Seachem Prime will help if you have ammonia, nitrite and/or nitrate spikes in you fish tank. So, is this water conditioner capable of lowering the levels of these nitrogen compounds?
You can find out in this article from Aquarium Blueprints.
Quick Summary
On its own, Seachem Prime won’t lower the ammonia, nitrites and/or nitrates level in your tank. Instead, this water conditioner will only bind these nitrogen compounds into non-toxic forms for a maximum of 48 hours.
After that grace period, ammonia, nitrites and nitrates will turn toxic again unless you dose Prime into your fish tank once again.
With that said, Seachem Prime can be used with another product (like Seachem Stability) or to complement a water change to help lower these nitrogen compounds.
What are ammonia, nitrite and nitrates?
When you are keeping fish or other aquatic pets in your aquarium, they will naturally product organic wastes that will eventually decompose into ammonia. Dead plants and uneaten food will also turn into ammonia.
The naturally-occurring beneficial bacteria in your tank will convert ammonia into nitrites and then nitrites into nitrates. Under special conditions, there is another beneficial bacteria species that will remove nitrates from your tank water.
Ammonia and nitrites can both be very toxic to your fish and other aquatic pets. When it comes to nitrates, you may run into issues if it gets above 40 ppm. If you are keeping a sensitive fish or other aquatic species as pets, then you should make sure that the nitrate level doesn’t get above 20 ppm.
How does Seachem Prime help with ammonia, nitrites and nitrates?
If you noticed that you have toxic levels of ammonia, nitrites and nitrates, then you can use Seachem Prime to provide instant relief for your fish and other aquatic pets.
The water conditioner works by converting ammonia, nitrites and nitrates into temporary non-toxic forms. As a result, the tank inhabitants won’t be negatively affected if your waters become a health hazard for them.
Will Prime lower ammonia, nitrites and nitrates?
On its own Prime isn’t capable of lowering ammonia, nitrites or nitrates.
As we stated previously, the water conditioner will only bind these nitrogen compounds into a non-toxic state. This effect will only last for up to 48 hours. If you don’t re-dose Prime in your tank by that time, then the ammonia, nitrites and nitrates will become toxic again.
If you do notice that the nitrogen compounds have gone down after you added Seachem Prime in your tank, then it is likely due to other factors.
For example, if you did a water change in between testing your tank waters, then it will most likely dilute the concentration of ammonia, nitrites and nitrates. Adding plants and live bacteria will also help reduce the levels. Last but not least, the biological filtration may be able to catch up to the excess amount of nitrogen compounds and is becoming more efficient at removing them.
To find out more information about how you can lower ammonia and nitrites in your tank waters, we recommend taking a look at this article.
To see how you can lower nitrates in your aquarium, you can check out this guide.