Anyone Ever Deal With "old Tank Syndrome"?

[Medusa]

I think I might have "old tank syndrome". For the past 3 months any new fish that I add to my tank eventually dies, sometimes it takes a week or so but they all eventually die. The other fish, which I've had for a while now seem to be doing just fine. I read that this is a symptom of old tank syndrom. Strangely, I don't have the other symptoms such as dropping ph level or high ammonia. Everything is ok, except for a slightly high ph. Could a high ph level be a symptom of the syndrome? The water comes out of my tap at a 7.6 level & i've been trying to lower it with driftwood and now "correct ph tablets". (I know people are going to harp on me using ph tablets but I need to soften the water somehow and the driftwood doesn't make much of a difference.)

Anyone have any good advice on the subject?

 

[Tolak]

Lets start with you posting the results of water tests. We need numbers, not "My lfs says my water is fine" because often your lfs is wrong. Your pH is the same as mine, I breed angels in it, they supposedly need soft, acidic water.

How often do you do water changes & other maintenance, what exactly do you do, what dechlor do you use, and how do you acclimate the fish. Also, are the fish all coming from the same lfs?

 

[Medusa]

Lets start with you posting the results of water tests. We need numbers, not "My lfs says my water is fine" because often your lfs is wrong. Your pH is the same as mine, I breed angels in it, they supposedly need soft, acidic water.

How often do you do water changes & other maintenance, what exactly do you do, what dechlor do you use, and how do you acclimate the fish. Also, are the fish all coming from the same lfs?

ph is now 7. though often much higher around 7.2 to 7.6
ammonia 0
nitrite 0

for a while i was doing weekly water changes but went down to bi weekly because i as told weekly wasn't necessary.

I use API Stress Coat declor

I am getting the fish from the same lfs

I usually float the bag for 10 minutes, then mix in some aquarium water and let them slowly adjust.

is it possible that the tests that i use are faulty. i never seem to have any ammonia or nitrite levels in my tank?

 

[tttnjfttt]

When you are questioning old tank syndrome, it is important to check your nitrAte levels as well.

 

[guppymonkey]

There is no timetable for water changes. No one can tell you that weekly water changes are not necessary. If you want you could do water changes every single day and your fish would love you for it. It may not be necessary to do them that often though. You definately need to check your nitrate levels. Most pet stores don't test for them because they are under the mistaken idea that nitrates are only important in salt water tanks. Nitrates are a kind of poison but are slower acting than ammonia and nitrite and are deadly in much higher quantities. Nitrates are very deadly but most fish keepers are more concerned about the quicker death caused by ammonia or nitrite. Nitrates can cause dull colors on fish, pregnancy can be aborted by high nitrates (this happens in other animals like farm animals such as cows, sheep and pigs as well) it also stunts the growth of fish. In most animals nitrate gets absorbed into the bloodstream and gets converted back into nitrite (not 100% that this is what happens to fish but seems likely). Depending on the fish levels as low as 40 ppm can have effects. The problem is that in a lot of areas farm run off in the water supplies makes it so that you start off with a low nitrate level (from all the fertilizers that can washed into rivers) and that nitrate level can become elevated quickly if a tank gets overstocked or you slow down the schedule of water changes.

If a fish dies overnight that is a sign that nitrates are high. By the way I have never even heard of old tank syndrome. I am assuming that its refering to nitrate because in the old days they used to never change water thinking that the tank was a closed system and took care of itself. Then if they tried to add new fish the fish would die because the nitrates were very high. There would be no ammonia or nitrite because they would be converted into nitrate.