Crazy Ph!

[liliesandlemonade]

Hello everyone!

I've got a 1 gallon/4L fish tank with three little guppies in it. They have been happy in it for 4 months now, with undergravel filter, heater and three live plants that are doing well. No display rocks, just gravel and a bit of filter rocks from an established tank. I have been doing weekly 40% water changes since the beginning and everything has been fine. I have been feeding them with Tetra Colour tropical flakes and use Stress Coat+ water conditioner. I also use a activated carbon pad in there.

Three weeks ago I went away on holidays for nine days and did a water change the day I left and the day I returned. I had put a holiday feeder block in whilst I was away and took it out as soon I returned. The fish were happy til 4 days ago (Saturday), when one guppy looked a little 'slow', tail droopy and seemed to be drifting with the current more than anything else. I did a water change and he picked up abit. The other two fish looked fine. Tuesday morning he looked a bit better and I did another water change, just for good measure. Wednesday morning he looked really bad so I went out and bought an ammonia-removing pad/sponge, which I cut an inch square out of it and put it in. Sick fish looked a bit better but I went to the Aquarium that I usually go to and they tested my water: pH 5, nitrate/nitrite/ammonia ok.

They recommended I do daily changes and get a pH kit so I now have a Sera brand pH kit. I changed water again that night (Tap water in Sydney is 7.5) and the pH went to 6. Yes, probably a bit too much too fast but hey, they were already struggling with the acidic water. Today I tested the water in the morning with the sick guppy looking really sick, and it was back to 5.5. Changed water and back to 6 straight after changing. Came back tonight to check the water again and it was 4.5!!! Why?!?

I don't know what to do. I took the ammonia absorbing pad out. The sick fish died this morning and was removed almost immediately (I was doing tank watch all morning ). Please help!

(sorry for the essay!)

Any suggestions will be most appreciated!

 

[KittyKat]

[1. that tank is way too small for the fish, 2. filter rocks are called media, 3. activated carbon does not do anything if you do not replace it every 1-7 days, 4. holiday feeder blocks tend to pollute the water when you're not there to make sure it's clean, guppies are ok without food for up to two weeks, especially if there are plants, 5. what exactly are your ammonia, nitrite and nitrate readings? if you need to put ammonia removing sponges in, then either the readings are not ok or you're wasting your money on a sponge which does not do anything, 6. guppies require hard water with a higher than 7.0 pH to do well]

..but hey, a change in pH is considerably more harmful to guppies than a pH which is too low.

Your problem is that the tap water probably does not have any buffering capability. The solution is to filter through crushed coral, which would stabilise the pH and keep it buffered high, and to do smaller bi-weekly water changes after that, so you do not shock the fish with a drastic pH change. You might also want to add a reef bone rock as decor, it will also help buffer the water up. Do *not* use pH up or anything like that, they do not work in the long term!

Can you find out what your GH and KH readings are? That will help confirm the cause of the pH drop.

You should also consider upgrading to a larger tank, because the water parameters in that should be more stable

 

[liliesandlemonade]

Kitty Kat,
Yes, the tank *is* a small tank. But thus far, my fish have been very happy and active. So that is not the problem at the moment...what I'm trying to do is salvage my other fish right now. Yes, 'filter media'...sleep deprived at the moment so not thinking 100% The activated carbon had been changed weekly too...apologies, neglected to mention that. Thankyou for the tip about the feeder blocks, I have not used them before and I thought 9 days may have been too long. I don't have a testing kit myself but they were all acceptable at the fish shop (can't remember the actual results). - the ammonia sponge was a wild guess solution by my boyfriend - clearly not the issue as the water was tested for ammonia 1/2 a day later and was clear (so I guess, yes it was a waste!)

I know guppies need a 7+ pH...so the water changes have been 'rescue' water changes...the way I see it is option 1. they die 2. they risk being shocked and potentially live...or die.

Have not got any crushed coral. How long would it take to work?

[1. that tank is way too small for the fish, 2. filter rocks are called media, 3. activated carbon does not do anything if you do not replace it every 1-7 days, 4. holiday feeder blocks tend to pollute the water when you're not there to make sure it's clean, guppies are ok without food for up to two weeks, especially if there are plants, 5. what exactly are your ammonia, nitrite and nitrate readings? if you need to put ammonia removing sponges in, then either the readings are not ok or you're wasting your money on a sponge which does not do anything, 6. guppies require hard water with a higher than 7.0 pH to do well]

..but hey, a change in pH is considerably more harmful to guppies than a pH which is too low.

Your problem is that the tap water probably does not have any buffering capability. The solution is to filter through crushed coral, which would stabilise the pH and keep it buffered high, and to do smaller bi-weekly water changes after that, so you do not shock the fish with a drastic pH change. You might also want to add a reef bone rock as decor, it will also help buffer the water up. Do *not* use pH up or anything like that, they do not work in the long term!

Can you find out what your GH and KH readings are? That will help confirm the cause of the pH drop.

You should also consider upgrading to a larger tank, because the water parameters in that should be more stable

 

[KittyKat]

Yes, the tank *is* a small tank. But thus far, my fish have been very happy and active. So that is not the problem at the moment...

Question, how do you know that the tank size does not have anything to do with the current predicament? I suspect the low water volume really is a factor which got you where you are now.

Thankyou for the tip about the feeder blocks, I have not used them before and I thought 9 days may have been too long.

I don't have a testing kit myself but they were all acceptable at the fish shop (can't remember the actual results)

Do write down the exact results.. it will help you see trends in the water quality. Do you get the exact results from the shop? I have seen shops give "they're fine" results to someone when the actual numbers indicated "your water is a toxic soup".

I know guppies need a 7+ pH...so the water changes have been 'rescue' water changes...the way I see it is option 1. they die 2. they risk being shocked and potentially live...or die.

No, no.. that is not so. Option 1 is the pH does not do any immediate harm to the fish, so slowly raise it to something which is better in the long term, option 2 is shock the fish by changing the pH to something which is 75* different and hope they survive. I am saying that drastic pH changes are *considerably* more harmful than wrong pH.

Have not got any crushed coral. How long would it take to work?

It works very slowly. That's the good thing about it: there are no large and immediate changes in pH so it does not harm the fish.

I am almost 100% sure that it was the pH changes which the guppy couldn't handle. How long have you had these fish for, and were they smaller or the same size, when you bought them?

 

[Blubble37]

Do write down the exact results.. it will help you see trends in the water quality. Do you get the exact results from the shop? I have seen shops give "they're fine" results to someone when the actual numbers indicated "your water is a toxic soup".

Happened to my cousin, the guy at the desk told him ammonia 4ppm was fine and the fish would eat it up, a day later 5 of them died and the guy got fired