diff --git a/libs/pageserver_api/src/config.rs b/libs/pageserver_api/src/config.rs
index 5866145690..cc6e4a3699 100644
--- a/libs/pageserver_api/src/config.rs
+++ b/libs/pageserver_api/src/config.rs
@@ -260,11 +260,10 @@ pub struct TenantConfigToml {
     /// Level0 delta layer threshold at which to delay layer flushes for compaction backpressure,
     /// such that they take 2x as long, and start waiting for layer flushes during ephemeral layer
     /// rolls. This helps compaction keep up with WAL ingestion, and avoids read amplification
-    /// blowing up. Should be >compaction_threshold. If None, defaults to 2 * compaction_threshold.
-    /// 0 to disable.
+    /// blowing up. Should be >compaction_threshold. 0 to disable. Disabled by default.
     pub l0_flush_delay_threshold: Option<usize>,
-    /// Level0 delta layer threshold at which to stall layer flushes. 0 to disable. If None,
-    /// defaults to 4 * compaction_threshold. Must be >compaction_threshold to avoid deadlock.
+    /// Level0 delta layer threshold at which to stall layer flushes. Must be >compaction_threshold
+    /// to avoid deadlock. 0 to disable. Disabled by default.
     pub l0_flush_stall_threshold: Option<usize>,
     // Determines how much history is retained, to allow
     // branching and read replicas at an older point in time.
diff --git a/pageserver/src/tenant/timeline.rs b/pageserver/src/tenant/timeline.rs
index 61981db24a..280a3baa21 100644
--- a/pageserver/src/tenant/timeline.rs
+++ b/pageserver/src/tenant/timeline.rs
@@ -2172,8 +2172,8 @@ impl Timeline {
     }
 
     fn get_l0_flush_delay_threshold(&self) -> Option<usize> {
-        // Default to delay L0 flushes at 3x compaction threshold.
-        const DEFAULT_L0_FLUSH_DELAY_FACTOR: usize = 3;
+        // Disable L0 flushes by default. This and compaction needs further tuning.
+        const DEFAULT_L0_FLUSH_DELAY_FACTOR: usize = 0; // TODO: default to e.g. 3
 
         // If compaction is disabled, don't delay.
         if self.get_compaction_period() == Duration::ZERO {
@@ -2201,10 +2201,9 @@ impl Timeline {
     }
 
     fn get_l0_flush_stall_threshold(&self) -> Option<usize> {
-        // Default to stall L0 flushes at 5x compaction threshold.
-        // TODO: stalls are temporarily disabled by default, see below.
-        #[allow(unused)]
-        const DEFAULT_L0_FLUSH_STALL_FACTOR: usize = 5;
+        // Disable L0 stalls by default. In ingest benchmarks, we see image compaction take >10
+        // minutes, blocking L0 compaction, and we can't stall L0 flushes for that long.
+        const DEFAULT_L0_FLUSH_STALL_FACTOR: usize = 0; // TODO: default to e.g. 5
 
         // If compaction is disabled, don't stall.
         if self.get_compaction_period() == Duration::ZERO {
@@ -2236,13 +2235,8 @@ impl Timeline {
             return None;
         }
 
-        // Disable stalls by default. In ingest benchmarks, we see image compaction take >10
-        // minutes, blocking L0 compaction, and we can't stall L0 flushes for that long.
-        //
-        // TODO: fix this.
-        // let l0_flush_stall_threshold = l0_flush_stall_threshold
-        //    .unwrap_or(DEFAULT_L0_FLUSH_STALL_FACTOR * compaction_threshold);
-        let l0_flush_stall_threshold = l0_flush_stall_threshold?;
+        let l0_flush_stall_threshold = l0_flush_stall_threshold
+            .unwrap_or(DEFAULT_L0_FLUSH_STALL_FACTOR * compaction_threshold);
 
         // 0 disables backpressure.
         if l0_flush_stall_threshold == 0 {