Have I done everything I needed to do?

[jaylach]

But are they as high as before the water changes? By the photo of your test strip above it will only read up to 200 PPM and your actual nitrate level may even be higher going by the deep red color. It may take several water changes to get the nitrates low enough to actually show a difference on the test strip. I assume that the strips are not expired...

To be honest, at a nitrate level of 200+ PPM, I'm surprised that fish are not dying faster. As an example one of my favorite fish are Panda Garra. With them a nitrate level of 20 PPM is pretty much fatal. Assuming that your test strips are fairly accurate you are over 200 PPM. This is fatal to almost anything.

Keep doing the water changes and eventually you will start to see the nitrates drop. You may even want to go to 75% water changes.

I'm curious... before this discussion did you do water changes? If so, how often and how much? Also, did you add anything to the tank shortly before the issue?

Sorry to say this but I expect everything in the tank to die or, at least, have much shortened life spans as I'm sure, at your apparent nitrate levels, damage has been done.

 

[VioletThePurple]

But are they as high as before the water changes? By the photo of your test strip above it will only read up to 200 PPM and your actual nitrate level may even be higher going by the deep red color. It may take several water changes to get the nitrates low enough to actually show a difference on the test strip. I assume that the strips are not expired...

To be honest, at a nitrate level of 200+ PPM, I'm surprised that fish are not dying faster. As an example one of my favorite fish are Panda Garra. With them a nitrate level of 20 PPM is pretty much fatal. Assuming that your test strips are fairly accurate you are over 200 PPM. This is fatal to almost anything.

Keep doing the water changes and eventually you will start to see the nitrates drop. You may even want to go to 75% water changes.

I'm curious... before this discussion did you do water changes? If so, how often and how much? Also, did you add anything to the tank shortly before the issue?

Sorry to say this but I expect everything in the tank to die or, at least, have much shortened life spans as I'm sure, at your apparent nitrate levels, damage has been done.

Okay, the situation's not as dire as I thought. Turns out the test strips are expired. I didn't realize they could expire. I know my test kit isn't expired as those bottles don't expire until 2027. My real nitrates are 20 ppm, which is an improvement from how bad they were before. I actually didn't do water changes before because I just assumed the plants would take care of everything and that test kits are just a waste of time. Like I said, I did add new fish in, which I guess can cause a strain on a tank.

 

[jaylach]

Okay, the situation's not as dire as I thought. Turns out the test strips are expired. I didn't realize they could expire. I know my test kit isn't expired as those bottles don't expire until 2027. My real nitrates are 20 ppm, which is an improvement from how bad they were before. I actually didn't do water changes before because I just assumed the plants would take care of everything and that test kits are just a waste of time. Like I said, I did add new fish in, which I guess can cause a strain on a tank.

OK, the results probably explain why your corys are still alive as they can tolerate nitrate levels up to 40 PPM. That does NOT mean that it is good for them. Keep doing the water changes at 50% until the nitrates are below 10 PPM; aim for 5 PPM. Use water changes to keep at the lower level.

Keep in mind that, even if the nitrates show as low as 5 PPM, you still need to do water changes as they are the best way to dilute other toxins that won't even show on any test.

Fish are animals and need proper conditions just like any other animal. I suggest that, in the future, you research the needs of any future fish or ask here before adding to the population. Different species need different conditions and it is our responsibility to supply such. It is VERY import that all fish in a tank need the same, or at least close, water conditions.

I hope that my posts were at least a little bit helpful.