High Nitrite Level V Chlorine

[baldeagle]

hi,

am currently experiancing high nitrite levels in my tank, but am at odds whether to change it as soon as i discover it, or wait untill my water has dechlorinated! whats more dangerous? chlorine or nitrite?

it's Bank Holiday weekend so no pet shops open untill tuesday so can't get dechlorinater tablets!

Advice greatfully received.

Thanks

 

[Randi]

How high is your nitrite? If you leave your tap water sitting out for 24 hours the chlorine will evaporate but I would test it first, or you could use bottled water.

 

[fluttermoth]

Tricky question and I'm not sure which is most toxic. You can remove the chlorine from your water by boiling it though.

 

[baldeagle]

How high is your nitrite? If you leave your tap water sitting out for 24 hours the chlorine will evaporate but I would test it first, or you could use bottled water.

Nitrite level is currently at 0,4.

Water has been standing for about 12 hours

 

[Randi]

At .4 ppm I would wait until I could get some dechlorinator, but that's just me. This will stress your fish.

 

[StandbySetting]

Nitrite is definitely worse than Chlorine, the Chlorine in the water you're adding wont have a significant effect on your filter, the colony in a biological filter is huge, the concentration of Chlorine in tap water isn't capable of doing too much damage to the filter, it may irritate the fish some what, but I and others have been doing large water changes for years without dechlorinator, do a 50% water change.

 

[OldMan47]

As has already been said, you can drive off chlorine by boiling the water. The first bubbles you see when you boil water are not steam, they are all of the dissolved gasses. If you do it that way let the water drop to room temperature and run an air stone for a while to stir the water and get oxygen back into it. You certainly do not want to use water devoid of oxygen in a tank with fish in it.

 

[baldeagle]

Does my water dechlorinate if it is in a seal container?

or does it need air?

 

[baldeagle]

it's been 12 hours! I've changed about30% of the water and nitrite is down to 0.1.

am not feeding the fish today, and will do another water change tomorrow, hopefully this will sort the problem.