Ammonia is an extremely toxic compound in the aquarium. Excreted from fish directly, ammonia is also generated from the breakdown of organic carbon (fish waste, dead plant material, left over fish food, etc.) and in general is always being produced in low to high amounts. What a lot of fish keepers don’t know is that ammonia exists in an equilibrium with a less toxic counterpart ammonium. The relative amount of each nitrogen species is dependent on pH. As the pH increases, so does the amount of ammonia and thus ammonia toxicity is more of an issue. The opposite effect happens when the pH deceases.

 

     In this video we highlight the two nitrogen compounds and attempt to shed light on the effects ammonia/ammonium in the aquarium with respect to the changes in pH. We also discuss briefly the importance of the nitrogen cycle and the action of plants to reduce ammonia concentrations.