Filter material for troubleshooting
Is there a problem with your aquarium water? Here you can see which filter material can help
If your water is not crystal-clear and odourless, then there is something wrong. Water tests will help you identify a lot of causes and resolve them with problem-solving products. Only cloudiness and odours cannot be analysed with water tests. You will find the most common problems and the corresponding possible solutions here.
Cloudy water is really unsightly, although it often disturbs the owner more than the fish. We distinguish between two types of cloudiness and two types of discolouration. Clouding limits the visibility into the water.
In contrast to cloudiness a discolouration occurs when there is a colour cast but the water still seems to be clear. Cloudiness limits the visibility into the water. There also are intended or “accepted” discolourations. By adding peat extracts ( JBL Tropol ) you add natural substances to the aquarium water which your fish know from the wild. Thus the water turns slightly tea-coloured as in many rivers and streams in the tropics. The fish feel more comfortable and some species can only be bred that way! After adding medications a blue water discolouration (for example) can temporarily occur. It doesn’t look nice but is inevitable during the use of medication.
This may be due to rotting processes in the aquarium or to blue-green algae. Please check and remove, if required: dead fish, algae, dead plants, too much or uneaten food or a lot of debris on the ground.
Inserting activated carbon in filter: JBL Carbomec ultra
Value in freshwater < 30 mg/l, marine water < 20 mg/l
Nitrate (NO3) is a nitrogen compound which occurs bacterially from nitrite (NO2). Unlike nitrite nitrate is non-toxic, but it serves algae as nutrients and can lead to excessive algae growth. It is therefore advisable to reduce the nitrate content if nitrate values in freshwater exceed 30 mg/l (in marine water 20 mg/l). With the right filter material you can specifically and easily reduce the nitrate levels to the desired value.
Recommended value: < 1 mg/l
As soon as you reduce the silicic acid content in the water by using a silicate remover ( JBL SilicatEx Rapid ) diatoms can no longer survive. Using a silicate test ( JBL PROAQUATEST SiO2 Silicate ), you can determine the silicate content in your tap and aquarium water quickly and easily.
Recommended value: < 0,1 mg/l
Phosphates and nitrates generally serve algae as main nutrients. Therefore the phosphate value shouldn’t exceed 0.1 mg/l. Phosphates react quite quickly with minerals in the water and precipitate (sediment). It is therefore useful to regularly use a gravel cleaner ( JBL AquaEx Set 45-70 / JBL Aqua In Out Complete Set ) during a partial water change. Clean the filter too, as filter sludge contains large amounts of phosphate.
Decreasing the phosphate value: in addition to the already mentioned measures, phosphate can easily, quickly and reliably be removed with the special filter material JBL PhosEX ultra . If you wish not only to remove phosphate, but also nitrite and nitrate, we recommend the dedicated filter media JBL ClearMec plus .
Nitrite (NO2) should, after a running-in phase of two weeks (with bacterial starter JBL Denitrol and slowly growing animal stock), lie under the detection limit of 0.01 mg/l. All higher nitrite values indicate that the natural bacterial degradation of nitrogen compounds in your aquarium are out of balance for some reason. If the nitrite level in your aquarium is higher, the concentration of these nitrogen compounds (from 0.4 mg/l) may be deadly. Please check the following factors:
Have you got enough filter material? Increase the amount, if necessary.
Can you perhaps replace the sponge in your filter with more effective filter material, such as JBL Sintomec or JBL Micromec ?
Did you add salt? Salt kills bacteria, even the beneficial ones. Rebuild bacterial flora with JBL Denitrol and JBL FilterStart .
Did you add new filter bacteria ( JBL FilterStart ), after cleaning of your filter media and killing off or at least reducing your filter bacteria?
Did you rebuild the bacterial flora after the use of bactericidal remedies? Do always carry out a 30-50 % partial water change after a remedy treatment and add JBL Carbomec activ to your filter and JBL Denitrol .