Nitrates are a PITA

[Heatheranne]

Decay is a good possibility.

[rodsboys]

Maybe your test kit is no good. There should be no reason for those readings based on everything your doing. There could very well be issues with the water supply where you are too due melt/run off etc.

[mpmistr]

API Master Kits are considered accurate, probably the best test you can get at a reasonable price.

If the test is in error check the expiration date on the bottle.. make sure you add the water to the line. I would heavily shake both bottles and REALLY REALLY shake the second nitrate test bottle, as it tends to crystallize.

Add 10 drops of bottle 1, swish it a few times so it mixes with the water, add 10 drops of bottle 2 and swish it around some more until it's mixed together with the water. Let it sit about 5 minutes and look.

Water wisteria is very good at sucking up nitrate and is a fast growing plant, so is water sprite and pennywort but they all 'eat' nitrates about the same. If you are getting high nitrates still (and it sounds like you're doing everything right) I would check to see if something is 'dead' in that tank, a fish or something may be rotting in there under an ornament. Maybe you should just do a complete inventory of what's in the tank and look for something that may be suspect. Wanna take a picture of the tank? Any driftwood in there? Perhaps it is rotting?

A 29 gallon tank is quite adequate for a single clawed frog, so we know it's not water volume. The filtration may be suspect but I don't know much about Eclipse filters.. how did your Cichlids die? 8 years is a very mature tank, did you have these problems with your previous fishes? Were there any premature deaths there? I would not panic but something is certainly 'odd' here.

[deranged chipmunk]

Decay is a good possibility.

decay should be accompanied by high ammonia and nitrites, not nitrate. the only thing i can suggest is feed less and add more plants

[reptileszz]

OK, so just now did 15 gallons which is about 50%. 5 min. later I did the test and guess what. It's coming up the same. Sill 40ppm. Same color. My husband says it even looks darker. How is that even possible? So 3 buckets of water later I get nowhere, nowhere, nowhere. I might as well have not have bothered. I hereby give up. He seems fine with it so I guess that's just the way it's going to be.

Thanks for all the advice,
Carole

[reptileszz]

OK, so here's a thought, is my biological filtration too well established? Should I scrape off some of this biowheel thing? There is also a fair amount of buildup of algae inside the filter and tubing and stuff. Should I scrape that all out? I thought it was good to have it there but maybe not. I should also mention that I have 5 small nerite snails in there to take care of any algae and I did remove the aforementioned pleco.

Thanks

[Hidr]

Can you get some duckweed or water lettuce? These are fast growing and really good for the water. Also how many plants do you have? Your tank should have not just lots of plants but so many your fish/frogs can get lost in the tank. There is a picture of mine in the ADF picture thread to give you an idea about how many plants.
I am like your going to let my fish population die off naturally and go to just adf's in my 55 gallon.
Good luck

[reptileszz]

Can you get some duckweed or water lettuce? These are fast growing and really good for the water. Also how many plants do you have? Your tank should have not just lots of plants but so many your fish/frogs can get lost in the tank. There is a picture of mine in the ADF picture thread to give you an idea about how many plants.
I am like your going to let my fish population die off naturally and go to just adf's in my 55 gallon.
Good luck

I can most likely get duckweed or the lettuce this week. Not today unfortunately. I dont think I have too many plants at all. I just have some of the wisteria floating on top. It sits in a clump taking up maybe half a gallon of space.

Thank you

[mpmistr]

OK, so here's a thought, is my biological filtration too well established?

Algae is of itself is not a bad thing, algae does not increase nitrates. In fact algae becomes established because it is a response to nitrates and excess in the water (algae like plants, feed off of it). What color is this algae?

Should I scrape off some of this biowheel thing?

Rinse it in old tank water, if it has a lot of build up.

There is also a fair amount of buildup of algae inside the filter and tubing and stuff. Should I scrape that all out?

Algae? Probably organic gunk built up, after 8 years it may very well be excessive. I would use a pipe cleaner brush to clean them out.

I thought it was good to have it there but maybe not. I should also mention that I have 5 small nerite snails in there to take care of any algae and I did remove the aforementioned pleco.

Thanks

Again algae isn't 'bad' but when you have plants present to soak up your nitrates and algae is still flourishing it's usually a sign of excess nitrates/nutrients and an imbalance in water chemistry. The algae itself is not any harm to your frog, addressing the algae will not 'fix' the problem. Nerite snails are great for eating algae but they will contribute to the bioload, somewhat. Have you lost a snail lately? Nerites are usually a brackish water snail, they will survive in freshwater but they thrive in brackish.. did one die by chance? A dead snail can cause huge spikes in ammonia, possibly lead to excess nitrates..

What kind of pleco is this? I think I missed the part where you mentioned a pleco present, my apologies. These are some times very large fish, many require 55+ gallons. A large pleco and 5 nerite snails most certainly will add to the bioload of this tank especially the pleco, as they are known as being large waste producers.

Again I don't know the type of pleco you have but they are also territorial and aggressive as they get older.. I am starting to wonder if your smaller frog was a victim of aggression (some times will even attach fish/frogs to eat their slime coat). Keep in mind plecos are nocturnal and if such behavior was occurring, you'd most likely be asleep when it does..

[rodsboys]

Are you using a liquid test kit or those horrible, horrible, horrible strips?

[reptileszz]

Algae is of itself is not a bad thing, algae does not increase nitrates. In fact algae becomes established because it is a response to nitrates and excess in the water (algae like plants, feed off of it). What color is this algae?



Rinse it in old tank water, if it has a lot of build up.



Algae? Probably organic gunk built up, after 8 years it may very well be excessive. I would use a pipe cleaner brush to clean them out.



Again algae isn't 'bad' but when you have plants present to soak up your nitrates and algae is still flourishing it's usually a sign of excess nitrates/nutrients and an imbalance in water chemistry. The algae itself is not any harm to your frog, addressing the algae will not 'fix' the problem. Nerite snails are great for eating algae but they will contribute to the bioload, somewhat. Have you lost a snail lately? Nerites are usually a brackish water snail, they will survive in freshwater but they thrive in brackish.. did one die by chance? A dead snail can cause huge spikes in ammonia, possibly lead to excess nitrates..

What kind of pleco is this? I think I missed the part where you mentioned a pleco present, my apologies. These are some times very large fish, many require 55+ gallons. A large pleco and 5 nerite snails most certainly will add to the bioload of this tank especially the pleco, as they are known as being large waste producers.

Again I don't know the type of pleco you have but they are also territorial and aggressive as they get older.. I am starting to wonder if your smaller frog was a victim of aggression (some times will even attach fish/frogs to eat their slime coat). Keep in mind plecos are nocturnal and if such behavior was occurring, you'd most likely be asleep when it does..

I dont have a pleco. I took him out. Thats why I put the nerites in there. The snails are alive and well. I dont think the algae is building up since I started this project without the fish. It is old buildup.

And to the person that asked if I was using strips. NO I think I have mentioned a couple of times that I have a brand new master kit from API that expires in 2018.

Thank you,
Carole

[Hidr]

You can never have to many plants. lol Get more.
Good luck

[mpmistr]

I dont have a pleco. I took him out. Thats why I put the nerites in there. The snails are alive and well. I dont think the algae is building up since I started this project without the fish. It is old buildup.

And to the person that asked if I was using strips. NO I think I have mentioned a couple of times that I have a brand new master kit from API that expires in 2018.

Thank you,
Carole

Oh okay, I guess I did not miss the pleco part then.

Honestly I would just relax, the frog seems okay. I would add duckweed when you get a chance or a similar plant. I added duckweed to my tank a while ago and while yes it grows like crazy and yes it's a pain in the *** to clean out some times nothing quite stabilizes a tanks water quality quite like it. It is a nitrate sponge..