News & Reviews Article

Title Nitrite - Quick Reference Author Ralph Cabage Last Updated 2009-12-08 Abstract
Nitrite - Quick Reference Nitrite (NO2)- should read 0 in an established tank. Causes for the presence of nitrite are the same as ammonia. As with ammonia poisoning, fish can die from nitrite poisoning within a few hours. Fish show signs of stress such as that seen with oxygen depletion, gasping and aiming at the surface of the water and the gills become reddened and are often flared. Gills are a delicate arrangement of high surface area tissue with counter-current blood flow through which fish absorb oxygen from the water. Anything that even slightly adversely affects the gills seriously affects the fish’s ability to survive. Immediate action should be taken to prevent death. Nitrite is normally converted to relatively harmless nitrate by biological filtration. A properly cycled aquarium with adequate filtration keeps nitrite in check. Medications which disrupt normal filtration activity may cause elevated nitrite. Always check ammonia and nitrite during any treatment. A treatment or quarantine tank for medicating sick fish away from the main tank is preferable. To lower nitrite: Freshwater • partial water change • add 1 teaspoon aquarium salt per gallon (lowers nitrite toxicity) • add Aquarium Cleaner or Nitromax. Saltwater • partial water change • add Marine Aquarium Starter or Nitromax Marine. Aquarium stores often sell "seeded matrix" or some form of seeded biological media that is already established with good bacteria in their systems. It is highly advisable to use this along with the bacteria cultures mentioned above. Emergency binding of nitrite is possible with AmQuel+. Always trace the source of nitrite problems and eliminate them.		Products related to this article GC4391 Nitromax Freshwater 5oz TRS7207 Marine Aquarium Starter 8oz* GC4392 Nitromax Marine 8oz TRS7202