while treating Ich i have amonia spike

Discussion in 'Diseases' started by mazaj, Oct 11, 2010.

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  1. mazaj

    mazaj Feather Duster

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    im treating with hypo-salinity the whole tank, i have some live rock in there sand and fish. im noticing that the fish are not very active and their color is fading, the domino damsel has a missing piece from his tail. i tested the ammonia lvl is between 0.5 and 1.0, yesterday the pH was a bit high around 8.8.
    is water change the solution? (btw, it has been only 24hrs since i reached target salinity)
     
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  3. blackraven1425

    blackraven1425 Giant Squid

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    8.8 pH is really high. What salinity are you at? How did you measure it? How long was the tank set up for before you lowered the salinity, and over what period of time did you lower it? Was the rock "live" rock or "base" rock?
     
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  4. Corailline

    Corailline Super Moderator

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    It is a dry heat, yeah right !
    +1 to all of the above.

    What is the current SG of your tank and how are you measuring it ?

    Did you remove all inverts prior to the treatment and macro algaes.

    The affects of ammonia are going to increase significantly because of the elevated pH. Ammonia becomes much more toxic with elevated temperatures and pH.
     
  5. mazaj

    mazaj Feather Duster

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    the tank was 2 months old with live rock from another tank, salinity now is 1.008 and i dropped it over 3 days. the problem is i tested the pH when i started the process and it was 8.0. so i added some baking soda to the water while lowering salinity. i did not know how much baking soda i should use, apparently i overdosed the fish. how can i lower it? thanks
     
  6. blackraven1425

    blackraven1425 Giant Squid

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    Ok, let's try this again:

    How did you measure [the salinity]? How long was the tank set up for before you lowered the salinity, and over what period of time did you lower it? Was the rock "live" rock or "base" rock?
     
  7. mazaj

    mazaj Feather Duster

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    all inverts that i can see are out but isaw some dead worms spaghetti and bristle and also some small white stars.
     
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  9. Corailline

    Corailline Super Moderator

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    It is a dry heat, yeah right !
    Your target should have been 1.010. If you are not using a refreactometer to measure the SG you could have gone well passed that point.

    In the future only treat one problem with the tank at a time, that way you have an idea what maybe causing the problems.

    The ammonia is from the die off of the inverts. A pH of 8 is ideal and not something to treat.

    A water change is in order and you should SLOWLY bring up to at least 1.010.

    Good luck
     
  10. mazaj

    mazaj Feather Duster

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    i tested the salinity with a hydrometer, i dont have refractometer and i did not find a lfs close by that sells them, and if i buy a new 1 online shouldn't it be calibrated? the tank as i said before it was running for 2 months before dropping salinity. i read the article about hypo-salinity and is suggests 1.008-1.009 salinity. i will do a water change and see, thanks all for the help
     
  11. blackraven1425

    blackraven1425 Giant Squid

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    Was the rock already live when you dropped the salinity, or was it base rock?

    Live rock means you killed off a whole bunch of stuff with the salinity drop, and that caused part of your ammonia problem. The other half is the high pH, which as corailline said, raises the toxicity of ammonia.
     
  12. Bloodkip

    Bloodkip Ritteri Anemone

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    You should get a refractometer now, a hydrometer is inaccurate. Your 1.008-1.009 is not really 1.008-1.009. The refractometer on ebay work.