[AquaticLife] sunday test results
The Nitra-Zorb that I have has a pretty big package (55G tank size) of zeolite so I’m not sure if yours is as big so you may not need as much water/salt solution but it won’t hurt to use this same formula.
4 tablespoons of salt in 8 oz. of warm water and soak for at least two hours. Other products that I’ve read about say to soak for eight hours so you could soak yours for eight hours to be certain that it’s fully recharged. Especially since you have additional packets. You probably want to alternate new packets of zeolite on a weekly basis.. instead of monthly. While the box might have said monthly, it was probably based on a normal bioload for the product. Your tank has a MUCH HIGHER bioload. Since you have one extra packet, I’m guessing you are using one packet in each of your filters, so take the dirtiest packet (whichever is the most yellow/brown) and recharge it. The filter with the higher water flow will likely get the packet dirtier faster than the slower filter.
Here’s a simple to read page about zeolite for ammonia removal. http://www.fritzspecialty.com/product/zeolite/
You mention yours is looking pink? Everything that I’ve read and seen usually has it turning yellowish to tannish. I’ve never seen anything about the pink coloration. Zeolite also removes other impurities besides ammonia, kind of like carbon, so I’m wondering if the pink color might not be from something else in the water.. maybe high levels do DOC’s (dissolved organic compounds).
As advised before, daily 25% PWC’s will help remove/dilute the water to keep it a little cleaner/fresher for the fish until you get your second or bigger tank.
You might also want to shop around for a Python Water Change System (Lee also sells a similar product at a lower price than Python and there’s a DIY one on one of them DIY pages I sent you in an earlier post today). Instead of lugging buckets (or pots in your case) of water, the Python hooks up to your faucet and you siphon the tank and vacuum the gravel first and then refill the tank without having to lug buckets of water around. Just add your dechlor dose to the tank when starting the refill process.
Lenny Vasbinder Fish Blog - http://GoldLenny.blogspot.com (Links to any articles referenced in above reply are listed on the right side, alphabetically under Labels and also under Archives by Year, Month)
Category: Philippines Internet Koi Society
