Fish Dying - High Ph?

[quarryman]

So we lost another Molly last night

BUT, I bought a test kit. And everything seems good! Here's the results:

ph: 7.5
nitrat: 8mg/l
nitrit: 0 mg/L
Ammonia 0.2

I used a kit with reagents. It wasn't too cheap so I'm hoping its decent:
[URL="http/www.seapets.co.uk/product-details/s...tegory/753.html"]http/www.seapets.co.uk/product-details/s...tegory/753.html[/URL]

So according to the booklets those results seem ok? Obviously the results aren't absolutely exact as its hard to match the colour perfectly but i've gone for the more pessimistic reading.

Are we still losing the odd fish now due to damage the fish might have got from the ammonia at the start before the tank was cycled?

 

[rabbut]

Not the worst results I've seen, but still not right I'm afraid. Deffinately not fine.

Ammonia and nitrite (NH3 and NO2 respectively) need to be zero at all times in a mature and cycled tank or there is a problem In this case, it is that the tank isn't cycled.

Nitrate isn't too bad in low quantities, but wants to be no higher than 50ppm, above the tap water reading. Can you tell us what the nitrate reading is from the tap please? It could be present from tap water or could be from the cycle starting.

All the best
Rabbut

 

[vinylman]

Not good. The only acceptable level for Ammonia is zero. It will - at the very least - permanently damage the fish's gills.

 

[quarryman]

Not good. The only acceptable level for Ammonia is zero. It will - at the very least - permanently damage the fish's gills.

Is everyone on this forum from Leeds?

Yeah, to be honest, the ammonia COULD be zero but its very hard to tell when comparing with the colour on the booklet. I don't think the colour in the testtube actually changed after I added the drops.

I'll test everything again and compare it to what is in the tap.

 

[rabbut]

Not good. The only acceptable level for Ammonia is zero. It will - at the very least - permanently damage the fish's gills.

Is everyone on this forum from Leeds?

No, not everyone, just most of us I agree with Vinylman's post, any ammonia reading is bad news and can do long-term damage unless quickly rectified. Unfortunately the readings you have aren't uncommon for such a new tank, so you probibly have a reason to believe that ammonia is up at this point, though it may not be.

Yeah, to be honest, the ammonia COULD be zero but its very hard to tell when comparing with the colour on the booklet. I don't think the colour in the testtube actually changed after I added the drops.

What test kit are you using? (Brand and strips/tablets/liquid regent type?) To read accurately, you need to be in sunlight, and you need to be holding the test tube about an inch away from the card, vertically, with the card behind, such that both the card and the test tube are in the light Artificial lighting can realy mess with the readings, and not enough light will do likewise. Compir the tube colour to those on the chart on a white background only, but never toch the tube to the background. It needs to be an inch away from it.

I'll test everything again and compare it to what is in the tap.

That would realy help us determin where your cycle is ATM

All the best
Rabbut

 

[quarryman]

Ok so I've tested this water again. This time comparing against the tap water.

Ammonia: Tank and Tap water EXACTLY the same and having looked closer in better light the reading is 0.0. Its basically clear.

Nitrit: Both 0

Nitrat: 2 (i had been reading the salt water chart the last time)

Ph: Tap water: 7.0 Tank: 7.5.

I'm pretty sure the ammonia level is at 0 and I feel the tank is close to cycled. This fish look pretty healthy at the moment and reckon that the we have lost fish up to this point due to damage they sustained in the first few weeks when the tank was not cycled.

What do you guys think?

 

[waterdrop]

sounds like things are getting better

 

[rabbut]

Results are as they should be, and your theory over losses sounds reasonable

 

[Miss Wiggle]

yes i agree, stick with testing and water changes as needed but sounds like you're certainly over the worst of it.

just a cautionary word, don't thin because the tank is cycled now you can go out next week and add more fish, basically the quicker you are to add fish the greater the liklihood of the tank starting to cycle again to catch up. hold off adding anything else the longest you possibly can and then stock slowly and you shouldn't get any more problems.