General Care Discussion :: Ammonia Level

[WaterLogged]

Hello, obviously we want to try & keep ammonia at 0 or close to it but is there a level that won't require emergency measures if we can't syphon the tank for a couple of days?

[penelope]

The safe level is 0
However...
Just ride it out. As the resident 'water sage' on this forum once told me (when I was freaking out.)

You took your turtle out for months, you removed the ammonia source, and the nitrifying bacteria went dormant or died. Youre seeing high ammonia levels because the tank needs to cycle again. Changing water only prolongs or prevents the cycle from completing. You should never change water on a cycling tank.

I took his advice, and after three pages of frantic posts, it all turned out perfectly.