Bec Posted September 3, 2010 Report Share Posted September 3, 2010 Hi all, I have had 7 tanks with ammonia spikes this week. Five are 10 litre and two are 80 litre. All are established tanks. The only thing I have done differently is to feed them brine shrimp last weekend (twice). I was fairly generous with the little suckers. Could this have caused it? I am over doing massive water changes for the last three nights ... it has been a long wet few days :( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishbites Posted September 3, 2010 Report Share Posted September 3, 2010 Gee 7 tanks - you would have to have overfed a lot to get a big spike I would think - even a 10 litre tank can handle a little over feeding .... change in pH can sometimes bring on a spike (I think)... I tend not to have too much problems with betta tanks and ammonia spikes even with a little overfeeding at times - java moss in big clumps helps a lot with my tanks though I think.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bec Posted September 3, 2010 Author Report Share Posted September 3, 2010 All the tanks have Java moss in them and the smaller one have java ferns as well ... I have five other ten litre tanks, all set up the same time and the same way, that are fine. Also, I have a 1 1/2 footer with 11 large girls in it and it is fine (and I fed them TONNES of food). Hopefully today it will all stay stable. On another thought, will the ammonia spike cause a nitrogen spike? The tests for those are all good at the moment but should I be alert for it? Bec Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Billphil Posted September 3, 2010 Report Share Posted September 3, 2010 You have me stumped...all those tanks at once...very unusual. Yes you could find a nitrite spike in the next few days but as you have been doing water changes it should be minimal Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zhong89 Posted September 4, 2010 Report Share Posted September 4, 2010 Chemicals? Did you spray anything in the air lately? Air freshener, insect repellent? I can't remeber where I read this but chemicals in the air get in the tank quite quickly, there might not be enough chemicals to harm your fish but might mess up your bio-filter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bettarazzi Posted September 9, 2010 Report Share Posted September 9, 2010 Are you confident about your test kit? Are the fish showing any signs of discomfort? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bec Posted September 9, 2010 Author Report Share Posted September 9, 2010 I did a test with just the aged water and the result was a clear test, added the ammonia lock and it changed the colour to light green, which is similar to the reading I am getting. I think it may be the ammonia lock, especially since I have been using it in ever increasing quantities each day with the water changes. All the fish but one were fine, with the one sulking at the bottom ... which is why I did the test to start with. I came home yesterday to find the sad fish floating up toward the top of the tank and the lower half of his body and tail was 'red', like he had a massive fresh bruise. I have never seen anything like it . His tail was fine (no rot or tears etc), no signs of any fungus, no swelling anywhere and no visible woulds. His scales and gills looked healthy and he was not gasping. He died two hours later. It looked like he had a massive internal bleed but I'll be buggered if I know what could have caused it as there is only some plants and a sponge filter in his tank (heater is not in the tank). Very disappointed as he was my favorite of the last lot of Thai boys, Bec Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bettarazzi Posted September 10, 2010 Report Share Posted September 10, 2010 Sorry to hear that. I hate the unexplained deaths. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tracey6565 Posted September 10, 2010 Report Share Posted September 10, 2010 sorry to hear your news Bec :alright: I'm with 'Razzi unexplained deaths suck as you never know if it'll happen again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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