Seachem Prime For Nitrite Spike

[kerrythomas]

I have a 150 Litre tank (UK Litres) which has been cycling for several weeks now and I am finally getting a nitrite spike. I am carrying out regular water changes with Prime as a water conditioner only to keep levels down but have read on the bottle you can add up to five times the dose in an emergency. My question is this - does that mean five times the total aquarium volume ie dose for 750 litres or 5 times the amount used in your new water to condition?

 

[ZoddyZod]

depends how you are currently adding the Prime to the tank. If you are adding directly to the tank, then yes 5x the volume of the tank. If you are adding it to the water you are changing before adding the water to the tank, then 5x the volume of that bucket.

However, if you are cycling without fish, I dont see the need to overdose on Prime.

 

[kerrythomas]

depends how you are currently adding the Prime to the tank. If you are adding directly to the tank, then yes 5x the volume of the tank. If you are adding it to the water you are changing before adding the water to the tank, then 5x the volume of that bucket.

However, if you are cycling without fish, I dont see the need to overdose on Prime.

 

[kerrythomas]

depends how you are currently adding the Prime to the tank. If you are adding directly to the tank, then yes 5x the volume of the tank. If you are adding it to the water you are changing before adding the water to the tank, then 5x the volume of that bucket.

However, if you are cycling without fish, I dont see the need to overdose on Prime.

Unfortunately I am doing a fish in cycle, tank was already well established but we went away on holiday and when we came back something had happened and ammonia levels were spiking again. it has taken approximately six weeks to get to this stage and the fish are hanging on although I think they are suffering effects of nitrite poisoning because they are extremely listless and hiding in the corners of the tank. The major problem is that I have a couple of Discus in there which are not at all happy at the minute & I am trying to figure out the best course of action for them. Any ideas??

 

[anon02]

Water changes are the best emergency measures for lowering toxins, as many as are required to get the readings down to zero, you should investigate to find the cause of the spike and put it right asap
The effects of ammonia and nitrite intoxication are not always immediately apparent and I suspect that quite a few keepers who have sudden unexplained fish deaths could trace a past spike if they thought back