Smell of nitrites

However, what you're feeling the smell of isn't nitrite, but ammonia
and mercaptans. Our noses are extremely sensitive to the smell of

As in methyl mercapatate as in rotting corpse stink as in yeah
somethings dead in there alright.

Great for plants though :-)


--
Need Mercedes parts ? - http://parts.mbz.org
Richard Sexton | Mercedes stuff: http://mbz.org
1970 280SE, 72 280SE | Home page: http://rs79.vrx.net
633CSi 250SE/C 300SD | http://aquaria.net http://killi.net

Another source is supposed to be sulphate (gypsum, anhydrite) in the
rocks. that's not uncommon in eastern Ontario. You're near Ottawa, eh?

I'd think that using turbulent water into buckets will probably
disperse most of the sulphur gas.

Steve

Thanks Steve, that's interesting about the iron. I dug out an old water
test and they didn't test for H2S unfortunately, but there was a small
(+2) amount of sheated bacteria or iron bacteria, leptothrix spp. This
is why I shock the well periodically, as it leaves a red residue inside
the toilet tank. I'm attributing the odour to H2S since it is
intermittent.

I don't think the iron bacteria are anything which would threaten the
fish. Is the (gypsum, anhydrite) sulphate characteristics similar to H2S
(in regards to threat to fish and the ability to be released through
aeration)?

We don't have the sulphur smell but do get the orange residue. I use
this water straight out of the tap, unconditioned - no problems. These
is lots of iron in the water here. Crypts love it :-)


--
Need Mercedes parts ? - http://parts.mbz.org
Richard Sexton | Mercedes stuff: http://mbz.org
1970 280SE, 72 280SE | Home page: http://rs79.vrx.net
633CSi 250SE/C 300SD | http://aquaria.net http://killi.net

Thusly "NetMax" Spake Unto All:

peroxide could help with the smell. I presume you know about devices
like this?:
http://www.malawicichlidhomepage.com.../oxydator.html

No I wasn't. Interesting device. The odour is not too strong. I don't
notice it in the shower, only when I'm using raw well water, and even
then it's not strong, just enough to cause some concern for the fish when
I get up to 20% water changes.

The human nose can detect hydrogen sulphide at extremely low levels;
the material safety factsheet suggests down to ppb concentrations,
whereas toxicity to fish is cited in the ppm range. Your fish are
probably quite safe.

As for oxydator/oxidator, I've tried a home-made variant (a 0.5L pet
bottle with a pinhole in the cork, filled with 3% peroxide and turned
upside down in the aquarium; the oxygen gas produced by the
decomposition of the peroxide pressed out about 10ml of peroxide per
day though the pinhole), and it DOES increase the ORP, does oxidize
organic compounds in the water, and does seem to make algae miserable,
but my home-made contraption released too much peroxide which made the
fishes start scratching themselves, and killed off some plants. I'm
still quite interested in getting hold of one of the commercial
devices, though.

WRT hydrogen sulphide, peroxide should work like ozone, and reduce it
to non-toxic & odorless sulphate (AFAIK).

If you can, email me

Details are in the mail.

On 18 Feb 2006 18:19:32 -0800, "Altum" wrote:

Mr. Gardener wrote:

Well, with a name like "Altum", this doesn't seem surprising.

LOL! At least you didn't say I look like a fish. :-)

You haven't sent me a picture and I haven't seen you on alt binaries.

-- Mr Gardener

On Sat, 18 Feb 2006 23:40:44 -0600, dc wrote:

"Altum" wrote in news:1140286709.246608.305140
:

the smell of a healthy, mature filter. Am I the only one who "tests"
water chemistry by sniffing it?

Nope, you are not alone. With more than 260 tanks to look after, small is
often my first clue to a new potential problem when I walk into the fish
room in the morning. I will often follow my nose to the trouble spot.

Ammonium, nitrite, and nitrate all have their own distinctive smells.

I agree that one can tell a lot about a tank by sniffing it. Like good
garden soil, a healthy aquarium has a distinctive and wonderful smell.
I generally give each of my tanks a quick sniff during the morning
feeding. The fish get to look at my nose before they get their
breakfast. And the warm moist air clears my sinuses.

-- Mr Gardener

Mr. Gardener wrote:
On Sat, 18 Feb 2006 23:40:44 -0600, dc wrote:


"Altum" wrote in news:1140286709.246608.305140
:


the smell of a healthy, mature filter. Am I the only one who "tests"
water chemistry by sniffing it?

Nope, you are not alone. With more than 260 tanks to look after, small is
often my first clue to a new potential problem when I walk into the fish
room in the morning. I will often follow my nose to the trouble spot.

Ammonium, nitrite, and nitrate all have their own distinctive smells.


I agree that one can tell a lot about a tank by sniffing it. Like good
garden soil, a healthy aquarium has a distinctive and wonderful smell.
I generally give each of my tanks a quick sniff during the morning
feeding. The fish get to look at my nose before they get their
breakfast. And the warm moist air clears my sinuses.

-- Mr Gardener

Hope they never mistake your nose for breakfast - lol

Gill

NetMax wrote:
"Steve" wrote in message
.. .

NetMax wrote:


I don't know if I could detect ammonia with my nose, but I do smell a
lot of sulphur in my well water for the last month and it's worrying
me for water changes. To compensate, I'm using more turbulence in the
water (hoping to dissipate it faster), and I'm refilling the tanks
slowly (less than a gallon a minute). I've just started filling 5g
water jugs a week earlier, so they will have equalized more by the
time I use them.

Does anyone know the characteristics of the source of this smell?
Does it take long to leave the water, and is the water left harmless
after?


I remember reading in a Ministry of Environment brochure that the smell
often comes from iron-reducing bacteria in the well. A solution is to
chlorinate your well and water system, which is not a bad thing to do
occasionally. That's done by putting lots of water with abundant bleach
in it in the well, letting stand, then letting it into the water system
and letting stand again, before flushing out. Use the garden hose as
output of flushing, and don't run too much chlorinated water into the
septic system. It's more easily done in spring/ summer, and please
research the details before attempting it. The details are recorded as
I remember them from years ago.

Another source is supposed to be sulphate (gypsum, anhydrite) in the
rocks. that's not uncommon in eastern Ontario. You're near Ottawa, eh?

I'd think that using turbulent water into buckets will probably
disperse most of the sulphur gas.

Steve


Thanks Steve, that's interesting about the iron. I dug out an old water
test and they didn't test for H2S unfortunately, but there was a small
(+2) amount of sheated bacteria or iron bacteria, leptothrix spp. This
is why I shock the well periodically, as it leaves a red residue inside
the toilet tank. I'm attributing the odour to H2S since it is
intermittent.

I don't think the iron bacteria are anything which would threaten the
fish. Is the (gypsum, anhydrite) sulphate characteristics similar to H2S
(in regards to threat to fish and the ability to be released through
aeration)?

The small amount sulphate from rocks that are mainly limestone, should
just contibute to your water's hardness. It's not harmful at all, as far
as I know, but perhaps other posters better understand the chemistry
involved. I suppose you could get H2S developing from any sulphur
sources in the well/ aquifer: sulphates, sulfides... and I'd guess that
those bacteria probably obtain/ assimilate/ release dilute sulphur from
the water anyway.

When we had a limestone well, the splined shaft of our 5 year-old
washing machine corroded so badly that the agitator slipped. The
repairman attributed it to sulphur in the well. I found this strange due
to the high hardness/ pH - how could there be acid... but who knows what
detergents do?

Steve