HEEEEEEELLLLP!!!

[MamaPish]

Yesterday everything was great with my new addition of 6 mature angels.....
I got them Monday, and I have already got 1 pair prepairing to spawn, the others were trying to pair up.....
Yesterday I vacumed the tank and did about 25% water change.
Added salt to make up for what I took out......added declorinator....everthing was great.
PH before water change was about a 6.8
Amonia 0
Nitrate and Nitrite 0

after water change, the only change in the readings was the PH...it went back up to a 7.6, didn't think much of it I thought it would level out......but I checked it today and it was still 7.6.

All 6 of my new angels are staying at the top of the water, and have stopped fighting, one is staying right in front of the filter where the water is coming out and his fins are drawn in.

I just changed 15gals of water out of 55......I was afraid I got to much salt in yesterday, so I wanted to get it out....and I have also added PH down to try to get that under control again.

We have hard water....should I use distilled water mixed w/ tap when doing water changes?

Are the fish acting this way because of the change in PH?

The other fish in the tank are acting no different, they seem fine.

I would really appreciate your comments.

 

[semper fi]

don't know that much about angels but sounds like there is a problem. the sudden raise in the ph could be it. if you are going to lower the ph do it before adding it to the tank during water changes. raising ph and temps too fast can send the fish into shock.

if you are going to lower the ph, do it slowly. treat the water outside of the tank and then add it to the tank. taking out about 15 gallons of the water and lowering the ph to the desired ph and then adding it to the tank every other day til the entire tank's ph is there should do the trick.

might try upping the air flow on the aerator for them also.

maggie

 

[MamaPish]

Thanks maggie......I have increased air flow,
I will make sure the PH is the same before making water changes again.....


The tanks ph is now at about 7.0....the fish are bunched together in a corner at the bottom of the tank..........I'm not sure what a fish looks like when it is "in shock".....but it would be my guess that they are indeed in shock...........Is there anything I can do for them, should I keep the light off.....do I need to hold off on feeding right now....
Is it possible that they will die from this?

Anyone please comment if you know of something to help them through this "shock"...nearest pet shop is an hour away, if I can do something for them I need to go get it soon

 

[semper fi]

i would keep the light off and stop feeding. atleast for a day. give them some time to recover. fish can die from shock. not sure if there is really anything you can do, but sometimes they are hardier than they look. offer a very small pinch of food tomorrow. if they do not eat, then hold off on the feeding. feeding them when they do not want to eat will only raise the parameters of your water.

hope they do get better! keep us posted.

maggie

 

[Great Lakes]

Mom, it was likely your hard water that caused this ph spike. There is a soda dosage you can use to help out. Check back, I will find it and post it.

 

[CFC]

Can i just ask why you add salt to a tank containing angels only?As far as i know amazonian species dont appreciate the addition of salt.

 

[MamaPish]

Thanks great lakes...I would appreciate it.
Thanks for the input Maggie.....no food til tomorrow, and they are better w/ the light off

I had my water tested at the fish shop today, and apparently my testing kit isn't correct....it only reads PH up to 7.6....and their test showed 7.6, when mine showed 7.0....so anyway, I got some peat and put in the filter, and the PH has come down some...the fish are starting to swim around a little bit, they don't look near as stressed as they were...I will be trying to lower the PH a little more tomorrow, and so on.



Cat fish.....I have always added 1tablespoon of aquarium salt per 5 gal of water.....the first tank I had....I bought from a garage sale......complete 75 gal setup w/ fish....including 2 breeding pair of angels....I knew nothing about fish...the guy told me what to do...so I did it and I never had any problems with the fish, I raised many angels from those 2 pair....
I never even tested my water.
I had to give up the 75 gal when we started adopting kids.....now 5 yrs later, I am learning it isn't that easy to do now, and I have a lot to learn!!
Thanks so much for helping my guys!

 

[MamaPish]

HUMMMMM...Ok
Today I tested my PH and my reading is 6.4.............I haven't added anything else to the water since the post yesterday........why is the PH going down by itself? If anyone knows a good website that talks about PH please let me know....I got to get this figured out!

Fish are acting a little better today, I have the light on and fed them a little...they ate, guess that is a good sign.

Anyone know how long it takes fish to recover from a PH shock?

Thanks guys!

 

[semper fi]

http/freshaquarium.about.com/library/wee...y/aa040300a.htm found this one.

and this one...

http/www.bestfish.com/tips/102998.html

hope it helps!

maggie

 

[MamaPish]

WOW Maggie,
That was quick.......I found this one as well, in pretty simple terms...
Thanks!

What is pH and Why is it important?