please, need help with ammonia spike...

[kimura]

ok, i went on vacation for 2 days and i guess something happened to my wet/dry. the fiber at inside the filter got plugged and some water started bypassing some of the bioballs. when i came back all the fish looked fine..... no panting or irratic swimming but when i checked the ammonia levels it was off the chart. i immediately cleaned the prefiler, replaced the clogged filter pad, did a 60 gallon water change and treated the tank with prime and amquel. i check it the next morning and its still high so i add 3 packs of bio spirilla incase i lost some bacteria in the process and it still hasnt gone down. so i do another 60 gallon water change and using prime and whats left of my amquel and it STILL wont come down.

this is a 240 gallon tank filtered with a wet/dry and a fluval 304. i checked all my other levels: nitrite 0, nitrate 5-10, ph 6.4 but i cant figure out the ammonia issue. is my test kit still detecting the "safe" ammonia that the amquel rendered ok. did i loose some bacteria? and if so why didnt the bio spirilla fix this? is it possible the ammonia was too high and killed the bio spirilla bacteria before they could get a foot hold? i used my test kit on another tank it seemed fine so i cant blame a faulty test kit.

so what should i do? i was planning on rescaping my 75 gallon anyways, so should i borrow its filter for a bit while i do the rescaping. its a mature fluval 404 so im sure this would help....... any ideas......


this tanks is filled with balas, rainbows and an assortment of botias..... if it matters.

thanks

[shari2]

Did you check the water you used for your water changes? Do you use tap water? I killed a small 20g with a large water change due to the change in the tap water. Dechlorinated as usual, but the chlorine levels must have been off the chart because it decimated my tank of inhabitants and melted all my plants down to stubs.

I sympathise. When water issues arise and you can't seem to isolate the problem it is very scary. Especially in a well established formerly healthy tank.

[libingboy]

i believe amquel and prime will still cause your ammonia test kit to give out a positive reading... you can check out seachem's FAQ for prime to confirm what i seem to recall...

[kimura]

my tap water is fine because i got the spike before i ever changed any water. i guess i could test it prior to changing it but i always treat it with prime anyways. im using the freshwater master test kit they sell at all major pet chains. the amquel says it can give false readings with a test kit that has a kessler regeants... checking that now but i doubt thats it either........

[shari2]

If the fish are behaving normally and you see no other signs of ammonia poisoning, it may be that it's just the test readings due to the additives...I hope.

[kimura]

went in to petsmart...... the only "chain" petstore i will shop at and had them test my water for ammonia and hardness since i dont have a tester for that. the ammonia was fine so i guess my test kit was still picking up the non toxix form. she used a dip stick from a different company so that may be why...... anyways........

lessoned learned...... dont forget to clean you prefilters on your wet/dry every few days........i am certainly breathing a sigh of relief right now........ i had called in sick to work to deal with this....... at least now i have time to rescape my 75 gallon......


thanks for the help

[shari2]

Glad to hear it

Have fun with the rescaping. That's my favorite part of the hobby.