Ammonia Off the Charts

[Scott Christenson]

Good morning reefers. I am reaching out for help with a long standing issue that is getting the better of me. I cannot figure out what is causing my ammonia issue.
I am using the hanna ammonia test device and the reading is off the chart, above 3.0ppm. The is has been happening for months now.
I have a skimmer, a reactor with high quality carbon, 2 different types of ammonia remover in media bags in my socks, another reactor with Dr. Tim's pearls.
I do a water change weekly with distilled water. I feed once per day with small pellets and I closely watch that as much food as possible is consumed. The bottom of the tank has crushed coral.
Please help!!

 

[blaxsun]

What do you all have for fish in the tank? Something that might be worth investing in is the Seachem Ammonia Alert Badge that you just suction cup to the side of your tank (if things are fluctuating as much as you say this could give you some early warnings). I might also get your LFS to test your ammonia separately just to rule out a testing error with the Hanna.

 

[Scott Christenson]

What do you all have for fish in the tank? Something that might be worth investing in is the Seachem Ammonia Alert Badge that you just suction cup to the side of your tank (if things are fluctuating as much as you say this could give you some early warnings). I might also get your LFS to test your ammonia separately just to rule out a testing error with the Hanna.

Thanks for the reply:
Fish:
1 Rainford Goby
1 Watchman Goby
1 Yellow Clown Goby
1 Yellow Watchman Shrimp Goby
2 Clownfish
1 Firefish Goby
1 Green Chromis
1 Green Mandarin Dragonet
1 Lyretail Anthias

 

[brandon429]

Nice false read, post a tank pic

this will be the first misread for that brand I’ve seen. The full tank shot will show fish position proof there’s no ammonia issue, water clarity proof, surface area proof, positioning of the cuc members proof (everybody isn’t hovered at the top, or dead, all proof)

here’s how ammonia works in a reef tank months old successfully carrying fish and feed and waste for months, where only the kit gives a worry: what seneye shows heh. That’s how it works, Google up anyone’s seneye read on a full reef. The other kits have nine different reasons, or relayed interpretation misses such as nh3 vs nh4, as the cause.

otherwise, the title wouldn’t be about a test reading not from seneye, it’d be about correcting massive loss in a cloudy smell tank where everything dies

 

[brandon429]

You’ve already delayed too long on the full tank shot, just wanted you to know that.

 

[blaxsun]

Thanks for the reply:
Fish:
1 Rainford Goby
1 Watchman Goby
1 Yellow Clown Goby
1 Yellow Watchman Shrimp Goby
2 Clownfish
1 Firefish Goby
1 Green Chromis
1 Green Mandarin Dragonet
1 Lyretail Anthias

Agree with @brandon429 - some or all of your fish would be dead with an ammonia reading that high. I didn't realize you had this many fish (which is why I inquired).

 

[brandon429]

Third question: has this caused you to buy repeatedly or supplement any bottle bac in response truly I’m studying this exact progression of events in a two year thread focused solely on the matter.


what I love about ammonia prediction in reefing: no outliers. Name another reef tank parameter we can measure without a test kit and land within a highly consistent rate for measures under a tenth of a ppm. Challenge: look at a reef tank pic and predict alk or calcium to that degree, I love ammonia fully even though on paper I do not understand it whatsoever.

 

[Scott Christenson]

You’ve already delayed too long on the full tank shot, just wanted you to know that.

Give me 10 minutes

 

[Scott Christenson]

Third question: has this caused you to buy repeatedly or supplement any bottle bac in response truly I’m studying this exact progression of events in a two year thread focused solely on the matter.


what I love about ammonia prediction in reefing: no outliers. Name another reef tank parameter we can measure without a test kit and land within a highly consistent rate for measures under a tenth of a ppm. Challenge: look at a reef tank pic and predict alk or calcium to that degree, I love ammonia fully even though on paper I do not understand it whatsoever.

 

[Scott Christenson]

I have probably been battling with this for 6 months. I tried going with the Dr. Tim's products to slowly enhance my bacteria fighting ability with no success.

 

[Lyss]

I think the Hanna ammonia checker is for freshwater — I’m not sure they make a saltwater version.

 

[MnFish1]

I have probably been battling with this for 6 months. I tried going with the Dr. Tim's products to slowly enhance my bacteria fighting ability with no success.

There is probably not a lot to add here - except nice looking tank! - And Your ammonia Is almost certainly 'normal'. OH and THIS - the Hanna Ammonia Checkers are of Freshwater only - at least the ones I see. This has been been discussed in other threads - with the same results of 3 ppm.

 

[Scott Christenson]

There is probably not a lot to add here - except nice looking tank! - And Your ammonia Is almost certainly 'normal'. OH and THIS - the Hanna Ammonia Checkers are of Freshwater only - at least the ones I see. This has been been discussed in other threads - with the same results of 3 ppm.

OH MY GOODNESS!!!! This whole time I have been using the wrong test kit!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I cannot believe this. I just assumed that a hanna test kit on brs was for saltwater. Thank you so much for your help, no I am going to go scream!!

 

[brandon429]

Scott that reef is just shockingly nice, it really is ideal in -every- way. 100% sure it never had an ammonia issue, not at any point in the whole life arc of the tank currently heading straight up in quality.

im now off searching for the kit details that could be making it misread, have you been adding prime in the response options, a known confound of ammonia kits/ just naming potentials

also, can you post a pic of the actual test reading if possible


*the issues in this thread are a core, core aspect of new cycling science vs the old ways that specifically teach doubt and repurchase. It is not found in anyone’s cycling manual the troubleshooting angle we use to proof safe ammonia levels using tank pics *and number of days underwater. If the writers of cycling rules included steadfast rules of surface area, verification markers we can simply see vs measure, and were always teaching us that filter bacteria were strong vs weak they’d get to sell us less product. I’m all conspiracy theory on why we don’t get new MACNA talks on cycling science trends available for free inspection, from any forum.

 

[brandon429]

Nice call on freshwater vs sw, before I even had time to click search.

 

[Scott Christenson]

Scott that reef is just shockingly nice, it really is ideal in -every- way. 100% sure it never had an ammonia issue, not at any point in the whole life arc of the tank currently heading straight up in quality.

im now off searching for the kit details that could be making it misread, have you been adding prime in the response options, a known confound of ammonia kits/ just naming potentials

also, can you post a pic of the actual test reading if possible


*the issues in this thread are a core, core aspect of new cycling science vs the old ways that specifically teach doubt and repurchase. It is not found in anyone’s cycling manual the troubleshooting angle we use to proof safe ammonia levels using tank pics *and number of days underwater. If the writers of cycling rules included steadfast rules of surface area, verification markers we can simply see vs measure, and were always teaching us that filter bacteria were strong vs weak they’d get to sell us less product. I’m all conspiracy theory on why we don’t get new MACNA talks on cycling science trends available for free inspection, from any forum.

Thanks for the nice comments Brandon. Idiot me was just informed that the hanna ammonia test kit from BRS is only for freshwater, now I feel stupid and am going to go scream and bang my head on the wall

 

[MnFish1]

Thanks for the nice comments Brandon. Idiot me was just informed that the hanna ammonia test kit from BRS is only for freshwater, now I feel stupid and am going to go scream and bang my head on the wall

One key lesson - here - which should apply to every test everyone does (including Apex, automatic tests, etc).

If you get a result that doesn't make sense or is unexpected - check and doublecheck your method and the test itself. Then verify the results with a second different brand test kit. BEFORE you do anything to your tank, etc.

The one exception I guess is lets say you have a power outage - 50 dying corals 3 dead fish - and you parameters are off - or you accidentally dump in 5 x the amount of alkalinity. Obviously - I would tend to trust 'out of range' results.

You can at least be happy that you have one 'monkey off your back' @Scott Christenson - and a great looking tank

 

[Scott Christenson]

One key lesson - here - which should apply to every test everyone does (including Apex, automatic tests, etc).

If you get a result that doesn't make sense or is unexpected - check and doublecheck your method and the test itself. Then verify the results with a second different brand test kit. BEFORE you do anything to your tank, etc.

The one exception I guess is lets say you have a power outage - 50 dying corals 3 dead fish - and you parameters are off - or you accidentally dump in 5 x the amount of alkalinity. Obviously - I would tend to trust 'out of range' results.

You can at least be happy that you have one 'monkey off your back' @Scott Christenson - and a great looking tank

Thank you, good advice

 

[brandon429]

No it’s ok it could have been so many other kits, my entire focus thread on misreads is from Red Sea ammonia and nobody agrees they misread as much as they do, if this was Red Sea I’d still be holding the same position but everyone would disagree-tanks presenting exactly like yours consider this proof assembly:

Sustained Ammonia spikes are misreads

The reason you think your reef tank can’t control its ammonia is due to false training from old cycling science. That and you don’t own a seneye on the tank in question: if you did, you wouldn’t ever think your ammonia was out of control...

www.reef2reef.com

(misread or lack of tan conversion?)


what ammonia does is so predictable no kit’s reading will trump the newly discovered rules. Yes we do have some seneye misreads too, just not half a million heh



if you re-polled every example entrant in that thread as to whether they had an ammonia issue, even after eighteen months hindsight/ nine more pages of all matching presentations, the resounding answer would be: yes, I never agreed with your assessment anyway.

the goal (or perhaps more fairly the result of the public not having access to digital nh3 readers) of old cycling science is to produce bacterial doubt, and it worked well for decades to produce doubt. And everywhere I ask, bottle bac were repurchased. Bottle bac sellers write the cycling rules


have you seen the back side of a dollar bill? Red team, go

it all ties together

 

[MnFish1]

No it’s ok it could have been so many other kits, my entire focus thread on misreads is from Red Sea ammonia and nobody agrees they misread as much as they do, if this was Red Sea I’d still be holding the same position but everyone would disagree, tanks presenting exactly like yours consider this proof assembly:

Brandon - I do not think you could find one person who would look at that tank and argue that there must be a problem with the test somewhere.

But - If you look at it honestly - just looking at the tank is also not 'the gold standard; Just like every other test (and looking at the tank is basically a visual test) - there will be exceptions and a margin of error.