Bacterial bloom in established tank-0 Nitrates

[Nikkimarie728]

Hello! I’ve had my 2 axolotls for 3 yrs now. They’re in a 55 gallon tank w 2 HOB filters. Everything has been steady with normal parameters for years. As of a couple of weeks ago I’ve noticed a bacterial bloom that has been coming and going while parameters stay healthy. This morning I woke up to such a cloud I couldn’t see my axolotls, and since it’s feeding day I did a 50% water change so I could find them this evening to feed them. I just did a water test and my parameters are: ph-7.0 am-0 nitrite-0 and the nitrates are seeming to be between 0 & 5. It’s not fully yellow but not dark enough for me to call it 5 either. I was chalking it up to the water change thinking it’s probably fine but I’m also terrified that my cycle has crashed.
I used Prime as well as Stability during my water change this morning. I’m curious if I should start getting my gear out to tub them or will they be safe over night until I test the water again in the morning? Is it safe for them to be in there without nitrates for the time being?

 

[wolfen]

when was your filters last cleaned?
do you have any substrate? ie.. sand.
have you got air-stones in the tank?
make sure that the water is oxygenated well. how are your axolotl gills, are they gulping air more than normal.
if the filter is mucked up it can cause bloom as well as allowing anaerobic bacteria to grow which consume nitrates.
increase the ph to 7.4-7.6 slowly by adding bicarbonate of soda.
if sand or other type of substrate is used go through with a fork prior to a water change.
having zero or low nitrates isn't harmful to axolotls but can be a sign of other issues, this can range from dirty filters to areas in the tank where there are oxygen dead zones allowing anaerobic bacteria to grow.

 

[Nikkimarie728]

when was your filters last cleaned?
do you have any substrate? ie.. sand.
have you got air-stones in the tank?
make sure that the water is oxygenated well. how are your axolotl gills, are they gulping air more than normal.
if the filter is mucked up it can cause bloom as well as allowing anaerobic bacteria to grow which consume nitrates.
increase the ph to 7.4-7.6 slowly by adding bicarbonate of soda.
if sand or other type of substrate is used go through with a fork prior to a water change.
having zero or low nitrates isn't harmful to axolotls but can be a sign of other issues, this can range from dirty filters to areas in the tank where there are oxygen dead zones allowing anaerobic bacteria to grow.

Thank you so much! I was so nervous when I saw 0 nitrates. They usually range from 5-20 in my tank.
I do weekly water changes where I rinse the filter media and clean the intakes but I don’t usually clean the filter itself as I’ve heard that can disturb the cycle. Maybe tonight I’ll go ahead and take them apart and carefully clean without disturbing too much of their bacterial load.
I have an air stone but I am planning on getting a couple bubble bars for the wall instead to cover more of the tank and free up the floor space for them.
I do have sand and I siphon through it during my weekly clean.
I also just ordered a uv sterilizer as well that should be here on Wednesday. I’ve attached a photo of what it looks like today after yesterday mornings water change.

 

[wolfen]

not sure whether it's just the lighting or not but please have a look at your white axolotls rear leg as in the photo it looks very red which could be an infection which may require vet assistance.
clean the filters on separate days don't clean them both at the same time, this reduces damaging the bacteria colony.

 

[Nikkimarie728]

not sure whether it's just the lighting or not but please have a look at your white axolotls rear leg as in the photo it looks very red which could be an infection which may require vet assistance.
clean the filters on separate days don't clean them both at the same time, this reduces damaging the bacteria colony.

Thankfully it was the lighting/shadows. Whew. I rushed right home after that to double check!
Thank you. I’m going to clean one tonight and the other in a couple of days.

 

[Nikkimarie728]

Hello! I’ve had my 2 axolotls for 3 yrs now. They’re in a 55 gallon tank w 2 HOB filters. Everything has been steady with normal parameters for years. As of a couple of weeks ago I’ve noticed a bacterial bloom that has been coming and going while parameters stay healthy. This morning I woke up to such a cloud I couldn’t see my axolotls, and since it’s feeding day I did a 50% water change so I could find them this evening to feed them. I just did a water test and my parameters are: ph-7.0 am-0 nitrite-0 and the nitrates are seeming to be between 0 & 5. It’s not fully yellow but not dark enough for me to call it 5 either. I was chalking it up to the water change thinking it’s probably fine but I’m also terrified that my cycle has crashed.
I used Prime as well as Stability during my water change this morning. I’m curious if I should start getting my gear out to tub them or will they be safe over night until I test the water again in the morning? Is it safe for them to be in there without nitrates for the time being?

Update: water parameters are stable (ph-7.6 am-0 nit-0 nitrate-5) and the bloom has gone down. All seems well. I have a uv sterilizer coming on Wednesday to clear the water up back to pristine conditions so I can properly see them!

 

[frogenjoyer]

Update: water parameters are stable (ph-7.6 am-0 nit-0 nitrate-5) and the bloom has gone down. All seems well. I have a uv sterilizer coming on Wednesday to clear the water up back to pristine conditions so I can properly see them!

Something similar happened to me this time last year and plagued me for the entire summer. It wasn't until I went on vacation for a week, leaving the light off in my dark room the entire time, and came back to crystal-clear, pristine water that I realized it wasn't bacterial and that it was the light that was causing a photosynthetic bloom of some kind that caused the cloudiness. I have since stopped using a light, and it never came back. Just my two cents!

 

[Nikkimarie728]

Something similar happened to me this time last year and plagued me for the entire summer. It wasn't until I went on vacation for a week, leaving the light off in my dark room the entire time, and came back to crystal-clear, pristine water that I realized it wasn't bacterial and that it was the light that was causing a photosynthetic bloom of some kind that caused the cloudiness. I have since stopped using a light, and it never came back. Just my two cents!

Thank you! That’s good to know! I did end up changing lights after the bloom started as well and it’s definitely gotten better. We are still a little cloudy today but it’s so much better than it has been!

 

[frogenjoyer]

Thank you! That’s good to know! I did end up changing lights after the bloom started as well and it’s definitely gotten better. We are still a little cloudy today but it’s so much better than it has been!

What you're experiencing might be totally different than what I did, but it looked exactly the same. It wasn't until I completely abolished light for several days that it truly went away. Mine began after I introduced some new aquatic plants to the tank. Was yours more spontaneous?

 

[Nikkimarie728]

What you're experiencing might be totally different than what I did, but it looked exactly the same. It wasn't until I completely abolished light for several days that it truly went away. Mine began after I introduced some new aquatic plants to the tank. Was yours more spontaneous?

It was definitely spontaneous for me. I haven’t changed or added anything to my tank or routine. It completely baffled me! I’m just thankful everything is seemingly getting better and my axolotls are ok.