What Should My Nitrite Be At Now?

[simonjonkman]

Hi .. I just did 4 50% water changes in 2 weeks.. the nitrIte started at 3.7 (nutrafin testing kit), after a water change, 1.6, then another, 0.6-7ish. I just did another. what should it be at now?


I really hope its at 0-0.2, as i reserved a rapheal catfish at my lfs.

 

[rdd1952]

If it was between .6 and .7, a 50% change should have dropped it to about .3 or .35. That does not mean you are ready for fish though. Lowering nitrite via water changes does not cycle the tank. As soon as you put the fish in, he will begin to produce waste/ammonia which should be transformed into nitrite if you have bacteria present to process the ammonia. What is your ammonia reading? Do you already have fish in the tank? If so, what kind and how many? What size tank is it? How long has the tank been set up?

 

[simonjonkman]

yes, i already have fish in the tank.. 3 red devils (planning to get rid of one, as i have a mating pair) and a pleco it is 48 gallons and my ammonia reading is 0, the tank has been set up for about a month now

 

[mark.w.jones]

If you have fish in the tank and are still getting nitrite readings then it is not finished cycling so is certainly not stable enough yet for new fish I'm afraid. Not what you want to hear but you'd ge gutted if your new catfish died over night in your tank cos it wasn't ready yet. Rather than 50% changes which are rather extreme and not good for your fishes stress levels. Why not do 20% changes every other day. Whilst your tank is cycling with fish you will struggle to keep nitrite near 0 for any length of time and as mentioned in fact you need some nitrite present in your water column if you want the bacteria that break it down to grow in your filter.

Unreserve your catfish and just be patient.

 

[rdd1952]

I would do 20% changes as often as needed (up to every 4 or 5 hours) tuntil the nitrite is below .25. Then do them s needed to keep them there until they go to zero on their own.