Let’s talk about Ammonia - has it been villainized?

[Art]

One thing that always gets plenty of discussion and set opinions is ammonia, especially for new aquariums. I realize that for many aquariums, it may be a big deal initially. However, if you plant heavily from the outset and your pH is below 7, do you really care about it?

 

[Krandall]

Not if you aren't dead set on adding animals to your tank earlier than you should.

 

[GreggZ]

One thing that always gets plenty of discussion and set opinions is ammonia, especially for new aquariums. I realize that for many aquariums, it may be a big deal initially. However, if you plant heavily from the outset and your pH is below 7, do you really care about it?

I do.

If some unusual algae pops up it's one of the first things I check. A good blast of ammonia can wreak some havoc on the system.

Once I couldn't figure out what the heck was going on. Checked and there was an ammonia spike. One of my very old Bows had died but was hidden by the plants.

So while some plants enjoy a bit of ammonia, in my experience too much can give algae an edge.

As to the fish with my very pH means little to them. I am thinking more about the plants.

 

[Hanuman]

One thing that always gets plenty of discussion and set opinions is ammonia, especially for new aquariums. I realize that for many aquariums, it may be a big deal initially. However, if you plant heavily from the outset and your pH is below 7, do you really care about it?

It is a vilan and should remain so.
This is the number one fauna killer in a tank. Sure there are several ways to mitigate its impact on animals in a new tank with the addition of water conditionners for example and/or changing water every day. Not that I agree, but many people do this. Now if you don’t intend to add fish from the get go, ammonia becomes much less of a problem and can also be benificial to plants at lower levels, but too much of it can also have a deliterious effect on them. Ammonia can kill plants at higher levels. So either way it is not a compound to be taken lightly wether your tank has fish or not. But plants can regrow, not fish.