# what are the best levels?



## missmanatee (Dec 25, 2010)

Hey, i was just wondering/ wanted to check, what are the best levels of nitrate, nitrite, and ammonia in a tank currently i have a ten gallon tank with about 10 platties and it is planted. my current levels are 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite, and 0 nitrate. is this okay? if not what can i do to fix this???? thanks!:fish-in-a-bag:


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## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

That is good. Usually there is some nitrates, assuming the other readings are zero.

How long has the tank been running and when did you add fish?


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## missmanatee (Dec 25, 2010)

my tank has been running for almost a year and i added fish about 2-3 every week or so after i had run the tank for a week with nothing in it


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## beaslbob (May 29, 2009)

missmanatee said:


> Hey, i was just wondering/ wanted to check, what are the best levels of nitrate, nitrite, and ammonia in a tank currently i have a ten gallon tank with about 10 platties and it is planted. my current levels are 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite, and 0 nitrate. is this okay? if not what can i do to fix this???? thanks!:fish-in-a-bag:




Hu been running a year huh?

D*** don't fix what's not broken. *old dude


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## PolymerTim (Sep 22, 2009)

missmanatee said:


> my tank has been running for almost a year and i added fish about 2-3 every week or so after i had run the tank for a week with nothing in it


Sounds about perfect to me. In any stable, healthy tank the ammonia and nitrite should be 0. The nitrate level depends on a couple things. In a non-planted tank, the only thing that consumes nitrates is algae, which most people scrub off, so it just builds up until they do a partial water change to get rid of it. But in a planted tank, the plants consume the nitrates.

jrman asked the key question of time, because a brand new tank (<4-8 weeks old) will also often have 0 nitrates because the cycle has not yet run its course:
The Aquarium Nitrogen Cycle

It sounds like your tank has been running plenty long enough to have stabilized and the combination of your plants, beneficial bacterial colonies, and whatever maintenance/cleanings/water changes you've been performing have kept your tank chemistry great.


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## NeonShark666 (Dec 13, 2010)

Something is wrong with your tests. Nitrates should always be above zero. Once a tank is fully cycled ammonia and nitrites are only in your tank temporarily. Nitrates are their final destination. Nitrates are only removed through plant growth or water changes. Your tank is approaching being overcrowded. Don't add anymore fish! There's an old rule in aquarium keeping about having an inch fish per gallon of water. This is a conservative rule but following it will keep your fish happy and healthy.


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## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

I guess it depends on heavily planted the tank is.....


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## beaslbob (May 29, 2009)

NeonShark666 said:


> Something is wrong with your tests. *Nitrates should always be above zero.* Once a tank is fully cycled ammonia and nitrites are only in your tank temporarily. Nitrates are their final destination. Nitrates are only removed through plant growth or water changes. Your tank is approaching being overcrowded. Don't add anymore fish! There's an old rule in aquarium keeping about having an inch fish per gallon of water. This is a conservative rule but following it will keep your fish happy and healthy.


In a properly planted tank long past the initial cycle with no dosing, Fw or marine, nitrates should be 0.

some will dose nitrates to help cyano but absent that dosing, nitrates should be 0.

Nitrates can and will bump up with tanks "shocks" like fish deaths, overfeeding, new fish added, etc. But in an established balanced aquarium generally they will be unmeasureable along with phosphates also.

my .02


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## Gizmo (Dec 6, 2010)

I could see having a heavily planted tank with a medium-sized bio load where the nitrates could be zero, especially with PWC's factored in. My 30 gallon is overgrown and I have about 20 fish and 30 shrimp in there, but my plants consume all the nitrates they put out. Did a water test yesterday before a PWC and my nitrates were at 5 ppm.

You might want to consider not vacuuming your gravel, if you are doing that, because plants like nitrates for nitrogen. If there's no nitrates in your tank, your plants are consuming everything, and the fact that they deplete the concentration to zero means they are being limited by the amount of nitrate. Find ways to augment your nitrate concentration, and your plants will take off.

At the same time, don't overdose your tank on nitrates. Fish can tolerate them in relatively high concentrations, but nitrates are still not that healthy for them. In the planted tank world, you need to find a balance between making your fish uncomfortable, and inhibiting your plants` growth.


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## roacan (Dec 25, 2010)

May I ask what you are using to test the water?
I used to use strips and it always showed me that everything is OK. Then I learned here that it is not accurate so I bought the liquid test kit and it showed problems in my tank.

You had too much food on 26Dec.


missmanatee said:


> help! i went away for the week and my neighbors took care of my 10 gallon freshwater tank. i have about 10 platys in it that were all doing very well. my neighbors feed them way too much! there is food every where! in the gravel, on the plants, and floating around!! the fish are all fine but the water is a little brown. what is the quickest way to get rid of the food i have already done two partial water changes. thanks for the help!:fish-in-bowl::fish-in-bowl::fish-in-bowl:


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## PolymerTim (Sep 22, 2009)

[email protected] said:


> You might want to consider not vacuuming your gravel, if you are doing that, because plants like nitrates for nitrogen. If there's no nitrates in your tank, your plants are consuming everything, and the fact that they deplete the concentration to zero means they are being limited by the amount of nitrate. Find ways to augment your nitrate concentration, and your plants will take off.


That advice assumes the OP wants more plant growth. If the plants are healthy and the OP is happy with their level of growth, then I don't see any reason to change anything. So I guess there are two questions here for the OP:
-Do the plants look healthy?
-Do you want them to grow faster?


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## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

Like what has been said.....if the tank has been going a year and all inhabitants are healthy....don't mess with it.


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## missmanatee (Dec 25, 2010)

the tank is pretty heavily planted and they look healthy to me. i had not ben vacuming the gravel untill just recently but i will stop now. also i have a liquid test kit. and just if you read my other post my food issue is gone.


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## AbadHabit (Sep 9, 2010)

:dolphin:How often do you change the water? You might not need to change or vacuum the water untill you get some readings. I have grown my aquariums full of plants and took a nitrate test and was down to 5ppm. But never had 0 unless I was cycling a tank and did a water change. I have just moved everything in my 29 & 10 into a 55. So no cycle. Ammonia less than .025,( little spike, but 0 now), 0 nitrites, and nitrates 10ppm. ( picture ) Checked it today and it was 7.0 ph - 0 ammonia - 0 nitrites - 10ppm nitrates. I have 60 fish in the 55 and it is moderately planted. Light is the key to excellent plants. And I use Flourish once a week. I have leaves floating, that in a week, start a root system. ( picture ) I have been giving rooted plants away for the last 6 months, and in about 2 weeks I'll be doing it again. Your at the right spot to get a larger aquarium. *o2 It is nice when you don't have to wait or worry about your new tank to cycle. And the fish do love the room and plants. Happy Tanking.. And Merry New Year To All (And Our Aquatic Freinds!)*W


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## mfgann (Oct 21, 2010)

Nitrates are a natural product of the fish waste after it is converted by the beneficial bacteria in your aquarium. Without enough plantlife the nitrates will increase until a water change is necessary, as they can have adverse effects on fish once they get to about 40ppm and above. If you have enough plantlife your plants will consume all the nitrates your fish produce, sometimes so fast you can never even get a reading. This is a good thing.

There are a few schools of thought that are floating around. One is that once you get to that point, you're done. You feed the fish, the fish feed the plants, and you don't have to change the water.

Another is that you still want more growth from your plants, and you need to add more nitrates. To push this growth you will want to get a CO2 system up and dose fertilizers, and have lots of light. Some plants require this kind of system to thrive, most will survive well in what you have, but may be slower growing.

The only other thing I can think of is that sometimes some trace elements are depleted by the plants that will not be provided by the fish. If you have plants that seem to be browning, or sickly, you may need to do water changes or add a trace fertilizer (like Flourish Trace). Or perhaps for a heavy rooting plant like a sword you might want a root tab under it.

Basically if you're happy with your plants the way they are, you're dandy, and the fact that they consume all the nitrates is just fine. It will keep them from growing much bigger at a fast rate, but they don't need to be any bigger if you don't care.

Good luck


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## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

AbadHabit said:


> :dolphin:I have 60 fish in the 55 and it is moderately planted.


I like when people overstock (by most people's defintion) their tanks and make it work with the right balance of plants and filtration. My 75 will soon be that way. It's approaching 100, but right now there are some pretty small fry in it. But....it's planted and there are two big canisters on it.


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## AbadHabit (Sep 9, 2010)

:fish10: This is my 55 now. When the plants grow out mor I will get a few more fish to add to schools. Nice 75 jrman83. Try to get me a 100 at the end of next year. I know we all have a fish (wish) list.*w3


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