Help! Ammonia!

[Chiara]

Hello everyone!

I am having trouble with the level of ammonia in my aquarium.
Last night I did a 50% water change + Seachem conditioner and the parameters were perfect. This morning the ammonia is at 0.5 already!!!
This is been happening just in the last week so I have been doing water changes every other day.

The two factors that have changed are:
- the water temperature (before 16-17C, now 18-19C), as we are having a heatwave
- I have removed a backdrop moss wall as it seemed to produce biofilm (just on the surface of the water)

Regarding water temperature I am keeping it as cool as I can with a fan and frozen water bottles; but a professional aquarium chiller should be delivered on Monday.

I have a Marina filter with 3 filter pads, and they are not yet to be replaced.

I have kept the moss wall so I could re-introduce if having biofilm is going to keep the ammonia at bay?

Could anyone explain why this is happening, or if you have suggestions?
I got my 2 axolotl 1 month ago, and all this is new to me, all advices are welcome.
Thank you xx

 

[DoctorBen]

Hello everyone!

I am having trouble with the level of ammonia in my aquarium.
Last night I did a 50% water change + Seachem conditioner and the parameters were perfect. This morning the ammonia is at 0.5 already!!!
This is been happening just in the last week so I have been doing water changes every other day.

The two factors that have changed are:
- the water temperature (before 16-17C, now 18-19C), as we are having a heatwave
- I have removed a backdrop moss wall as it seemed to produce biofilm (just on the surface of the water)

Regarding water temperature I am keeping it as cool as I can with a fan and frozen water bottles; but a professional aquarium chiller should be delivered on Monday.

I have a Marina filter with 3 filter pads, and they are not yet to be replaced.

I have kept the moss wall so I could re-introduce if having biofilm is going to keep the ammonia at bay?

Could anyone explain why this is happening, or if you have suggestions?
I got my 2 axolotl 1 month ago, and all this is new to me, all advices are welcome.
Thank you xx

Basically you don’t yet have a stable nitrogen cycled tank and the raised water temperature is causing increased metabolism in the axolotl is resulting in increased feeding increased defecation and an increase in waste product breakdown within the tank releasing ammonia.
You need to cool the tank, continue with your regular switching of water and be aware that many tap waters have raised nitrogen (ammonia) levels and so you need to test the water you’re adding to the tank - it may be that you need to buy bottled water. Also use a turkey baster are to suck up any visible poo as soon as it’s in the tank. Nitrogen binders and phosphate binders are available but only a offer temporary fix and adding helpful aquarium bacteria is only partially helpful as it shift to nitrate and nitrite production.
In summary cool the water, remove the poo, keep the water changes going and ensure you are replacing with water which is low in nitrogen (ammonia)

 

[Chiara]

Basically you don’t yet have a stable nitrogen cycled tank and the raised water temperature is causing increased metabolism in the axolotl is resulting in increased feeding increased defecation and an increase in waste product breakdown within the tank releasing ammonia.
You need to cool the tank, continue with your regular switching of water and be aware that many tap waters have raised nitrogen (ammonia) levels and so you need to test the water you’re adding to the tank - it may be that you need to buy bottled water. Also use a turkey baster are to suck up any visible poo as soon as it’s in the tank. Nitrogen binders and phosphate binders are available but only a offer temporary fix and adding helpful aquarium bacteria is only partially helpful as it shift to nitrate and nitrite production.
In summary cool the water, remove the poo, keep the water changes going and ensure you are replacing with water which is low in nitrogen (ammonia)

DoctorBen, hello and thank you!
I suspected the increased temperature might have been one of the factors. I try to clean their waste but they are very active at night and often by the morning it's all dissolved in the water.
I live in a big city and it is true that the water comes by default with ammonia (tested it), so when doing water changes, I condition it and test it before introducing it in the tank.
I will increase the number of ice packs to lower the temperature further, I hope it works until I receive the chiller.
Thank you for taking your time to advise me!
I will keep you posted
C.

 

[Chiara]

Basically you don’t yet have a stable nitrogen cycled tank and the raised water temperature is causing increased metabolism in the axolotl is resulting in increased feeding increased defecation and an increase in waste product breakdown within the tank releasing ammonia.
You need to cool the tank, continue with your regular switching of water and be aware that many tap waters have raised nitrogen (ammonia) levels and so you need to test the water you’re adding to the tank - it may be that you need to buy bottled water. Also use a turkey baster are to suck up any visible poo as soon as it’s in the tank. Nitrogen binders and phosphate binders are available but only a offer temporary fix and adding helpful aquarium bacteria is only partially helpful as it shift to nitrate and nitrite production.
In summary cool the water, remove the poo, keep the water changes going and ensure you are replacing with water which is low in nitrogen (ammonia)

Hello
I am back with an update, as promised.
In the days following our conversation it was really difficult to keep the water temperature down due to heatwave. Eventually I have managed with some help. I have added one of these air bubbles machine to increase oxygen in the water, did a small water change every day, and used small amounts of Seachem Amguard.
On Monday I received a proper chiller, so I removed the ice packs, the bubbles machine and the cooling fan. Since installing the chiller everything is perfect again, the water shows no sign of ammonia, and the other parameters are spot on too. My two axolotls are very happy.
The factor that triggered every problem was the increased water temperature.
Thanks a lot, I hope you have a good day ❤

 

[DoctorBen]

Hi,
Thanks for the update and glad things are now going smoothly - it incredible the difference the temperature change makes to multiple asects of the nitrogen ammonium cycling.
I'd love to hear about which chiller you went for and where you got it and how its performing - I had difficulties with a middle-line £150 model in the past and so have given up on them and switched to an air con unit for the room and regular water changes with fridge water. This is however, labour intensive and I'd love to hear about your experiences with your water chiller.
Best,
Dr Ben

 

[Chiara]

Hi,
With pleasure! This is the chiller I bought: BAOSHISHAN Aquarium Chiller Water Cooler 160L Chiller Bounus Pump Kit Fish Tank Chiller Seafood Cultivation Equipment for Fresh/Salt Water Waterweeds Jellyfish Coral Crystal Shrimp (°C): Amazon.co.uk: Business, Industry & Science
I was initially looking at another machine sold in US, which has been unavailable for the UK market since. I couldn't wait any longer without a chiller so I opted out for the one above.
So far I am very happy with it as it produces very little noise (less than a fan or AC), and very little water movement even in a 56l aquarium (as axies are known for not appreciating much water movement). I even left a review on Amazon for the seller.
The reason why I did not opt for the AC is because
-in the winter I want to be able to have heating on without worrying about overheating them,
-the portable AC that I have borrowed from my friend is more noisy than the chiller, and I would still need ice packs (having to constantly replace them is stressful), and/or a fan on top of the water (produces noise and vibration in the aquarium, and stresses the axies)
- not having a chiller means that during hot days I can never be away from home for more than 2 or 3 hours as I would have to change the ice packs (sometimes the temperature reaches 35C or plus)
- I found that a portable AC capable of cooling the room as much as I need costs the same as the chiller, and I would still have to use ice packs.
I am not sure in which part of the world you are, but it seems like this chiller is available worldwide.

Now that a few more days have gone by, I can confirm that my two axolotls are very very happy with the water. They were stressed, grumpy and not sociable during the heatwave, before getting the chiller. Now they are much more playful and affectionate. Sending you a bonus video where Joselito is coming to the surface for a little kiss ❤