Nitrate/Nitrite Spike

Well I just tested my water and my Nitrites are about 1.0 ppm and my Nitrates are about 40... what could cause this? and what should i do about it?

 

Is the tank new? If not, did you add anything (fish, live rock, etc) to the tank recently?

 

yea i added like 3 small fish about a week ago

 

That might have done it, especially if your tank is still relatively new. Did you have anything die in there?

 

Nothing died that I know of... what can I do to make them go down?... All my fish look like theyre doin fine but i dont wanna risk anything.

 

if the fish look ok, i would wait til nitrites are 0, then do a water change.

 

Ok... when I do a water change how much should I do? and should I mix the salt in with the new water before I add it to the tank?

 

I wouldn't be bothered with doing too much of a water change. Maybe 10% and then continue with reg. changes... your nitrates will come back to normal. Fish did it, and with new fish people are likely to overfeed to make sure they get some.

 

yes mix your salt with new water BEFORE adding to tank