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Just started my system cycling my system on November 11th. I am using Clear Ammonia. When I started the system I accidentally added too much ammonia bringing the level to 8 ppm. I have not added any ammonia since then. My last 3 readings have had an odd color to them, a deep aquamarine, blueish tint, not on the master aquarium test sheet for ammonia. All my prior readings were the proper color for 8.0 ppm. I have add seaweed solution just to help the plants in the grow bed. (mostly lettuce.) Anyone have any clue as to this type of result?

These are my readings thus far :

Date Temp pH Ammonia Nitrite Nitrate
11/11/13 75.9 7.6 8.0 0.0 10.0
11/13/13 77.7 6.4 8.0 0.0 20.0
11/15/13 80.7 6.6 8.0 0.0 20.0
11/17/13 81.6 6.6 8.0 0.0 5.0
11/19/13 80.6 6.0 8.0 0.50 10.0
11/21/13 80.7 6.0 8.0 odd color 0.50 20.0
11/23/13 80.7 6.0 8.0 odd color 2.0 20.0
11/25/13 78.9 6.4 8.0 odd color 5.0 5.0

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I read the Clean Water 11-27-13  and it was quite informative but I don't believe I saw any mention of rain water. How does rain water stack up as a clean supply?

FriendlyAquaponics said:

Guys

There's ONE good reason for high ammonia levels showing up in a system that has just had a huge water exchange such as this; you're putting new ammonia into the system! Well, not eggzackly, here's how it works: many municipalities now use chloramine for chlorinating water with, because it's much cheaper and longer lasting than plain chlorine. But unless you have a "total chlorine" test strip, or a test strip that test for "chlorine AND chloramines", then all you will see is high ammonia levels, because the ammonia strip responds to the "'amine" portion of the chloramine, making it look like you have high ammonia levels in your system. If you read our "Clean Water 11-27-13.docx" that I attached a couple of posts back, it tells you both how to measure for chloramine (I'm almost certain that is what your problem is), AND how to get rid of it. Aloha, Tim..........

Rainwater's usually pretty darn guaranteed. Unless you live on the South end of my island, where the acidic fumes from the volcano deposit on people's roofs, and then, when they are rinsed off by the rain, end up creating catchment cisterns with pH in the high 3's and low 4's. It's really simple to fix, though; just add some calcium carbonate (finely ground oyster shells), and your pH will shoot right up to 7.0 and balance there for months or even up to a year and a half at a time.

We're at the other end of the island, and our rainwater has a pH of 8.2 sometimes. We've used it with no problems to start and fill systems now for 6 years. Aloha, Tim...........

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