I did a stupid.

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ConnivingFerret

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Long story short, I moved forgot the new place have soft water and just set the tank up like I always did so I didn't bother to test it. Then it dawned on me I have soft water now tested it. And the KH way above where should be (I don't have the test strip on me to tell you what all the readings were I'm at work on break right now) I went to pet store that I got my fish from and got a couple of their fish bags full of their tank water which I used to dilute my soft water which help improve a little bit but it's still not ideal. The fish still seem to be doing fine but I've read it can take a couple days for soft water to affect them. My idea is everyday to swap out the tank water with properly prepared water about a gallon at a time (10g tank) stressful on the fish or should I just do a one-and-done water swap? Stupid rookie mistake feel free to belittle me.
 
Hi and welcome to the forum :)

What fish do you have?

What is the GH and pH of the new water?
 
Hello, and welcome to the forum! :hi:

What are your water parameters? :)
 
Sorry I didn't post last night I ended up working overtime and crashed as soon as I got home, I will do a 5 in 1 test for both my aquarium as well as the other water and let you guys know... It will be about an hour to an hour and a half from now, so 10:30 p.m. to 11 p.m. EST
 
Fishwise we have to zebra Danio, 2 neon zebra danios, two neon fish Barbs? idr the gf picked them I'll have to double-check when home, 1 neon tetra(had two but one fin got damaged by the net and didn't realize it until we got home so it died) then we have a goldfish and a male betta
 
Tetras, barbs and danios all occur in soft water so the new water shouldn't be a problem for them.

Goldfish need harder water but are pretty resilient so depending on how soft the new water is, they might be ok too. However, goldfish need water with a pH above 7.0 whereas the tetras come from water with a pH below 7.0. If you keep the pH around 7.0, they should be ok.

Tetras, barbs and danios also need to be kept in groups of at least 6 (preferably 10) or more of their own kind.
 
So I retested and it is showing my tank now to be zero GH n kH with 7.5 pH

The water I made from tap and not soft is 180 GH KH with 7.5 pH.

And I took a bag of aquarium water from the pet shop. Their water is 120 GH KH with a pH of 7.5
 
I read somewhere that schooling fish could be with similar fish and they would be fine but I guess that was misinformation
And theyre glow

tetras not barbs
 
I'm confused though because the last time I tested the tank water it said it had a hundred and eighty KH now it says 0
 
I THINK YOU SHOULD EXPECT THE NEON TETRA TO BE SWIMMING IN A LONELY CORNER
 
There is a difference between, “schooling fish” (fish that need to be kept in a certain number, to feel more comfortable, usually 6) and a “Shoaling Fish” (fish that stay together, swim together, and stick together.)

If the KH says 0, that should be good, am I right @Colin_T? :)
 
There is a difference between, “schooling fish” (fish that need to be kept in a certain number, to feel more comfortable, usually 6) and a “Shoaling Fish” (fish that stay together, swim together, and stick together.)

There is confusion over terms, but generally it is reversed. Schooling fish remain together for safety, to hunt/feed, and the marine fish are prime examples. No freshwater fish we keep in aquaria are strictly schooling (at least I cannot think of any now) as they do not hunt/feed as a group but individually. Shoaling means a fish that must be in a group of its own species. They may swim together occasionally or frequently, but they do not actively hunt prey as a group. Rummy nose tetras and many of the small to medium rasboras tend to stay together much more than many other species but all characins (tetras, pencilfish, hatchetfish) and as best I can remember all cyprinids (danios, rasboras, barbs, botid loaches) are shoaling, as are many others like cory catfish, rainbowfish, and so forth.
 
So I woke up today and there appears to be a 'bubble nest' from my betta. I'd assume this is a good sign?
 
A bubble nest is created by a male betta for breeding. Yes, probably a good sign.:)
Do you have only one betta?
 

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