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Full Version: Meds And False Readings From Test Kits?
Forum > The Goldfish Topics > Goldfish Tanks > Water problems? Questions about water quality?
eddiebunsell
krazy.gif i am going crazy with worry as i am treating for whitespot using King British it contains MALACHITE GREEN , ACRIFLAVINE , QUININE SULPHATE
Would using this treatment give me false nitrite readings the kit i am using is a aquarium pharmaceuticals kit the only thing i can find in the way of ingredients on the kit is hydrochloric acid huh.gif help cos if these are true readings i need to do water change soon krazy.gif
emmahj
No it wouldn't: you do have nitrite in the tank (unless the kit itself is faulty). I suspect the medication is affecting the cycle and that's why you're getting this reading. Ich (whitespot) meds contain very nasty chemicals which filter bacteria do not like at all, especially the more fussy nitrobacter (the one which turns nitrite into nitrate).

Personally, I do not treat ich with ich meds. Mala green is horrible stuff and it's a pain having to keep the tank covered over and in darkness all the time. I much prefer to treat with salt as it doesn't crash the cycle, you don't have to darken the tank and it's much gentler on the fish (actually it helps them deal with the wounds caused by the ich too).

If you want to carry on with the med then you'll need to start doing daily partial changes to deal with the nitrite problem, as poor water quality will worsen the ich problem. If you don't want to continue with the med, then you need to rmeove it through a 50% water chnage and running carbon in the filter for 12 hours or so. That will remove the med. Then salt the tank to 0.3% over 36 hours.

Hope this helps. smile.gif
eddiebunsell
blink.gif ok cool right well the whitespot has actually disapered from the fish i know that i need to carry on treatment for a few more days as the cycle has crashed ne way should i just finish the course of meds am already 5 days in have been doing 70l a day water changes with gravel vac to keep nitrite under control as well as to get the cysts out is this okay ???
oops the tanks 190litres sos
emmahj
Yes, that sounds fine. Just treat the tank as if it were cycling - test and water change each day - and finish the med course off. The cycle will only have stumbled a bit and will soon recover once the med has been removed. smile.gif
eddiebunsell
biggrin.gif okay no worries cheers for your help emma the fishies salute you lol krazy.gif
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