# Ammonia spike in my tank, help!!!!!!



## DuskDarkVoid (Apr 21, 2011)

My tank was doing ok, low levels of ammonia, nitrite and nitrate but I decided to place a UV filter along with my normal filter and from one day to another the color of my water turned dark and my angel fish started dying. Should I take the UV filter away or what should I do? I'm already doing a huge water change but I just wanna know what should I do.


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## 1077 (Apr 16, 2008)

DuskDarkVoid said:


> My tank was doing ok, low levels of ammonia, nitrite and nitrate but I decided to place a UV filter along with my normal filter and from one day to another the color of my water turned dark and my angel fish started dying. Should I take the UV filter away or what should I do? I'm already doing a huge water change but I just wanna know what should I do.


With fish in the tank ,I would perform 50 percent water change each day until the tank has cycled which can take four to six weeks.
Believe this tank was started on 11/27 which indicates that it is less than four weeks old .
Would feed fish once only, every two day's, and would not replace or clean filter material for next couple weeks.
If you don't overfeed ,the filter should not need cleaning unless the flow from filter is reduced to a trickle.
Cleaning filter material should be done by swishing the cartridge,pad,sponge around in old aquarium water you take out during water change.


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## AbbeysDad (Mar 28, 2011)

If the dates are right, 1077 is correct - even with a bio-seed an ammonia spike often does not occur until the 3rd or 4th week. Water changes are the answer to bring the ammonia levels down. If you had a lot of algae the UV sterilizer may indirectly be blamed as it would kill algae and cause it to decay, increasing the bio-load on the system. You might want to discontinue it's use until after the tank is cycled.
So as 1077 suggests, do 50% water changes daily as/if necessary until ammonia levels come down (and your nitrates go up) and you should be good. Once your sure the tank is cycled, you can begin using the UV sterilizer again.


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## 1077 (Apr 16, 2008)

AbbeysDad said:


> If the dates are right, 1077 is correct - even with a bio-seed an ammonia spike often does not occur until the 3rd or 4th week. Water changes are the answer to bring the ammonia levels down. If you had a lot of algae the UV sterilizer may indirectly be blamed as it would kill algae and cause it to decay, increasing the bio-load on the system. You might want to discontinue it's use until after the tank is cycled.
> So as 1077 suggests, do 50% water changes daily as/if necessary until ammonia levels come down (and your nitrates go up) and you should be good. Once your sure the tank is cycled, you can begin using the UV sterilizer again.


AHH Yes,, that is very good point with respect to sudden algae die off.
I was spitballin without knowing how many Angelfish, or frequency of feeding's, but you caught what I did not so this is good. 
Never saw the need for UV myself, and would prefer to determine the cause of algae,green water.


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## AbbeysDad (Mar 28, 2011)

1077 said:


> AHH Yes,, that is very good point with respect to sudden algae die off.
> I was spitballin without knowing how many Angelfish, or frequency of feeding's, but you caught what I did not so this is good.
> Never saw the need for UV myself, and would prefer to determine the cause of algae,green water.


Thanks. Actually, I'm a bit surprised that the OP has green algae water after only 3-4 weeks with a new tank. I guess we might conclude that the lights are on too long and/or some other negative such as over feeding/excess detritus or insufficient water changes may enter into the equation here?

I have never used a UV sterilizer either. I tend to think that some algae growth, like having some snails, is a very good thing, but I have never been over-run with algae or had green water either. In theory, I suppose a UV sterilizer, in addition to 'cleaning' green water, could minimize or prevent fungus and parasite like critters in the water column. We'd likely agree this could be a good thing if the evil got past our other defenses.

AD


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## DuskDarkVoid (Apr 21, 2011)

The tank has been up for about a month like you guys said and the fish were fed once in the morning and once at night. I got the UV filter because I wanted to add a discus to the tank and the store I bought it from had one in every tank with angel fish and discus. I did a huge water change last night and I checked the water for the ammonia, nitrate and nitrite and the levels were at the lowest with nitrate being undetectable. I will do another water change tonight and feed the fish once every 2 days like 1077 suggested. It was just weird that from one day to another the water turned from a clear color to a dark color. The UV filter is off right now and I'm kinda scared to turn it on again but I do like the fact that it kills the bacteria that causes fish infections and algae.


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## AbbeysDad (Mar 28, 2011)

So the water turned dark with the presumption it did because of the UV device? Did you really have green water from algae? Is there wood in the tank?


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## DuskDarkVoid (Apr 21, 2011)

The tank has driftwood and cholla cactus, sandstone rocks and the substrate is sand. After I put in the UV filter at night the next morning the water was dark and the next couple of days it kept getting darker.


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## AbbeysDad (Mar 28, 2011)

I was asking because driftwood often tea stains water as tannins are released. So did you have green water before starting to use the UV device or is it possible that the dark water is from the wood???


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## DuskDarkVoid (Apr 21, 2011)

The thing is, the wood was in the tank since I set it up and it never stained the tank, the color of the water changed after I put in the UV filter.


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## AbbeysDad (Mar 28, 2011)

okay...was your water green with algae before you fired up the UV device?
I mean UV kills algae and micro sized organisms - it won't turn clear water brown. It can turn green water brown, but if your water was green after only 4 weeks, something is way wrong and we need to uncover and solve the root cause of the problem.


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## DuskDarkVoid (Apr 21, 2011)

The water in my tank hasn't been green since I set up the tank. When I set up the tank I placed a bunch of mystery and ramshorn snails along with some plecos and other algae eaters in the tank.


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## AbbeysDad (Mar 28, 2011)

Well, heck of a mystery - UV light doesn't turn clear water brown.


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## DuskDarkVoid (Apr 21, 2011)

Yeah, I'm confused as to why that happened but ill just do the water changes for a couple of weeks and ill monitor the water with the UV thing on.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## 1077 (Apr 16, 2008)

AbbeysDad said:


> Thanks. Actually, I'm a bit surprised that the OP has green algae water after only 3-4 weeks with a new tank. I guess we might conclude that the lights are on too long and/or some other negative such as over feeding/excess detritus or insufficient water changes may enter into the equation here?
> 
> I have never used a UV sterilizer either. I tend to think that some algae growth, like having some snails, is a very good thing, but I have never been over-run with algae or had green water either. In theory, I suppose a UV sterilizer, in addition to 'cleaning' green water, could minimize or prevent fungus and parasite like critters in the water column. We'd likely agree this could be a good thing if the evil got past our other defenses.
> 
> AD


 
Yes UV sterilizer's have their purposes.
As I understand them, they are said to work a bit more proficient, with slower flow to allow more contact time with UV bulb.
Makes me wonder sometimes about Fish stores that say,, that their tanks water is treated by UV as it races through central system that feed's a row ,or several rows of tanks but Perhaps after several passes through,, the offending organisim's,pathogen's,pest's, are tired,, and can't get back up.
I too would look at lighting/organic solids, in that order and expieriment with less of both, to see if green water,algae, became less of an issue if that's why I was considering UV .

Some folk's,, convince themselves that they need R/O,UV, for it bring's them comfort, and or somebody else told them they need it .
Same with pH adjusting potion's, powder's, salt, CO2, Medication's .
All of these have a purpose if one understand's how they work.
Somewhere along the way while learning,, I discovered that plain old tapwater ,dechlorinator,and water changes aloowed me to keep quite a few species of fishes, and often times negated the need for much extra expense or effort.


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## 1077 (Apr 16, 2008)

DuskDarkVoid said:


> Yeah, I'm confused as to why that happened but ill just do the water changes for a couple of weeks and ill monitor the water with the UV thing on.
> _Posted via Mobile Device_


Again, without knowing How many Angelfish, and now Pleco's in the mix, I would feel comfortable with the 50 percent water changes daily for now and reduced feeding's .
I would see,, that no one else is feeding the fish that i did not know about?
Could be the tank is/was,, very nearly there with respect to establishing healthy bacteria population, but the waste from number's of fish,possible excess food,snail's,, albeit on smaller scale,,are hampering the bacteria's capabilities in such a young tank.
UV sterilizer maybe killed off some bacteria,algae, on wood or elsewhere and caused bloom of same, not sure how UV would distinguish between good /bad bacteria for I am happily ignorant of their Use.
If tank is holding more than a couple small juvenile plecos, or smaller variety of Pleco(s), and or more than a half dozen small, quarter size angelfish ,water can go south fairly quickly in young tank, and considering the growth of fishes mentioned,,the 50 percent water changes are perhaps something to get used to for these will need to continue at perhaps once week as the fishes grow.
Plant's would help with water quality considerably, but depending on species of bottom feeder's selected,,could make keepping plant's rooted in substrate difficult, and would therefore limit plant's to those attached to woodor rocks. IMHO.
Would not add any more fish to this tank for a couple month's were it me, (But it ain't)


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## DuskDarkVoid (Apr 21, 2011)

1077 said:


> Yes UV sterilizer's have their purposes.
> As I understand them, they are said to work a bit more proficient, with slower flow to allow more contact time with UV bulb.
> Makes me wonder sometimes about Fish stores that say,, that their tanks water is treated by UV as it races through central system that feed's a row ,or several rows of tanks but Perhaps after several passes through,, the offending organisim's,pathogen's,pest's, are tired,, and can't get back up.
> I too would look at lighting/organic solids, in that order and expieriment with less of both, to see if green water,algae, became less of an issue if that's why I was considering UV .
> ...


I might just try keeping Discus without the UV filter and see how it goes but I'll keep up with the water changes for now like you suggested. I won't be getting any new fish for a while until the tank settles down. All the angel fish died except one and the tank is planted. I have around 5 or 6 plecos in the tank but only one is big while the others are juvies.


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