Salt and Biofiltration

[astha2]

Hi Aro-experts and Fellow Hobbyists.

Just a little question here.
I've read that salt of about 0.3% concentration helps to alleviate the effects of Nitrite level.
Is maintaining that amount of salt OK for the bio filtration?

Thanks in advanced. ^_^

[Oneiromancer]

Originally Posted by astha2

Hi Aro-experts and Fellow Hobbyists.

Just a little question here.
I've read that salt of about 0.3% concentration helps to alleviate the effects of Nitrite level.
Is maintaining that amount of salt OK for the bio filtration?

Thanks in advanced. ^_^

As in does it kill the beneficial bacteria?

[AdamC]

Originally Posted by astha2

Hi Aro-experts and Fellow Hobbyists.

Just a little question here.
I've read that salt of about 0.3% concentration helps to alleviate the effects of Nitrite level.
Is maintaining that amount of salt OK for the bio filtration?

Thanks in advanced. ^_^

Where'd you read this?

[DragonFireSG]

Salt does lower the toxicity of nitrite. It is however a temporary measure. There should not be any nitrite in the water if the bio is sized correctly and is working ok.

Regarding the bio, 0.3% salt will not harm the good bacteria. It may however harm fishes and plants that are sensitive to it. 0.3% is tolerable for the koi I am experienced with. I can't say the same for other species.

[Dave57]

Originally Posted by DragonFireSG

Salt does lower the toxicity of nitrite. It is however a temporary measure. There should not be any nitrite in the water if the bio is sized correctly and is working ok.

I don't think salt lowers toxicity of nitrite. Can you kindly provide reference to this?

however, it is true that nitrite should not be allowed to accumulate in the fish tank. if there is nitrite detected in your fish tank, it means your biofiltration is not working well.
generally, nitrite is more toxic than ammonia and nitrate.

to remove nitrite, provide as much aeration as possible. with sufficient aeration, carbonate buffer (coral chips, oyster shells, sodium bicarbonate) and living space (bio filtration media like ceramic rings, bioballs, japanese mat), the beneficial bacteria will take care of themselves.

the 0.3% salt content is used when fishes are stressed or injured. adding 0.3% salt will relieve fishes of stresses and enhance their recovery. I have not read on salt effects on nitrite toxicity.

[DragonFireSG]

http://cires1.colorado.edu/limnology...dfs/Pub079.pdf

Here is a scientific study on nitrite toxicity in fish. Chloride in the water does reduce the effect of nitrite in fish by interfering with the uptake of nitrite.

[Dave57]

Originally Posted by DragonFireSG

http://cires1.colorado.edu/limnology...dfs/Pub079.pdf

Here is a scientific study on nitrite toxicity in fish. Chloride in the water does reduce the effect of nitrite in fish by interfering with the uptake of nitrite.

thanks for the reference. good information.

however, do note that in the review, it was described that they worked in the range of 22 to 60 mg/l Cl- (which is about 36 to 99mg of salt per liter of water or 0.0036 to 0.0099% salt). A dosage of 0.3% (3000mg/l) is on a different level and overkill for this purpose.

[DragonFireSG]

Agreed on concentration. 0.3% is definitely more for treatment of various conditions. I do know of koi keepers who maintain this level of salinity indefinitely with no ill effect tho.

That said, koi tolerate salt very well - much more so than many other aquarium species.

[AdamC]

Originally Posted by DragonFireSG

Agreed on concentration. 0.3% is definitely more for treatment of various conditions. I do know of koi keepers who maintain this level of salinity indefinitely with no ill effect tho.

That said, koi tolerate salt very well - much more so than many other aquarium species.

Most fish (except for the scale-less species) could tolerate reasonable change in salinity up to about 0.5%. If you subject a Koi to sudden change from say 0% to 0.3%, just watch it jump out of the water!

[astha2]

Wow.. thanks for all re replies. By the way, I read about the salt and nitrite here:
cuttlebrookkoifarm. co. uk/ articles/ 180-understanding-nitrite

(Sorry for the spaces in the link. I'm a new member and somehow not allowed to post urls)