Dying Fish?

[Xious]

They need to be below 20ppm.
There is a danger that improving the conditions will raise the pH and cause harmless ammonium to convert to toxic ammonia so keep testing the water conditions every day.

Just did a 10% water change and the Nitrates are at 40ppm
Also noticed the temp was at 83, probably not a huge deal but I dropped it down to around 78ish. Had it high for shrimp reproduction.

 

[PlasticGalaxy]

Just did a 10% water change and the Nitrates are at 40ppm
Also noticed the temp was at 83, probably not a huge deal but I dropped it down to around 78ish. Had it high for shrimp reproduction.

83F is fine for a little, as your tank will probably reach this temperature in the summer months - unless you live in the Arctic, I guess. However, it should be noted that the goldfish will gain a rise in metabolism in warmer water, which leads to a greater appetite, and greater levels of waste.

Make sure you stay on top of water changes in both tanks - especially the 155g. The plecs will put out massive amounts of waste, as will the goldfish. This can cause ammonia spikes in your tank, which are highly toxic to fish and can result in death if not properly handled.

I believe the high nitrate is partially responsible for the death of your guppies, along with the long-distance shipping. As for the shrimp, water changes will also benefit them; high nitrate levels can be deadly for shrimp of many species, and should be kept as low as possible to ensure healthy, thriving invertebrate buddies!

 

[Colin_T]

Pictures of the sick fish so we can check them for diseases?

 

[StripySnailGirl04]

I'll add more plants! Any you'd suggest? Perhaps something that likes to eat nitrates if that's a thing? xD

According to this source, anubias can control nitrate levels:

Anubias Nana: The Full Guide To Caring, Planting and Propagation

Anubias nana is a short plant with broad leaves. Its dark green colors make it an attractive plant and it will help keep your tank water clean and oxygenated. Adding plants to an aquarium can

www.fishkeepingworld.com

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

According to this source, anubias can control nitrate levels:

Anubias Nana: The Full Guide To Caring, Planting and Propagation

Anubias nana is a short plant with broad leaves. Its dark green colors make it an attractive plant and it will help keep your tank water clean and oxygenated. Adding plants to an aquarium can

www.fishkeepingworld.com

Anubius is a very slow growing plant, so not much help when it comes to improving water quality.

What you're looking for is fast growing plants. Those will suck up the ammonia the fish produce, faster than the beneficial bacteria (BB) can consume it even, given enough of the right plant matter.

Fast growing stem plants such as elodea, hornwort, guppy grass - these grow almost in front of your eyes, so they can really help a great deal in improving water quality, along with providing hiding places and shade for your fry and fish! Really easy to care for, most don't even need planting, and will happily grow if just left floating in the tank.
Floating plants like amazon frogbit, salvinia, red root floaters etc are also brilliant for sucking up ammonia, while giving the fish a sense of safety from predators above (they don't know that there aren't any!) and providing shaded areas in the tank. All easy plants for someone new to live plants.

But no matter how well planted, nothing can replace or eliminate routine tank maintenance. Water changes aren't just for lowering nitrate levels, there are all sorts of different things that can build up in the tank without regular changes, and substrate still needs to be cleaned, plants maintained etc.

@Naughts is spot on about old tank syndrome, and the need to slowly and carefully increase the volume of water changes over time, so the fish can gradually adjust to the changes in water chemistry. After some time of doing those daily changes and slowly increasing the amount of water you change each time and the water parameters stablise, you'll be able to go to routine weekly changes. That will keep your water chemically close to your source water, which is crucial if you ever have a disaster that requires a large water change, because again, sudden changes shock fish, and lead to dead fish.

As for shrimp, now that they're breeding, there will always be tiny shrimplets in there that you're scared of sucking up! No way to avoid it that I've found, and believe me, I've tried! The method I use is to use white buckets, making it easy for me to spot them along the mulm and debris, with a strong light over the bucket, and fishing them out to return them to the tank! They don't appear to suffer any ill effects from their trip through the syphon! It does add a HUGE amount of time to water change day though...!

 

[Xious]

Alright so i'm a week into the 10% water changes and am starting the 20%. All the original fish died last week but the girls had babies and all the babies are alive and well. About 17-20 babies in the tank. Also, I got 3 more guppies from my local pet store to test if it was the winter trip. The 3 new guppies were fine until today when the 1 male turned pale and started gasping for air like the batch was transported. Sadly I didn't test nitrates before today's water change but post water change results have Nitrates around 30-35ish (slightly orange but not quite 40 level red). And I think I know what's causing the imbalance, a dead snail! How I have no idea, how long? I don't know. but 4/5 are ok and happy. Maybe he got old. lol Either way i've had a dead snail in tank for at least week. . . No ammonia or nitrite spikes only nitrate.

What would I do to save a fish with nitrate poisoning? And does anyone know why none of the baby fish would be effected by the nitrate levels?

Anubius is a very slow growing plant, so not much help when it comes to improving water quality.

What you're looking for is fast growing plants. Those will suck up the ammonia the fish produce, faster than the beneficial bacteria (BB) can consume it even, given enough of the right plant matter.

Fast growing stem plants such as elodea, hornwort, guppy grass - these grow almost in front of your eyes, so they can really help a great deal in improving water quality, along with providing hiding places and shade for your fry and fish! Really easy to care for, most don't even need planting, and will happily grow if just left floating in the tank.
Floating plants like amazon frogbit, salvinia, red root floaters etc are also brilliant for sucking up ammonia, while giving the fish a sense of safety from predators above (they don't know that there aren't any!) and providing shaded areas in the tank. All easy plants for someone new to live plants.

But no matter how well planted, nothing can replace or eliminate routine tank maintenance. Water changes aren't just for lowering nitrate levels, there are all sorts of different things that can build up in the tank without regular changes, and substrate still needs to be cleaned, plants maintained etc.

@Naughts is spot on about old tank syndrome, and the need to slowly and carefully increase the volume of water changes over time, so the fish can gradually adjust to the changes in water chemistry. After some time of doing those daily changes and slowly increasing the amount of water you change each time and the water parameters stablise, you'll be able to go to routine weekly changes. That will keep your water chemically close to your source water, which is crucial if you ever have a disaster that requires a large water change, because again, sudden changes shock fish, and lead to dead fish.

As for shrimp, now that they're breeding, there will always be tiny shrimplets in there that you're scared of sucking up! No way to avoid it that I've found, and believe me, I've tried! The method I use is to use white buckets, making it easy for me to spot them along the mulm and debris, with a strong light over the bucket, and fishing them out to return them to the tank! They don't appear to suffer any ill effects from their trip through the syphon! It does add a HUGE amount of time to water change day though...!

Got some guppy grass! I think the babies will love it!

 

[Xious]

Pictures of the sick fish so we can check them for diseases?

this is the only one I have atm. He's the current sick fish.