Ammonia Poisoning in Your Fish Tank

One of the common illnesses acquired by an aquarium fish is ammonia poisoning. You may not see any signs of sickness when a fish acquires this condition. Because ammonia poisoning is often undetected, a lot of fish die of this illness. It's a sad day to discover your prized Green Terror Cichlid dead in the water.

New fish tanks are susceptible to reaching a dangerous level of ammonia which may lead to ammonia poisoning. Fish tank owners often make the mistake of putting plenty of fish at once in their aquarium.

When you do this, you risk increasing the biological load of the aquarium so fast that ammonia and nitrite levels may increase and reach dangerous levels without you noticing anything. Another common cause of ammonia poisoning is a malfunctioning filter. When waste products are not properly filtered out of the tank, it will decompose and increase ammonia and nitrite levels.

SIGNS TO WATCH OUT FOR
Ammonia poisoning can easily go undetected, especially if you are not aware of this condition. Your fish may just die without you knowing the cause of its death. Depending on the condition of your fish tank, ammonia levels can rise to dangerous levels slowly or suddenly.

It's very important to constantly monitor your fish, especially if your fish tank is new. A new fish tank may have unstable ammonia levels so you have to check its levels regularly. In ammonia poisoning, you will notice your fish moving up the surface of the tank frequently to get oxygen.

The gills of your fish may turn red or purple when the ammonia level is already too high. Exposure to high ammonia level for a long period will eventually make your fish lethargic and lose its appetite. When your fish becomes lethargic, it may choose to stay at the bottom of the tank as it loses energy to swim.

WHAT CAN YOU DO?
Checking the pH and ammonia level of your fish tank regularly is one of the best things you can do to prevent and treat ammonia poisoning. Your aquarium should have an ammonia level of 0 ppm. A level higher than that may not be a safe and healthy environment for your fish. Understanding the relationship between ammonia and pH levels of your fish tank is important. A pH level higher than 7 indicates a high level of ammonia. When the ammonia level rises, the pH level also increases. Decreasing the pH level of your aquarium also decreases the ammonia level.

Ammonia test kits are available on the market. These kits will help you accurately measure your aquarium's ammonia level. Changing 50% of your fish tank's water will help lower ammonia level and remove accumulated wastes in your tank.

Continue to cycle your fish tank until the ammonia level is lower than 1 ppm. Getting a neutralizing agent is another way of lowering your aquarium's ammonia level. Do this if your fish is already in serious condition and you don't have time for cycling your tank. A neutralizing agent will help reverse the effect of ammonia.

Avoid feeding a poisoned fish. The food will just accumulate as waste in the tank and further increase the ammonia level. You should also defer adding more fish in the tank until the levels return to normal. Prevention is better than cure. To avoid ammonia poisoning, change at least 10-15% of your tank's water weekly.

This article is intended as a guideline only, always consult a fish tank specialist if in doubt about the health of your fish.