Nitrites in Water

[ProtegeRacer]

We have well water, just out of curiosity I checked the levels of amonie and nitrites and chlorine, I was very pleased to find no ammonia and no Chlorine but I found that there are Nitrites in the water, will this mess up any water changes I do? What is the most of a water change I should do at that rate with the 3ppm nitrites in the water?

 

[Bol]

What is the most of a water change I should do at that rate with the 3ppm nitrites in the water?

Personally, I'd say "none" I would strongly look into ways of pre-conditioning the water before putting it into the tank.

But, if you really had to use that water, and couldn't pre-condition it, I wouldn't change more than 10% of the water at a time.

 

[ger87410]

The nitrites are extremely high. Take some of your water to your local lfs and have them test it. If the nitrites are still real high, treat it somehow before you use it and/or use high quality bottle water. (Because of our tap water quality, we have to use 70% bottled water to 30% treated tap water in all of our water changes to keep our ph and hardness and alkalinity just right.) A extremely cheap way of treating the nitrites would probaly be putting them in some sort of tank and let the beneficial bacteria convert it into nitrates. Then you would have too many nitrates though... My advice is just use bottled water treated to the settings where you want them.

 

[ProtegeRacer]

alrighty thank you

 

[ProtegeRacer]

Just out of curiosity. When youa re doing a fishless cycle would that 3.0 ppm of nitrites in any way help to speed that process of cycling up at all being as there will already be nitrites in the water?

 

[ger87410]

If you are just starting the cycling process, theoretically the nitrite already being present in the water would give the bacteria that converts the nitrite to nitrate something to eat allowing them to grow sooner. In theory. In practise, I have no idea.