My Water Readings

[owen.h.lewis]

Hi all,
I have a 140 litre tank which has the following fish:

1 x clown loach
2 x spotted catfish (cory's)
4 x neon tetra's
2 x glow-light tetra's
1 x female guppy
1 x male platty
1 x angel fish
7 x guppy fry (saw 1 get eaten today by the angel, not sure how many will survive)


What I would like to know is if my water parameters are ok for the setup i have. The parameters are as follows:

Ph: 6.4 - 6.5ish
Ammonia: 0
Nitrite: 0
Nitrate: 0
dGH: 4 degrees (i lost the instructions for this tester, i have to drop the solution into 5ml of water, one drop at a time, after a drop if it turns green then that number of drops is the number)


If you could let me know anything i could improve that would be great.

Cheers

O

 

[loachman]

Water stats are fine. It is surprising you have no nitrate, but then the test for it isn't all that accurate IME.

 

[mancin]

Nitrate: 0

Do you have live plants? That's the only reason I can think of that your Nitrate would be 0, unless the tank is not cycled.

 

[River Dog]

Your water stats are a little worrying as its not usual to have a 0 reading on Nitrate. How long has the tank been set up ? Also a single clown loach will not be happy on his own, and will outgrow your tank eventually.

 

[owen.h.lewis]

Hi all,
I have plants in my tank, so that could explain the lack of nitrate

The tank has been up and running for approximately 3-4 months, with the fish healthy and happy (no deaths!!!).

I had just done a large 40% water change, and then once done i tested all parameters and that is the results that it came up with, could this have something to do with it?

The nitrate looked to be 0 but theres a possibility it could be between 0 and the next level of indication?

Opinions welcome

Your water stats are a little worrying as its not usual to have a 0 reading on Nitrate. How long has the tank been set up ? Also a single clown loach will not be happy on his own, and will outgrow your tank eventually.

I have a friend with a large tank, so probably next week i am giving it to him, as he already has 2 x clown loaches.

 

[owen.h.lewis]

a day after a big water change, and the introduction of a mangrove root, my water parameters are as follows:

Ph: 6.4 - 6.5ish
Ammonia?: .25
Nitrite: 0
Nitrate: 15 ppm
GH degree: 4

Is this normal?

Please respond as i need to know, thanks.

 

[vinylman]

Your Angel may find those Neons to be irresistible.

 

[OldMan47]

Your water looks fairly good for the typical South American soft water fish but the guppies and platies are not likely to appreciate it much. They tend to do better in hard water with a pH well above 7.0. High pH hard water is exactly what an angel, tetras and cories will not appreciate much. Your eclectic assortment of fish means that any water you choose will end up being a compromise between what the individual fish would each find best. The only cure, in my experience, is more tanks so each fish can be in suitable water. Beware that going down that path ends up with the 20 tanks that I have and still I really need a few more because many of my fish should really be kept in single species tanks.