Ammonia and Nitrate Testing

Though ammonia is more harmful, both ammonia and nitrate are toxic to fish. Ammonia can be found in water that has not been properly treated, and nitrate levels can increase due to wastes in the water. Both nitrate and ammonia can appear due to residue left on items placed into the aquarium. If the levels of nitrate or ammonia become too high, aquatic life can become sick or even die.

In order to test for ammonia, you must gather a test tube, 5 ml of water from your tank, Ammonia Bottle #1 and Ammonia Bottle #2. It is important to rinse the test tube with water from your own tank before testing in order to remove any residue from tap water or other tanks. Put 8 drops of Ammonia #1, followed by 8 drops of Ammonia #2, into the water. Gently swirl the chemicals together and wait five minutes to determine the level of ammonia in the water.

Similarly, to test for nitrate, you must clean your test tube with water from your own tank and collect 5 ml of water to test. Drop 10 drops of Nitrate #1 into the water, swirl the bottle of Nitrate #2 for 30 seconds, drop 10 drops of it into the water, swirl for one minute, and then wait five minutes to determine the results.