New 75 Gal - Tank All Was Fine Until I Cleaned It!

[eaglesaquarium]

It is better to give the fish a proper environment and give their immune system a chance to do its job than to not do the water changes, and further stress the fish. That would be fighting an uphill battle. Given the proper water conditions, the fish could heal on their own. Without it, I am afraid the situation will just be made worse, even with the medicine.

 

[osikorn]

how do I raise Ph if it is low.

 

[raptorrex]

how do I raise Ph if it is low.

apart form making it up, from powder and RO water. you could change your substrate to crushed coral and try some of the propitiatory additives they sell. but you will always be at it. water has a tenancy to 'buffer' itself. (try to get back to where it was originally). anyway unless you are talking 1.5+PH change. most 'none sensitive' fish, will be fine.

what PH is your water?

 

[osikorn]

my two yellow and black fish are dead. I am now left with two glass catfish and an algae eater. This is horrifying! Ph was at 7.6 now its at 6.0

 

[osikorn]

If i put the 'chemical fix' in the tank in the morning and do a 25% water change in the evening would that be detrimental to my remaining fish? I would give time for the 'chemical' fix to work and cycle through the water and I would be replenishing the water. Seems counter productive, but i'm not changing all the water so the chemical won't be completely gone, and I'm replenishing the water naturally.

I realize I'm just hunting for a quicker fix so that my remaining fish don't perish too.

I'm also considering removing the fish from the tank all together and putting them in my old 10 gallon that is not currently running so that they have a fighting chance until this tank settles again. But I would be putting them in water that has yet to cycle so they may be no better off.

 

[eaglesaquarium]

Moving the fish to a smaller tank would be worse. A smaller volume of water has less ability to dilute the toxins.


I think that the best thing to do is just keep up with the water changes, regardless of the medicine. If you want to add the medicine, then I guess you are going to do it no matter what. The only recommendation I can give you is to continue to do the water changes as needed based on your ammonia/nitrite values. Don't stop the water changes under ANY circumstances, until things are set for ammonia/nitrite.

 

[Louiseness]

If i put the 'chemical fix' in the tank in the morning and do a 25% water change in the evening would that be detrimental to my remaining fish? I would give time for the 'chemical' fix to work and cycle through the water and I would be replenishing the water. Seems counter productive, but i'm not changing all the water so the chemical won't be completely gone, and I'm replenishing the water naturally.

You could try but it just seems like a waste of meds.The finrot/fungus meds I know of either need to be left in the water for 7 days or dosed regularly over a few days. Doesn't seem like they'd work properly if you keep removing amounts of the meds as they aren't getting the recommended dose anyway. Plus a lot of medication reduces oxygen in the water and the fish that are in there need all the oxygen they can get right now.

Like everyone else says, change water like mad. At least 50% a day if not more.

 

[osikorn]

I did an 85% water change last night. I've thought better of using the meds. I am going to continue with the water changes.

Ph measured at 6.0 and Amonia was at .5 last night 1 hr after the water change.

 

[eaglesaquarium]

Wow, if the ammonia is 0.5 an hour after the water change, how high was it before that?


You won't like hearing this, but another (at least 50%) water change is necessary - again the bigger the better. it may seem stressful for the fish, but trust me, the toxins are far more stressful than the water changes. The water changes are really only stressful to you, not the fish. They are used to water level changes like that. It happens in the wild periodically, if you have any wild specimens. It also happened at the breeder's, and at the LFS. It is a part of life for them, and they are used to it. You are the one who is not. You will become more used to it soon enough. And all these water changes will help you find a better method. I used to use buckets, but with a 56 gallon tank, that became too burdensome. So, I now have a hose and faucet attachment. Not quite a "python" set-up, but it is actually better. My set-up allows me to empty the water into my flower bed (you should see the impatiens now!) and then I fill again from the kitchen sink with temp mixed water. Adding dechlorinator straight to the tank is the only real expense for me. The water I chalk up to having to water the impatiens anyway and the "fertilizer" in the water actually SAVES me money in the long run.

 

[osikorn]

The ammonia was at 1.5 according to the fish store. It didn't look like any of the colors on my kit. I purchased a python style syphon it should arrive soon which will make a big difference.

I'm not worried about stressing out the fish. Im stressed out by not being able to maintain water.

Its awesome that you can water your plants with the fish water, but I think my water may kill my plants.

 

[Miles_hot]

why would your water hurt the plants?

 

[eaglesaquarium]

Because of the ammonia? Nah, I don't think so. The concentration that is dangerous to fish is not nearly as detrimental to plants... in fact, aquarium plants can use ammonia directly to get their nitrogen needs met. No concern about using it on the plants... Go for it.

 

[osikorn]

I was just trying to make a joke.

 

[Miles_hot]

LOL

 

[osikorn]

I tested my water this morning and it was a cool 76 degrees and ph 7.0 and ammonia at 0. This after one water change of 85%. Really? It seems too goodto be true. I am anxious to test again when I get home and see that the results are the same. Maybe I was dreaming. I'll keep you posted.