Needing Advice

[Dan Roets]

We just put in our AP system about 5 days ago and we have been encountering some problems with the chemical levels of the water, the test kit we have doesn't test for ammonia (Quick Dip 5-N-1 Test Strips) but the readings for today are:  nitrate/15ppm, nitrite/2.0ppm, total hardness/150ppm, alkalinity/180ppm, ph/7.9. I am needing some general info on what i am doing wrong and right.

Our System:

tank/ 10 gallons with river rock and what we believe to be a big quartz rock with 4 goldfish and one neon tetra, a Aqueon quiet flow 10 water filter, a eco 100 gph water pump, a heater, and a 6 inch air stone under the rock.

grow bed/ a 56 liter 24 1/4"L X 16"W X 11"H with 35 liters of hydrotron and 5 liters of river rock on the bottom, it also has 1 peppermint and 1 spearmint clipping, a strawberry clipping, 8 basil seed in a small pot in peat moss and 4 parsley seeds in a small pot with half peat moss and half hydrotron.

What I really need to know is how many fish do i need for our system? Why are the chemical levels so high? How do I bring them down? And why do our fish keep dying?

[TCLynx]

If you have plants in the system, they could be using up all the nitrates as fast as they are produced.  How are your plants looking?  If they are looking good and growing well then they are fine with that level of nitrates.

I don't know about these worms you speak of.  Can you take a picture and post it?  What do they look like?