, we have red sea and api causing panic

but never seneye

 

[brandon429]

As soon as pics are posted we do our 44th example link in the false alarm all day long thread.

 

[Jimbhoy13]

Are you Essex UK? You can get the UK banner here: Click "Join User Group", scroll to the bottom and click on "United Kingdom User Group".