High ammonia... can't get rid of it .. someone please help

[Byron]

OK, my suggestions.

Do a weekly water change of 60-70% of the tank volume. Use a good conditioner, I use API Tap Water Conditioner because it is effective and you use very little. You could use Prime, at least for now, though with no ammonia, nitrite or nitrate in the tap water this is still not the answer. These are occurring within the tank, and that is what you want to rectify.

Don't use the Colony stuff. Some of these have been known to increase ammonia.

Monitor ammonia and nitrates. You want the nitrates down below 20 ppm. During water changes, use the changer to poke into the substrate and remove as much of the mulm/detritus as you can. Also rinse the filter media, if you have a filter with removable media.

Feed sparingly.

Try to pin down the GH of your water supply. Check the website of the water authority, or call them. Get the number and the unit of measurement so we can work this out. This is not the ammonia/nitrate issue, but it does impact fish and that means additional stress which only makes other issues more of an issue.

 

[seangee]

There is 1 mollie
Around 10 cardinals
4 black widow
6 small fish sorry again not sure what they are
7 rummy nose tetras
2 guppy
1 tiger pleck(only a tiny baby)
Around 6 neons
Another 6 small fish that I'm not sure on what they are.. sorry I should really know all my fish
And that is one thing I have not checked is the hardness of the water... one of my neighbers has been helping me with my tank and what he said Is the water is a little hard where we are

Yes tap water is 0 nitrate

Just tested normal PH..... I done a water change not long ago... and it's now showing 7.6 on normal PH....

I'm afraid that is too many fish for a 22G. You also need to check on the actual hardness to help decide what you wish to keep. Guppies need hard water, Mollies need very hard water (and the tank is too small for mollies). Most of the other fish you mention will do better in soft water.

The Tiger Plec needs a minimum of a 55G tank, he won't stay a tiny baby for long.
Black widows need to be in a much bigger group and are renowned fin nippers.
You do need to identify the rest of the fish to understand what is best for them. If you post pictures on here someone can probably help with this.

 

[Byron]

I agree with Seangee. I always seem to be telling members to get rid of fish, but I do agree this tank is overstocked because of thee species even more than the numbers. Knowing the GH will help decide what should go.

 

[Ryan231211]

Thank you so much for your advice I'm really greatfull

I've just tested my results again...
PH 7.6
Ammonia 1ppm
Nitrite 0ppm
And for some reason my nitrates has jumped up to 80ppm
Not sure why that is as there is no nitrates in the tap water ..
Would you suggest another water change tonight? And if so how much water should I take out?

 

[Ryan231211]

And I thought my tank could have to many fish... I just was following what my pet shop was saying and they said all these fish was fine in my size tank... I suppose they just wanted a sale ....

 

[Byron]

Thank you so much for your advice I'm really greatfull

I've just tested my results again...
PH 7.6
Ammonia 1ppm
Nitrite 0ppm
And for some reason my nitrates has jumped up to 80ppm
Not sure why that is as there is no nitrates in the tap water ..
Would you suggest another water change tonight? And if so how much water should I take out?

This (nitrates) is most likely due to the organic load from the fish. Follow my recommendations in post #16. You can do a major water change (meaning the 60-70% of tank volume) every day if needed to get nitrates down below 20 ppm and as low as possible. Zero would be ideal, but most tanks have some nitrates, mine run on the 0 to 5 ppm range. Water change, substrate vacuuming during, filter cleaning...all these remove organics. And the fish need to be thinned out but one thing at a time.

 

[Ryan231211]

Thank you so much for all of your help... I'm so greatfull... I really appreciate it.. I now know I can do large water changes as I just was not sure if it was safe to do a water change over 50%

 

[seangee]

Until this is sorted out you should really cut back on your feeding too. Twice a week is enough and no more than they can finish in about a minute.

Your fish won't starve - but ammonia will kill them or cause serious health issues for the rest of their lives.

 

[Ryan231211]

Thank you for the advice.. I cut back feeding to once every other day.as I was told to by someone I know who has kept fish for 20 years.. he also said to me that I should feed twice a week and that they won't starve.. my pet shop told me that I needed to feed every day or they would die... I think I have been getting a lot of wrong advice from my pet shop .... glad I found this group... I'm learning so much already

 

[Essjay]

Unfortunately you are finding out the hard way that shop workers cannot be trusted. So many of them know nothing about fish and have been trained only in how to sound convincing, and how to make a sale. This applies both to general pet shops that sell fish and to fish-only shops.

Also be slightly wary of old time fishkeepers. Things change in every area of life and the old timers may not have kept up with the changes. I have been keeping fish for 20 years and am still learning.


Now that you have found us you'll get honest advice, we aren't trying to sell you anything

 

[Ryan231211]

Yes I think you are deffinetly right there... I am new to this fish keeping and I turned to them for advice but now I'm convinced they was just trying to sell me stuff... so glad I found you all.. you have all been so brilliant and kind already... people sound great on here trying to help people.. I won't be asking the pet shop for advice again..

 

[Byron]

I was in a local fish store one day and happened to overhear the worst advice being given, and I hesitated but then intervened as politely as I could. Fortunately the sales person didn't seem to mind, and after a few ideas from me actually began endorsing what I was saying. But that is not always the case. But I like fish, and see no point in remaining silent when someone is being advised to do them harm, unintentional though the bad advice may be; but the fish is still going to suffer and may die because of it.

I also have stores where the staff came to know me, and have even hunted me down in the store to answer a question for another customer. I was lucky when I started in this hobby in a serious way back in the 1980's to have gone into a fish store owned and staffed by knowledgeable hobbyists. I had the same good fortune after I moved to Vancouver in the 1990's. Unfortunately both are gone now, but I do count myself lucky.

Like essjay, I continue to learn even after 25-30 years of fish keeping. And I never tire of research in areas I am interested in, which are fish habitat, species taxonomy and ichthyology.

 

[Alliesten]

Hi there. I have been reading through this post. The main reason your ammonia is so high, is because your tank is overstocked.

First thing is, to get some Seachem Prime. It will detoxify your ammonia, keeping your fish safe. It works up to 1ppm of ammonia. I wouldn’t get any other dechlorinator. Tetra Aquasafe does work okay, but you need a different product for your tank.

Second is to make sure your filter is large enough for your tank. I would add an air driven sponge filter, to try and grow some additional bacteria. More surface area, more bacteria, more efficient nitrogen cycle.

To keep your ammonia and nitrates down, you need to do more frequent water changes. I would do a 50-75% water change, two to three times a week. This is because you are overstocked. Too many fish, not enough space, causes these issues.

I would also rehome or return some fish. The tiger Pleco is a huge waste producer, even as a baby. It needs to be returned. I would also return the black widow tetras. They need to be kept in schools of 6 or more. You don’t have the correct numbers and your tank can’t support more fish. The 12 unidentifiable small fish, should also be returned or rehomed. This will get your fish down to a manageable level, and your water parameters will level out.

The last thing I would do is to do a full set of water parameters on your tap water. Tap can have ammonia in it also, and so far you have only said there are no nitrates. What about ammonia?

 

[Ryan231211]

Hello again just a quick update..

I changed about 75% of the water this moring.... was not much water left in the tank... i have left it to settle.. i tested for ammonia and it has not budged at all... still over 50... surley it should of gotten rid of a lot of ammonia with a 75% water change.... am I wrong? Or is this normal? Thanks in advance guys

 

[Byron]

Hello again just a quick update..

I changed about 75% of the water this moring.... was not much water left in the tank... i have left it to settle.. i tested for ammonia and it has not budged at all... still over 50... surley it should of gotten rid of a lot of ammonia with a 75% water change.... am I wrong? Or is this normal? Thanks in advance guys

Do you mean ammonia at 5.0 ppm? 50 ppm is not likely.

You did not answer about the tap water, do they use chlorine only, or chloramine?