ammonia spike

[theitalianczech]

i have a 30 gallon high that has been setup since october.........i have already had my ammonia, nitrite and nitrate go up and then down.......to 0 i have about 50 nass snails 9 nerite snails, 22 lbs fiji LR 3-4 inch sand bed. ammonia and nitrate have been at 0 since the cycle until i just recently added 4 turbo snails and 10 astrea snail 2 days ago.....i have just tested the levels now and i am showing an ammonia spike of 2.5 and nitrate of about 10.0........do you think this is just a mini cycle because i havent had much life in the tank since the cycle to keep up the bacteria pop....? i have been feeding the tank a few brine shrimp when i feed my other tanks........any thoughts?

 

[Anonymous]

you got a lot of snails in there. why?

 

[theitalianczech]

well its a seahorse tank and this was a recommendation from other seahorse owners........the nass are very tiny......like 1/4 inch at biggest....

 

[Anonymous]

What equipment are you running in this tank?

 

[theitalianczech]

aqua c remora skimmer and a tetra tec 150 power filter.......plus the 22lbs LR and 3-4 inch sand bed

 

[pncstod]

Is it possible you had snails die?

 

[reefworm]

dead snail would be my first guess, too. Look around.

 

[Anonymous]

Do a 20 percent water change and add Ammonia Block 2 after the water change. This will cut down on the stress of your living thins. If you can...increase aeration. Check your filtering systems to make sure they are working properly. In a week do another waterchange using Distilled Water. Keep checking for Nitrites and Nitrates. Do not add any livestock till everything is 0......ok ok......at least no more than 10 on your Nitrate.....but I prefer 0. If your liverock is "fuctioning" well..you should not have any Nitrates.

You are going to need top water quality for those Sea Horses. If you need snails I recommend a Fighting Conch.Fun to watch and doin a super clean up job in my tank. Have Fun!

 

[reefworm]

bangbang,
You've got a 29, right? How long have you had the fighting conch in there? They do get large, but hear that they do a great job on cyano. I suppose it would be possible to line up a future home for it once it outgrows the tank - a friendly LFS or friend with a larger system. I'm interested for future reference having had a dreadful experience with the nasty stuff.

Thanks,
-rw

 

[Anonymous]

I have had the conch for almost 48 hours.LOL and it is mowin the "lawn" and cleanen the glass like a neurotic housewife.....ok house man for those that may be offended. I can see a big difference in areas of my tank already. It is only about an inch and a half right now. How fast do they grow?