# Aquarium # Water quality ## Units
**L****Gallons (US)**
10.264
3.7851
6~1.5
12~3
20~5
30~8
40~10
## Total Ammonia Nitrogen (NH3/NH4+) to PPM [![1000016814.png](https://wiki.hexadust.net/uploads/images/gallery/2026-01/scaled-1680-/lvY7BfF79phXd5eI-1000016814.png)](https://wiki.hexadust.net/uploads/images/gallery/2026-01/lvY7BfF79phXd5eI-1000016814.png) Drop test result \* 0.0131 @ 24C, 7.4PH = unionized ammonia. Dangerous level for fish is 0.05. ## **Nitrogen Cycle** - [Source](https://aquifarm.com/nitrite-in-aquarium/) 1. **Ammonia (NH₃):** Fish produce waste, and uneaten food decays. Both of these create toxic ammonia. 2. **Nitrite (NO₂):** A first type of beneficial bacteria consumes this ammonia and converts it into nitrite. This is where your problem starts. While it’s a necessary step, nitrite is *extremely* toxic to fish. 3. **Nitrate (NO₃):** A second type of beneficial bacteria then consumes the nitrite and converts it into nitrate. Nitrate is far less harmful and is managed with regular water changes and live plants.

**Ammonia (NH₃)** and **Nitrite (NO₂)** are toxic to fish!

Nitrite poisoning is often called “Brown Blood Disease.” It gets this name because nitrite enters a fish’s bloodstream and interferes with hemoglobin, the part of the blood that carries oxygen. It essentially turns their blood a brownish color and prevents it from transporting oxygen effectively. Even if there’s plenty of oxygen in the water, a fish suffering from nitrite poisoning is slowly suffocating from the inside. This is why you might see them gasping at the surface, breathing rapidly, or acting very weak. **Any level of nitrite above 0 ppm (parts per million) is stressful and potentially lethal.**

### Reducing Nitrite (NO₂) - Perform a 50% water change - Add a detoxifier - Increase aeration - Stop feeding fish for 24-48 hours Sustain low level: - Regularly replace water - Add aquarium salt with water changes - promote gill function - Good filtration system - clear out all waste and pollutants from the tank; raising oxygen levels in the tank and providing living space for nitrifying bacteria to thrive. - Add nitrification bacteria ### The Typical Cycling Pattern - Source: [https://www.shrimpkeepers.com/parameters/nitrite/](https://www.shrimpkeepers.com/parameters/nitrite/) 1. **Week 1-2**: Ammonia (NH₃) rises, no nitrite (NO₂) 2. **Week 2-4**: Ammonia-eating bacteria establish, ammonia drops, nitrite (NO₂) SPIKES 3. **Week 4-6**: Nitrite-eating bacteria establish, nitrite (NO₂) drops, nitrate (NO₃) rises 4. **Week 6+**: Cycle complete - both ammonia (NH₃) and nitrite (NO₂) at 0

Adding ammonia and bacteria to aquarium without fish can speed up the process.

## General hardness - [https://waternitylab.com/water-hardness-dh-to-ppm/](https://waternitylab.com/water-hardness-dh-to-ppm/) [![hard-water-dh-degrees-to-ppm.webp](https://wiki.hexadust.net/uploads/images/gallery/2026-03/scaled-1680-/QCsd8m0UMdHGkP2L-hard-water-dh-degrees-to-ppm.webp)](https://wiki.hexadust.net/uploads/images/gallery/2026-03/QCsd8m0UMdHGkP2L-hard-water-dh-degrees-to-ppm.webp) - **dH** or ***d**egree of **H**ardness* (also referred to as the ***d**egree of **G**eneral **H**ardness* (**dGH**) or German degree) is a unit of water hardness equal to **10 mg/L of calcium oxide** (CaO). - **PPM** or ***P**art **P**er **M**illion* is a unit of water hardness equal to **1 mg/L of calcium carbonate** (CaCO3). **PPM = dGH × 17.848**
**dH****PPM**
1.018
3.054
5.090
7.0125
9.0160
# Fish
**Species****Min aquarium size \[L\]****pH****°C****dGH****Size \[cm\]**
[Neon tetra](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neon_tetra)406-7.522-261-104
[Ember tetra](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ember_tetra)406-7.522-284-102-3
[Corydoras](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bronze_corydoras) - black venezuela, albino606-7.518-263-106-7
[Dwarf shrimp](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caridina_cantonensis) (neocaridina) - yellow 206.5-7.522-264-105
[Dwarf shrimp](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caridina_cantonensis) (neocaridina) - blue 206.5-7.522-284-84
[Dwarf shrimp](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caridina_cantonensis) (neocaridina) - blue jelly 206.8-7.820-293-102
[Dwarf shrimp](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caridina_cantonensis) - red bee, black bee 206-7.520-244-64
[Assassin snail](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anentome_helena) (Anentome helena)406.5-7.521-282-153
Siamese Algae Eaters806.5-7.524-285-1510
Adolfo's Corydoras606-7.522-263-105-6
***Min/Max*****80****6.8-7.5****24-24****4-8****10**
# Log
**Id****Fish****Introduced****Perished**
1Neon tetra2026-01-092026-01-11
2Neon tetra2026-01-092026-01-20
3Neon tetra2026-01-092026-01-21
4Neon tetra2026-01-092026-01-28
5Neon tetra2026-01-09
6Pleco Bulldog2026-01-092026-01-18
7Neon tetra2026-01-17
8Neon tetra2026-01-17
9Neon tetra2026-01-17
10Ember tetra2026-01-172026-01-27
11Ember tetra2026-01-172026-01-30
12Ember tetra2026-01-172026-03-13
13Ember tetra2026-01-172026-03-25
14Ember tetra2026-01-172026-03-25
15Ember tetra2026-01-17
16Assassin snail2026-01-17
17Dwarf shrimp yellow2026-01-172026-03-18
18Dwarf shrimp blue2026-01-17
19Dwarf shrimp red bee2026-01-17
20Dwarf shrimp black bee2026-01-172026-03-10
21Corydoras black2026-01-17
22Corydoras albino white2026-01-172026-01-29
23Corydoras albino ping2026-01-17
24Blue jelly shrimp2026-03-10
25Blue jelly shrimp2026-03-10
26Blue jelly shrimp2026-03-10
27Blue jelly shrimp2026-03-10
28Assassin snail2026-03-10
29Assassin snail2026-03-10
30Assassin snail2026-03-10
31Siamese Algae Eaters2026-04-17
32Siamese Algae Eaters2026-04-17
33Siamese Algae Eaters2026-04-17
34Albino Corydoras2026-04-17
35Adolfo's Corydoras2026-04-172026-04-18

**2025-12-27** - Started aquarium.

**2025-12-29** - First plants added

**2026-01-09** - Added 5x neon tetras and pleco buldog.

**2026-01-11** - Lost neon tetra (1).

**2026-01-17** - Added 3x neon tetras, 5x ember tetras, 4x shrimp (blue, yellow, red and black), 3x corydoras (2x albino, black)

**2026-01-18** - Noticed white spots on neon tetras.

**2026-01-18** - Lost pleco bulldog (6).

**2026-01-20** - Lost neon tetra (2).

**2026-01-21** - Lost neon tetra (3).

**2026-01-21** - Start for white spot treatment. Ember tetras got white spots.

**2026-01-23** - Treatment done. No white spots, fins a bit damaged on some neon tetra.

**2026-01-24** - 25% water change and bacteria added.

**2026-01-25** - Noticed eggs in yellow ship.

**2026-01-26 - Nitrite (NO2) 2 mg/l**

**2026-01-26** - 50% (50% RO, 50% tap) water change and bacteria added.

**2026-01-11** - Lost ember tetra (10). Found stuck behind filter.

**2026-01-27** - Nitrite (NO2) 0.5 mg/l; added CO2 for plants.

**2026-01-28** - Lost neon tetra (28). Found stuck behind filter.

**2026-01-29** - Nitrite (NO2) 1 mg/l; PH 7.2, temperature 23.4 Co. Ammonia 0.0021 PPM (0.25\*0.0083).

**2026-01-29** - Changed 10% water.

**2026-01-29** - Lost corydoras albino white (29).

**2026-01-29** - Changed 50% of water.

**2026-01-29** - Tested Nitrite (NO2) 0.25 mg/l.

**2026-01-30** - Lost ember tetra (11). Found stuck behind filter.

**2026-01-30** - Replaced 10% water. Nitrite (NO2) 0.25 mg/l.. Added carbon; carbon oxide < 15 mg/l. Filter clean.

**2026-01-31** - Water tests are clear with 0 level of Nitrite (NO2).

**2026-02-02** - Nitrite (NO2) 0.25 mg/l.. Replaced 25% of water. Added salt (for 8 liters); primer with ammonia and nitrite binder (for 20 liters).

**2026-02-03** - Added air pump to the aquarium.

**2026-02-03** - Nitrite (NO2) 0.25 mg/l.. Replaced 25% of water. Added bacteria and binder.

**2026-02-03** - Tested zero Nitrite (NO2).

**2026-02-04** - Tested zero Nitrite (NO2).

**2026-02-05** - Nitrite (NO2) 0.25 mg/l.. Replaced 25% of water. Added bacteria and binder.

**2026-02-05** - Tested zero Nitrite (NO2).

**2026-02-07** - Nitrite (NO2) 0.25 mg/l.. Replaced 25% of water. Added bacteria and binder.

**2026-02-07** - Replaced filter with JBL i80. Using sponge + ceramic filters. Added pieces of old filter sponge.

**2026-02-07** - Tested zero Nitrite (NO2). Tested 0.003 Ammonia (NH3/NH4).

**2026-02-11** - Nitrite (NO2) 0.25 mg/l.. Replaced 25% of water. Added binder.

**2026-02-12** - Tested zero Nitrite (NO2). Low CO2, added carbon.

**2026-02-17** - Tested zero Nitrite (NO2).

**2026-02-28** - Tested zero Nitrite (NO2). High (50) Nitrate (NO3). Low CO2 - added carbon. Replaced 25% of water. Cleaned water filter.

**2026-02-28** - Setup of hospital aquarium using 25% of water form the main one. Added bacteria.

**2026-03-10** - Dwarf shrimp black bee (20) perished.

**2026-03-10** - Added 4 blue jelly shrimps to Hospital aquarium. Added 3 Assassins snail to main aquarium.

**2026-03-11** - Hospital aquarium tests zero ammonia; but 0.5 Nitrite (NO2). Added 2 liters of RO water, bacteria starter and binder.

**2026-03-13** - Ember tetra (12) perished.

**2026-03-13** - Test panel: pH 7.5, Nitrite 0.25 (NO2), Ammonia 0 (NH3), Nitrate 40 (NO3), KH 12, GH 14.

**2026-03-13** - Replaced 25% of water with RO water.

**2026-03-18** - Dwarf shrimp yellow (17) perished.

**2026-03-18** - Test panel: pH 7.0, KH 9, GH 9.

**2026-03-25** - Ember 13 and 14 perished.

**2026-03-26** - 25% water change. All stats nominal.

**2026-04-10** - 25% water change. Moved two Neons to hospital for treatment (Esha) of white spot (mouth) on one of them.

**2026-04-17** - Set up new hospital for two tetras for curation for cotton wool.

**2026-04-17** - Added new fish to hospital: 3x Siamese Algae Eaters (31, 32, 33), one Albino (34) and one Adolfo's (35) Corydoras.

**2026-04-17** - Adolfo's Corydoras having issues swimming and staying upright. Damage on top fin.

**2026-04-17** - Hospital is testing low for CO2. GH <7, KH 6, PH 7.2.

**2026-04-17** - Main is testing high on NO3 50. GH >7, KH 15, PH 7.4.

**2026-04-18** - Adolfo's Corydoras (35) perished.

**2026-04-21** - Low level of Ammonia in secondary hospital. 30% water change.

**2026-04-23** - Very high level 1.0 NO2 in hospital. Replacing 30% of water. Slow filter flow; filter cleanup.

**2026-04-23** - Elevated NO3 level in main. Replaced 25% of water and cleaned the filter.

**2026-04-24** - Ammonia level in secondary hospital slightly elevated (0.0025). In main hospital still elevated NO2 at 0.25. Small water change in both.