nitrite test kit

I wonder if anyone can help me with this one.

I just got new test kits, brand of Laguna.

the nitrite test kits shows results as 0.1 to 3.3 mg/l (ppm)
& the nitrate test as 5-110 mg/l (ppm)

now the nitrate results look they read right. but what am I missing on the
nitrite one? shouldn't that also be in the 1-100 range? not a 0.1?

my results show:
nitrite 0.4
ph 7.5
ammonia 0
nitrate 5-10
kh 60.. yup I know that is low, I just added baking soda

2 weeks ago I emptied my pond, to clean out the sludge in the bottom,, put
back 1/2 the original water ( saved in a BIG container) the rest was rain
water from cistern ( figure that is where the low kh is)

I was trying to do research on here about nitrites & nitrates, and cannot
get a definitive answer on it in my case. I don't have ammonia ( but then I
am testing with the nessler (one bottle kind). & have read that if I had
nitrates things should be cycling ok.

any suggestions?
(gotta check oxygen tomorrow)

"*muffin*" wrote in message
...
I wonder if anyone can help me with this one.

I just got new test kits, brand of Laguna.

the nitrite test kits shows results as 0.1 to 3.3 mg/l (ppm)
& the nitrate test as 5-110 mg/l (ppm)

now the nitrate results look they read right. but what am I missing on
the
nitrite one? shouldn't that also be in the 1-100 range? not a 0.1?

No. Nitrite is orders of magnitudes more harmful to aquatic life than
nitrates are. Ideally, you should be getting a reading of 0 ppm. This is
why this test is much more sensitive than the one for nitrates.

my results show:
nitrite 0.4
ph 7.5
ammonia 0
nitrate 5-10
kh 60.. yup I know that is low, I just added baking soda

2 weeks ago I emptied my pond, to clean out the sludge in the bottom,,
put
back 1/2 the original water ( saved in a BIG container) the rest was rain
water from cistern ( figure that is where the low kh is)

The nitrite should taper off in the next few days. I would monitor it
carefully, especially if you have any fish in your pond.

I was trying to do research on here about nitrites & nitrates, and cannot
get a definitive answer on it in my case. I don't have ammonia ( but then
I
am testing with the nessler (one bottle kind). & have read that if I had
nitrates things should be cycling ok.

any suggestions?
(gotta check oxygen tomorrow)


The nitrogen cycle is thus: For a new pond/aquarium, you will usually see
ammonia at about 3-5 days. It usually spikes at 7 to 10 days, then tapers
off as the ammonmia is converted to nitrite. The nitrite usually starts to
show up at 10-14 days, and will begin to taper off as it is converted to
nitrate. After 21-30 days you should see no ammonia or nitrite, only
nitrate. Having said this, since you used some of your old water (which is
good), you aren't seeing the same levels that you would normally see with a
brand new set up. Since you are seeing nitrate already, either it was
already in the old water (likely) or any nitrite build up has already
passed and you should see it drop off in the next few days. I would
monitor it very closely. If it goes higher (say to 1 ppm or higher), you
may consider doing a 5-10% water change. If your fish are showing no signs
of distress, for now, I'd watch and wait. You might also considering
adding aquazyme or similar product to the water at this time.

The nitrite test kit that I use goes from 0, 0.25, ... to 5.0. You don't
want any in a cycled pond. That is the reason it is designed for such low
numbers.
--
RichToyBox
http://www.geocities.com/richtoybox/pondintro.html

"*muffin*" wrote in message
...
I wonder if anyone can help me with this one.

I just got new test kits, brand of Laguna.

the nitrite test kits shows results as 0.1 to 3.3 mg/l (ppm)
& the nitrate test as 5-110 mg/l (ppm)

now the nitrate results look they read right. but what am I missing on the
nitrite one? shouldn't that also be in the 1-100 range? not a 0.1?

my results show:
nitrite 0.4
ph 7.5
ammonia 0
nitrate 5-10
kh 60.. yup I know that is low, I just added baking soda

2 weeks ago I emptied my pond, to clean out the sludge in the bottom,, put
back 1/2 the original water ( saved in a BIG container) the rest was rain
water from cistern ( figure that is where the low kh is)

I was trying to do research on here about nitrites & nitrates, and cannot
get a definitive answer on it in my case. I don't have ammonia ( but then
I
am testing with the nessler (one bottle kind). & have read that if I had
nitrates things should be cycling ok.

any suggestions?
(gotta check oxygen tomorrow)

My pond turned a bright green last week from too much feeding of the
koi. My test kits were throwing me into a panic. Everything was
registering way off the charts. Tried to buy new kits but the only
thing I found in both PetCo and PetSmart were the single bottle which
measures 5 tests in 1.I pitched a holy fit but went ahead and shelled
out the $19.95. This is the best thing to come along in many a year....
for me at least. Anyway my pond took about 4 days to clear but I was
able to measure all the parameters in a single ONE SECOND dip on a
daily basis.
The ease of it ... no bottles, no measuring, etc.

Nedra in Missouri
Zone 6

"Nedra" wrote in message
oups.com...
My pond turned a bright green last week from too much feeding of the
koi. My test kits were throwing me into a panic. Everything was
registering way off the charts. Tried to buy new kits but the only
thing I found in both PetCo and PetSmart were the single bottle which
measures 5 tests in 1.I pitched a holy fit but went ahead and shelled
out the $19.95. This is the best thing to come along in many a year....
for me at least. Anyway my pond took about 4 days to clear but I was
able to measure all the parameters in a single ONE SECOND dip on a
daily basis.
The ease of it ... no bottles, no measuring, etc.
=================================
My kind of test kit! Glad to see you're still with us Nedra. :-)
--
McKoi.... the frugal ponder...
EVERYONE: "Please check people's headers for forgeries
before flushing." NAMES ARE BEING FORGED.
Do not feed the trolls.
~~~ }((((o ~~~ }{{{{o ~~~ }(((((o

Here are a couple of good pages to help sort things out.

http://www.pondkoi.com/nitrogen.htm

http://www.pondkoi.com/cycle.htm

Hi Nedra,
Glad to see you back!
I must say that I haven't tested the water this year! It is clearing
(finally) now that the plants are growing beautifully. I noticed yesterday
that I have thousands of baby koi in the large veggie filter - that's
something I was hoping to avoid this year.
Anyone interested in collecting some koi fry?

--
Bonnie
NJ
"Nedra" wrote in message
oups.com...
My pond turned a bright green last week from too much feeding of the
koi. My test kits were throwing me into a panic. Everything was
registering way off the charts. Tried to buy new kits but the only
thing I found in both PetCo and PetSmart were the single bottle which
measures 5 tests in 1.I pitched a holy fit but went ahead and shelled
out the $19.95. This is the best thing to come along in many a year....
for me at least. Anyway my pond took about 4 days to clear but I was
able to measure all the parameters in a single ONE SECOND dip on a
daily basis.
The ease of it ... no bottles, no measuring, etc.

Nedra in Missouri
Zone 6

"Nedra" wrote:

My pond turned a bright green last week from too much feeding of the
koi. My test kits were throwing me into a panic. Everything was
registering way off the charts. Tried to buy new kits but the only
thing I found in both PetCo and PetSmart were the single bottle which
measures 5 tests in 1.I pitched a holy fit but went ahead and shelled
out the $19.95. This is the best thing to come along in many a year....
for me at least. Anyway my pond took about 4 days to clear but I was
able to measure all the parameters in a single ONE SECOND dip on a
daily basis.
The ease of it ... no bottles, no measuring, etc.

Nedra in Missouri
Zone 6

Nice to see you again Nedra!


San Diego Joe
4,000 - 5,000 Gallons.
Koi, Goldfish, and RES named Colombo.

"Bonnie NJ" wrote in message
ink.net...
Hi Nedra,
Glad to see you back!
I must say that I haven't tested the water this year! It is clearing
(finally) now that the plants are growing beautifully. I noticed
yesterday
that I have thousands of baby koi in the large veggie filter - that's
something I was hoping to avoid this year.
Anyone interested in collecting some koi fry?
==================
Mom and pop shops would be glad to take some off your hands. Some will pay
cash and some will give you store credit.
--
McKoi.... the frugal ponder...
EVERYONE: "Please check people's headers for forgeries
before flushing." NAMES ARE BEING FORGED.
Do not feed the trolls.
~~~ }((((o ~~~ }{{{{o ~~~ }(((((o

Courageous wrote:

4,000 - 5,000 Gallons.



Pond size as a measure of manliness?

*wink*

C//



That or just being gullible (at first!) Here is what I mean.
Two years ago, I got to know my next door neighbor and his wife. Really
nice people! And one day he says, "Dale (that's me) you should make
yourself a koi pond. Just like I did and like John (two homes down)
did!" I thought about it for a while and I said "Sure! Why not?
Especially if you help me with it!"
So, one nice July morning, I start digging. Nice little 9' X 5' hole.
My neighbor comes over with drink in hand and says "nice job you're
doing there. You should probably make it bigger". So I do.
Then my other neighbor comes over a day or so later, takes a look, says
"Nice job. You might want to think about making it bigger". I think
for a while. Remember how nice their ponds are, shrug, and dig some more.
After about 3-4 days of digging (by hand) and visits from my well
meaning neighbors, one says, "That's probably big enough. Matter of
fact, I might have to make mine bigger!" The other one just laughs and
says "yeah, Dale, that is probably big enough!" Then they both laugh a
bit, shake their heads and walk away.
DUH!
At first they were just kidding me and have a friendly laugh at my
expense. Nope, neither one crawled down in the hole to help with even
one shovel of dirt. Plenty of advice and 'support' and smiles though.
LOL :-D .
Yep, I now tease them about my pond and that fact that it is as big as
it is because they kept telling "know-nothing" me, 'make it bigger!'
That is how it came to be the size it is.
W. Dale