- Joined
- Jul 16, 2014
- Messages
- 28,449
- Location (City and/or State)
- South Eastern Florida (U.S.A.)/Rock Hill S.C.
A few months ago, I set up two fish ponds out of pools.
They are about 1,400 gallons filled. And the rain has them FULL.
I have smallish 950gph pumps in each pond feeding spray bars that dump into home made gravity filters of my own design. They have been working fine. So fine that I'd gotten lazy about water testing aside from PH.
One side has a very, very large Jaguar cichlid. His water is just great. No Ammonia. No Nitrites and no Nitrates. I was thinking I'd have to upgrade to a higher flow pump. But so far, so good.
The other pond has 5 large Midas Cichlids in it.
Yesterday I found a dead Midas floating. He looked perfect. Obviously not killed in a fight.
I tested the water.
A trace of ammonia. (Almost none) the same trace of Nitrite. But a BIG bunch of NITRATE. Like over 30ppm.
I immediately dumped about half the water and placed a pillow sized sachet of activated carbon into the filter box for the stink and polution
..I was thinking NITRATE POISONING.
But, with no ammonia or Nitrite. How could I have such a high Nitrate level?
It puzzled me.
Now I'm guessing that the fish died for some other reason. He floated in there in the heat for maybe 48 hours (or more) and the dead fish was the sole cause of my high Nitrates.
Does that theory make sense?
I'm very curious.
I'll do another water test in 24 hours.
Thanks
They are about 1,400 gallons filled. And the rain has them FULL.
I have smallish 950gph pumps in each pond feeding spray bars that dump into home made gravity filters of my own design. They have been working fine. So fine that I'd gotten lazy about water testing aside from PH.
One side has a very, very large Jaguar cichlid. His water is just great. No Ammonia. No Nitrites and no Nitrates. I was thinking I'd have to upgrade to a higher flow pump. But so far, so good.
The other pond has 5 large Midas Cichlids in it.
Yesterday I found a dead Midas floating. He looked perfect. Obviously not killed in a fight.
I tested the water.
A trace of ammonia. (Almost none) the same trace of Nitrite. But a BIG bunch of NITRATE. Like over 30ppm.
I immediately dumped about half the water and placed a pillow sized sachet of activated carbon into the filter box for the stink and polution
..I was thinking NITRATE POISONING.
But, with no ammonia or Nitrite. How could I have such a high Nitrate level?
It puzzled me.
Now I'm guessing that the fish died for some other reason. He floated in there in the heat for maybe 48 hours (or more) and the dead fish was the sole cause of my high Nitrates.
Does that theory make sense?
I'm very curious.
I'll do another water test in 24 hours.
Thanks