Hi everyone!
I am in the middle of doing my research to make sure I can care for Discus adequately before I dive in, and at the moment I am doing a ton of water checks. I am finding, annoyingly, a reading of .25ppm nitrite straight out of the tap, and after aging a barrel of water 24 hours (twice) I am still seeing .25ppm nitrite and no nitrate, but also .5ppm ammonia. I am using a new API freshwater master test kit.
I am thinking about adding a RO unit to my routine, however I will only maybe get 15/20 gallons a day. I would rather avoid adding an RO unit too.
I am wondering though, if I add an internal filter to my aging bucket (as I also get a swing from ph 8.4 to 6.4 in around 12 hours), and then the canister filter on the tank itself (size and make not yet decided) if that will break down the nitrite enough so as not to be a concern? I don't want to add any life to the aging bucket though as it will be in the dark (garage) so I am not sure if the bacteria could be supported on the tap nitrites alone.
I have also read that Prime can neutralize ammonia and nitrites? Is this to a noticeable degree?
Thoughts?