Green Water And Gasping ...

[Llegmore]

My tank has developed 'green water' seemingly overnight after a 70% water change yesterday.

The tank inhabitants are: spawning pair of angels and 6 julii cories.

The angels have been gasping at the surface for about two hours now. The cories are less active than usual and I've also noticed that my usual burrowing assassin snails are slowly making their way up to the surface.

I'm confused as the tank has been very healthy up to this point and because of the change yesterday.

I'm a bit worried that the change stirred the substrate up too much and that is to blame.

I've done a further 10% change in the last hour but it hasn't seemed to have made a difference.

Any ideas?

 

[fluttermoth]

Have you tested the water?

There was obviously something amiss after yesterday's change, so I'd be inclined to another 80/95% change now to clear that out.

 

[Llegmore]

Have you tested the water?

There was obviously something amiss after yesterday's change, so I'd be inclined to another 80/95% change now to clear that out.

I'm out of test tablets =S Such an idiot. It's too late to get any tonight and I'm GOING ON HOLIDAY ON MONDAY for 3 weeks. I'm going crazy.

I've started another water change. They're not quite as close to the surface now, about an inch beneath it, and the cories are more active. I still don't understand what could have caused it

 

[fluttermoth]

All sorts of things can come in with your new water; things that aren't normally there, like phosphates or raised ammonia.

 

[N0body Of The Goat]

Surface gasping suggests nitrite poisoning, 95% water change as already suggested.

I hope for the fish and your sake you have an experience fish keeper looking after your tank while you are away, this does not sound a good time to be leaving them for 3 weeks.

 

[Llegmore]

Surface gasping suggests nitrite poisoning, 95% water change as already suggested.

I hope for the fish and your sake you have an experience fish keeper looking after your tank while you are away, this does not sound a good time to be leaving them for 3 weeks.

Unfortunately I don't. I had everything planned but this has thrown me a bit. Sadly, I'm not in charge of whether I go on holiday or not.

The water-change is looking good although it has uprooted almost all the replanting I did yesterday.

 

[Llegmore]

Found a shop still open that did tablets. And after a water change of aprox 75% -

Still high.

Please help. I'm getting desperate now. My mum's going to murder me if I do any more water changes.

Would extra mature media from my other tanks help out?

 

[fluttermoth]

Mature media from another tank would help, but a water change would be better


Dear Llegmore's mum.

Those fish really need another water change!

thanks, love fluttermoth x


Did you remember to dechlorinate when you did yesterday's change, Llegmore? Over clean your filter? Something's knocked your filter bacteria out of whack, that's for sure

 

[Llegmore]

I didn't even clean the filter yesterday. So I've no idea what could have done it. And I bought a huge bottle of dechlorinated specifically. It's a real puzzle. I did uproot a load of plants and there was a lot of rotting stuff floating everywhere...

My snail's heading back down now though. I take that as a good sign.

Would you say that my nitrite reading is 0.25 or 0.5 ... I'm a terrible judge of these colour tests. How much of an additional change would you suggest?

And my mum's kind of given up trying now. She's just upset because she cleaned the bathroom ready for us to go away after the change and now it's looking like a swamp. Again.

 

[N0body Of The Goat]

Another 95% ASAP would be my choice, especially given you will be going away in the next couple of days, it would give you a chance to properly evaluate where things are at in the morning.

 

[Asteria]

Looks like 0.25 to me

 

[ShinySideUp]

I'd say 0.25 too.

Strange chart though, it puts low nitrite at the top of the page and low ammonia at the bottom; I'll bet that could lead to confusion.

Actually another look makes me tend towards less than 0.25.

 

[Llegmore]

Cheers people. I thought higher than 0.25 but my mum agrees with you.

I did another water change but didn't complete it because I fell asleep =/ however all my fish seem happy now and are swimming normally. The water has cleared too.

 

[fluttermoth]

It was probably the stuff you kicked up during your tidy up then; you probably want to keep an eye on your cleaning/feeding regime so it doesn't happen again!

Hopefully it'll have totally settled before you go away *crosses fingers for you*.

 

[Asteria]

Well i hope the best for you and the fishes