How Much Nitrite Can Fish Tolerate Updated
How Much Nitrite Can Fish Tolerate
Let's face up it, nobody wants nitrites in their aquarium.
I don't want them. Yous don't want them. Your fish certainly don't want them.
Fifty-fifty though nitrites are unwanted, they really play an essential part in your aquarium.
Today, I'grand going to teach you everything you would desire to know about them.
Before I continue, I want to make sure you read The Nitrogen Bike guide.
Doing so will make what I am almost to tell yous much easier to understand. If you are a beginner to the hobby, I highly recommend it!
Up to speed?
Good.
Then, let's continue…
What are aquarium nitrites and where do they come up from?
Pronounced well-nigh-trights, nitrites (NO2) are a course of dissolved nitrogen that occur naturally in the water column, which is the water inside your aquarium.[1]
How nitrites end up in your aquarium is quite a journey.
And, it all starts with waste.
Without waste, nitrites wouldn't exist.
Mutual sources of waste product plant in aquariums include:
- Uneaten fish food
- Fish poop
- Decaying plants
- Dingy filters
While waste leads to the appearance of nitrites, it is not the defining cause.
To explain, here is a very cursory recap of the nitrogen cycle.
i. As waste product breaks down, it gives off ammonia.
2. A bacteria called nitrosomonas breaks downwardly the ammonia into nitrites.
3. A 2d bacteria, called nitrobacter, then feeds on the nitrites and produces nitrates.
So, nitrites wouldn't be without ammonia.
The process of ammonia beingness converted into nitrites by bacteria is called nitrification.
What nitrite levels are acceptable in your aquarium?
The acceptable level of nitrites in your tank is…
Zip.
Yep, you read that right…
Nitrites are pretty bad news. So, in a stocked tank, the level should read 0 ppm (parts per million).
The bacteria in an established tank should be in high enough numbers to break downward nitrites the moment they are produced – leading to a nix reading when tested.
If your nitrite levels are higher than zero, y'all need to detect the cause of the problem, and fast.
Still, there is an obvious exception to this dominion…
When cycling a new tank.
In a new tank, bacteria doesn't exist in big enough numbers to break down the nitrites equally they are produced.
This is actually a large part of why yous need to bicycle your aquarium – to allow the bacteria that alive in your biological filter, which break downwards nitrites, to grow.
So if you are cycling a new tank, expect high levels of nitrites.
What happens if your aquarium nitrite levels are too high?
Once nitrite levels exceed zero, they are going to be absorbed by your fish – they take no choice in the matter.
When the nitrites attain the fish's blood stream, they stop the blood from carrying oxygen. The more than nitrites that are taken in past your fish, the less oxygen the blood can comport.[4]
Oxygen is kind of a large deal considering your fish need it to alive.
So, I am sure you know what happens if your fish take in too many nitrites, right?
Suffocation!
What a horrible fashion to go.
What'southward interesting is that it doesn't matter how oxygenated your aquarium is, your fish tin can nevertheless suffocate.
An aquarium with all the aquarium bubblers and surface agitation in the earth isn't going to help your fish if they cannot depict oxygen out of the water.
This entire process is referred to equally nitrite poisoning.
Of import: Don't confuse nitrites with nitrates. While in that location may merely exist 1 letter differentiating them, the ii are very different.
The toxicity of nitrites depends entirely on the species of fish. While some are quite tolerant, others will die at the faintest hint. For some fish, just 0.29 ppm of nitrites leads to decease.[4]
But only because your fish can tolerate information technology, that doesn't mean it is healthy. Your fish are likely under an incredible corporeality of stress….
When fish are stressed, they are more than likely to develop diseases, lose their color, suffer from stunted growth or even become unable to reproduce.[4]
It's simple – keep your nitrite levels at zero for happy and healthy fish.
FishLab Fact: Chloride reduces how many nitrites your fish take in. And, y'all know what has lots of chloride in it? Common salt. For this reason, marine fish are more tolerant of nitrites than freshwater fish.
What causes high nitrite levels in aquariums?
Does your tank feature whatever of the post-obit?
- Over feeding
- A sudden buildup of waste product
- No nitrifying bacteria in the filter
- Weak filtration
- Overstocked aquarium
If then, your tank is at a high risk of elevated nitrite levels.
FishLab Fact: A sudden bound in nitrite levels is called a nitrite spike.
Also, if at that place is a sharp ascension in ammonia levels, a abrupt rise in nitrites will presently follow.
Why?
The bacteria responsible for turning ammonia into nitrites apace multiply because their food source has become bigger – releasing more nitrites than your tank tin handle.
Equally you may have noticed, most of the causes of loftier nitrite levels tin be fixed with adept housekeeping and regular maintenance.
How practise you test for nitrites?
Nitrite testers are readily available at pet shops, fish stores and even online.
Let'due south take a closer wait at some of the most popular nitrite testers on the market.
API Nitrite Test Kit
Lasts upwardly to 180 tests
When it comes to measuring your nitrite levels, an aquarium test kit is the simplest and cheapest way to practise it.
If you walk into your local fish store, this will likely be the nitrite test kit that they keep on the shelf. API test kits can exist found almost anywhere.
That's not a bad matter. API nitrite examination kits are cheap, and they work well plenty. For the average hobbyist, these are fine.
If you purchased the API Master Test Kit, then you will already take this test kit, along with many others.
However, like many nitrite exam kits, this i has a shortcoming.
It's all thanks to amine interference.[ane]
In sure instances, such every bit reef tanks, essential amino acids can cause these tests to show a lower nitrite level than what is actually occurring in your tank.
And, that could prove to exist mortiferous.
Fortunately, there are nitrite tests bachelor that get around this issue.
Unfortunately, many of these test kits are expensive.
But non this i…
Salifert Nitrite NO3 Test Kit
Lasts up to threescore tests
This nitrite exam kit hits the sweet spot for both toll and performance.
It may not final as long as the API test kit, but it makes up for this by being easy to employ with accurate results – no amine interference here!
The Salifert nitrite examination kit is peculiarly popular with saltwater tank owners.[one]
I personally utilise Salifert because I find these kits easier to utilise.
Since information technology can be picked upwards for just a few more dollars than the API kit, I recommend making this your go-to nitrite test kit.
While nitrite exam kits are like shooting fish in a barrel to apply, their accuracy depends on your ability to follow the instructions.
I highly recommend reading the instruction transmission thoroughly before using a test kit. Skipping a simple step, such as shaking the bottle, tin can cause an incorrect reading.
Hanna Nitrite Colorimeter
If you want to spend a bit more cash for the sake of accuracy, Hanna Instruments' nitrite checker bridges the gap between the cheaper chemic exam kits and the more than pricey probe meters.
Simply add your water sample, combine with the reagent from the kit, and the checker will give you a digital readout.
While the checker comes with some reagent, yous will burn through it chop-chop. Refill packs are readily bachelor, but they volition be an ongoing cost.
But make sure you get the right reader for your aquarium – the freshwater nitrite monitor tin give an incorrect reading if used with saltwater.
How do you reduce nitrite levels?
Just tested your nitrite levels and discovered they are shockingly high?
Don't panic!
I am going to talk you through everything you lot need to do in the event of a nitrite spike.
1. Water change!
A xxx-l% water change should exist the first thing you do afterwards confirming a nitrite spike.
You are swapping out nitrite-filled water for h2o that is nitrite-free.
What yous are essentially doing is diluting the amount of nitrites that are present in your aquarium.
Performing a water modify volition buy time until yous tin use another method listed below to become your nitrites under command.
2. Add cycled filters
As I touched on before, bacteria turn nitrites into much less harmful nitrates.
In large enough numbers, these bacteria swallow nitrites every bit fast equally they are produced.
Then, what you are doing is introducing more of them into your aquarium.
You see, in a cycled tank, these bacteria are present in big numbers in the filter.
Past adding a filter from a cycled tank into an aquarium with a nitrite spike, the bacteria start eating all the nitrites, lowering the levels.
Merely if y'all don't have multiple tanks, tracking downwards a cycled filter tin can exist difficult. If yous have a good relationship with your local fish store, they may let you to take i.
FishLab Tip:If you have more than one tank, utilize a sponge filter to bike multiple filters at in one case. If a cycled filter is needed, but remove a sponge filter from ane tank and add information technology to another.
3. Water conditioner
This is essentially a nitrite remover in a bottle. Simply follow the directions and picket the nitrites disappear from your aquarium as if past magic.
Water conditioners bind the nitrites, thus rendering them harmless to fish and giving your filter bacteria the opportunity to catch up and plough them into nitrates.
I make it no hole-and-corner that my favorite water conditioner is Seachem Prime…
Not merely does it detoxify nitrites, but it too deals with near whatsoever other water quality issue that may arise![2]
I highly recommend keeping a canteen on paw in instance of an emergency.
And trust me, a nitrite fasten definitely classifies equally an emergency.
While these methods help reduce nitrite levels, they do not cease the cause of the spikes.
With the nitrite levels under command for the moment, you now have time to track down the cause of the problem.
How do you forbid nitrites from building upwards?
If yous read my guides on ammonia and nitrates, you are aware of the advice I am about to give y'all.
That'south because ammonia, nitrite and nitrate share a common cause.
It all starts with waste.
Past getting waste product under control, you minimize whatever problems caused further downward the nitrogen cycle.
While these tips won't remove or reduce existing nitrites in your aquarium, they will stop new nitrites from building upwardly as quickly – which is a good thing!
ane. Don't overfeed your fish!
The more your fish eat, the more than they are going to poop. And, the more they poop, the faster the nitrites volition build up inside your aquarium.
I would also add that any food that remains uneaten sinks to the bottom and rots. And, you know what that ways? More nitrites and nitrates!
Remember, just because you lot don't overfeed your fish doesn't mean that someone else in your family unit isn't.
I learned this the hard mode…
I kept finding uneaten pieces of nutrient rotting in the corner of my tank. I feed my fish a premeasured amount, and they eat every last piece. But where this actress nutrient was coming from had me stumped.
Well, it turned out my nephew was sneaking in and feeding the fish when I wasn't looking. Mystery solved.
2. Maintain your plants
If you have live plants in your tank, then y'all need to comprise a flake of underwater gardening.
Old leaves on your found are going to die.
When this happens, the leaves fall off and disuse, which can pb to an increase in nitrite levels.
Yous can get ahead of this by doing a bit of light pruning.
Every time you see dead or dying bits of institute affair, snip them off and remove them from your aquarium.
3. Make clean your filter
Y'all know all those loose $.25 of food, institute thing and poop? Well, they are going to get sucked up and trapped by your filter.
Over time, this waste is going to accumulate.
Regular maintenance will stop the built-up waste material from reaching problem levels.
Ane popular solution is to utilise an intake sponge filter – literally a sponge that covers the intake to your filter.
The sponge traps any gunk that floats through the water, trapping information technology before it reaches your filter.
But remove the sponge to clean it – no more taking your filter apart!
4. Buy a gravel vac
Your substrate tin apace become a graveyard of rotting fish food, expressionless plants and whatsoever else that gets caught up in it.
All of these contribute to nitrites forming in the water.
A gravel vac is i of the well-nigh effective ways to remove this from your substrate.
Piece of cake to utilise, affordable and constructive – if your tank has a substrate, there is little excuse for not owning a gravel vac.
Ideally, you should perform a gravel vac during most, if non all, water changes.
5. Monitor your stock
An overstocked aquarium will take more nitrite problems than an understocked 1.
It'southward unavoidable. Too many fish in a pocket-sized aquarium will create more waste than the tank can handle, which is a surefire recipe for a spike in nitrite levels.
If your tank is overstocked, you take ii solutions:
- Get rid of some of your fish or
- Purchase a larger aquarium.
I know it can be hard to say good day to fish, just information technology's for their ain practiced. They are just going to suffer in an overstocked tank anyway.
Or, if you don't want to say goodbye to your fishy friends just all the same, buy a bigger tank.
Yous have been looking for a skilful excuse to purchase a larger aquarium, and nitrite problems are every bit good a reason as any to brand the upgrade!
Don't be tempted to buy more fish at present that you have a larger tank – that'due south what got you lot into this whole mess in the first identify.
Do you accept any nitrite tips? Allow me know in the comments below!
How Much Nitrite Can Fish Tolerate
Posted by: danielhisered.blogspot.com
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