New 75 Gallon! Need Some Ideas

[hudsona85]

Update water quality
55gal-
pH- 6.8
Ammonia- 0
Nitrite- 0
Nitrate- 80
 
29gal
pH- 7.2
Ammonia- 0
Nitrite- 0
Nitrate- 40-50
 
Brita
pH- 6.4
Nitrate- 0
 
Tap
Nitrate- 0

 

[Far_King]

 

 


Far_King,
I have been checking through Amazon.com and looking up info from there. I will check further into it as the new info you have given me has shown me some perspective on the situation. Thank you.
 
 

 
You're welcome

 I hope it works out for you whichever filter you decide to go with. 
 

 
I didn't skip over you on purpose in responding to the post being made. I apologize and thank you!
 


 
It's cool, I didn't think you did Looking forward to seeing pictures of these Cichlids when you get them

 

[Byron]

From what I can see online, the API tap water conditioner does both. I don't really see the directions on there as to how much it needs for both but will find out when i get it
 

.
Yes, API detoxifies both chlorine and chloramine.  The instructions say 1 ml for 20 gallons for chlorine and metals, and 5 ml for 30 gallons if chloramine is present.  Check with your municipal water authority, some now use chloramine, some do not.
 
To the nitrates, and your test numbers.  First, if you have the API liquid nitrate test kit, make sure you shake Regent #2 for a good two minutes before adding the drops.  The instructions used to say 30 seconds for both regents, but many found inaccurate (and much higher than actual) numbers unless Regent #2 was thoroughly shaken.  Two minutes should be sufficient.  If you haven't, re-test one tank doing this and see if it changes numbers.
 
If nitrates really are as high as posted, or anything above 20 ppm, I would make a real effort to get them down.  Water changes should achieve this, as I explained previously; and once you have lower numbers, see if they remain low during the week between changes.
 
Other numbers are fine.
 

So my question now is the SA cichlids and which ones to get. Should I start another post under that category?
 

 
It might be best to start a new thread, now that you have water parameters settled.  At this point, I will just caution that mixing cichlid species in the same tank is almost always inadvisable.  African rift lake species are the exception, as that is their natural habitat.  But in Central and South America, species do not occur together, with very few exceptions.  So, any present cichlids will have to be part of the picture.  The cichlid experts will be able to give more advice on this.
 
Byron.

 

[hudsona85]

I tried the method you suggested. I normally shake the #2 bottle for about 30-45 seconds. Did 2 minutes and the same results occurred. I also checked the expiration date which doesn't end until 2019. So I am off to do some more water changes! I am gonna start with 15% 2-3 times a week until the nitrates go down. Thank you! Byron! Means very much to me to be a part of this forum site and hope I can contribute my experiences as well!

 

[Byron]

I tried the method you suggested. I normally shake the #2 bottle for about 30-45 seconds. Did 2 minutes and the same results occurred. I also checked the expiration date which doesn't end until 2019. So I am off to do some more water changes! I am gonna start with 15% 2-3 times a week until the nitrates go down. Thank you! Byron! Means very much to me to be a part of this forum site and hope I can contribute my experiences as well!

 
You're welcome.
 
On the water changes, I would do more volume, at least half the tank at each.  This will cut nitrates in half.  Alternate days, even daily, will do no harm.  Test before and after the water changes to see what's occurring.

 

[hudsona85]

Will do!
 
Sigh.... Well... Bad news... Had about 5 fish die in my 29 gal. in the past few days...
1 swordtail
1 Juli Cory
1 twig catfish
1 apistogramma borellii (had a pair and ended up taking them both back for store credit)
1 celebese rainbowfish
 
Happened right after I did a 50% water change. Changed the water with 5 gallons of RO water and the rest tap water. Not sure if it had something to do with that or the ChemiPure Elite that was put in about a week ago. Just in case, tested the water. Everything was normal except the Nitrate. Still around the 60-80ppm. Did another water change today and took out the ChemiPure and used the only carbon I had that was made for the 55gal. Made it work though.
There are many joyous adventures to be discovered with aquatics but sadly death is part of it...

 

[AmtotheBurr]

Eeek. Sorry about all the fish deaths!

 

[Far_King]

 
There are many joyous adventures to be discovered with aquatics but sadly death is part of it...

 
That is so true and I hate it when it happens
I always try my very hardest to ensure the animals within my care have the best quality of life and the best environment I can provide.

 

[Byron]

Yes, it happens.  I would suggest there are some points here that we can learn from.  I am assuming from your post Adam that there were recent acquisitions in this tank, perhaps the apistogramma?  Quarantining new fish for several weeks really is becoming a necessity these days.  I have four times had different internal protozoan issues arrive with new fish, and while losing them is not pleasant, it is better when it occurs in the QT than when it infects other fish in the display.  Before I learned this lesson, I remember losing 1/3 of my fish in one tank over a period of just a few days.
 
If the nitrate following a water change was 50-60 ppm, something is wrong.  This is not too likely to have been the cause of these fish deaths, though it certainly could be a contributor.  Nitrate at that high a level is causing fish stress, esp cichlids, and apistogramma are rather delicate fish.
 
The swordtail would have been weakened by the lack of mineral in the water; again, over time this will cause death in livebearers because the minerals they need that they assimilate into their cells and bloodstream via osmosis from the water are absent, and their physiology just gives out at some point.  As this is on-going, it too weakens the fish, so it becomes even more susceptible to pathogens and protozoan.
 
Farlowella (Twig Catfish) are extremely delicate; I have spawned them and raised a few batches of fry, and they are one of my favourite fish.  Perfect in your soft water, but they are intolerant of almost any water-related problem, and I suspect the nitrates are involved here too.
 
Now that we know the parameters of your tap water,I would not bother with RO.  Unless there is something previously that I've forgotten, the tap water will be ideal for these fish (except livebearers obviously).
 
Byron.

 

[hudsona85]

It's unfortunate really. Nevertheless, I have done water changes and no changes have been made to both the 29 and 55gal as far as nitrates except the 29gal is going down some... I didn't realize how the RO affected everything when it came to the nutrients needed by the fish. I guess that should have been a common sense kind of thing. It was something I thought would have been useful to have. I have also cut back on the feeding to once a day to see if it helps.
As far as the twig catfish, it was one of my favorites as well! I really hated the fact it didn't make it...
Now when you say QT, do you mean to keep it separated from the other tank mates or in another tank altogether?  I did QT from the other tank mates through the night until the next evening.

 

[Far_King]

He means a separate tank altogether - generally for a period of at least six weeks for new fish.  If all is well they can be transferred to a display tank.  If there is an infection you'll need to start the quarantine period again from when the infection clears up.
 
I've only recently acquired a second hand tank for just this purpose myself.  It was free thankfully so I only had to spend a small amount on a new light and a filter (I had a spare heater).
 
I've sprayed the underside (outside) with a stone spray paint (three coats) with a black outer coat to give the appearance of substrate but remove the need for any to allow me to easily clean the tank. 
 
My filter media resides in one of my cannister filters so it's already cycled for when I need to use it.  This way I can get it up and running fast when I need it for QT or a hospital tank and easily tear down and clean the aquarium when I'm done.
 
Also, pending any issues with other tanks I can quickly move the inhabitants elsewhere should that be necessary.
 
I had the unfortunate issue where I had a deformed Danio.  I wasn't aware that it could be an indication of a parasite and true enough it was a parasite it was infected with.  Sadly I lost a few fish in quick succession.  I'm now extremely selective when buying fish and take my time to watch them in the store before buying.  This is even more essential for me as all my tanks have shrimp so my options for medication are limited.

 

[Byron]

FarKing has answered the QT (quarantine tank) question.  I do it a bit differently, because I have all my tanks in one room so it is easy to have a small tank permanently running that I use just for new fish acquisitions. But you can have an empty spare tank only used when new fish are acquired.
 
Previously we determined there are zero nitrates in the tap water, so that means these high numbers are occurring within the respective tanks.  Now that the 29g has fewer fish, do some water changes and see if the nitrates remain lower.  I would expect they should.  And feeding fish once a day is more than adequate; I also miss one day a week.  Never feed just before the water change or any intended tank work; fish need quiet to properly digest food.
 
Byron.

 

[hudsona85]

He means a separate tank altogether - generally for a period of at least six weeks for new fish.  If all is well they can be transferred to a display tank.  If there is an infection you'll need to start the quarantine period again from when the infection clears up.
 
I've only recently acquired a second hand tank for just this purpose myself.  It was free thankfully so I only had to spend a small amount on a new light and a filter (I had a spare heater).
 
I've sprayed the underside (outside) with a stone spray paint (three coats) with a black outer coat to give the appearance of substrate but remove the need for any to allow me to easily clean the tank. 
 
My filter media resides in one of my cannister filters so it's already cycled for when I need to use it.  This way I can get it up and running fast when I need it for QT or a hospital tank and easily tear down and clean the aquarium when I'm done.
 
Also, pending any issues with other tanks I can quickly move the inhabitants elsewhere should that be necessary.
 
I had the unfortunate issue where I had a deformed Danio.  I wasn't aware that it could be an indication of a parasite and true enough it was a parasite it was infected with.  Sadly I lost a few fish in quick succession.  I'm now extremely selective when buying fish and take my time to watch them in the store before buying.  This is even more essential for me as all my tanks have shrimp so my options for medication are limited.

I will have to keep this in mind. I do have a 10gal tank that is in the middle of being cycled right now so that would be a bad idea to QT anything right now. Not to negate what you and Byron said but I think there were 2 issues. Changing the water and using the tap water made the pH change drastically. And I do mean pretty drastically.  What was hovering 6.8-7.2 is now 8.2-8.4. The water changes didn't help any of the nitrates until today when I ended up doing a deep clean in the gravel. It actually helped and dropped down to 40ppm from 80ppm. I knew this method would be pretty risky considering it going back to a mini cycle. I didn't mess with any part of the filter system. The other issue was when I got the pair of apistos, the female seemed like it was struggling. I QT them in the 29gal. After the next day, the female seemed like it was doing better. It's rare that I have issues like what just happened but they do nevertheless. I hope the remaining fish will be ok as the Nitrates has gone down.

 

[Far_King]

FarKing has answered the QT (quarantine tank) question.  I do it a bit differently, because I have all my tanks in one room so it is easy to have a small tank permanently running that I use just for new fish acquisitions. But you can have an empty spare tank only used when new fish are acquired.
 

 
My apologies if I jumped in.
 
I tried having one permanently running.....it's now permanently stocked 

I can see this happening again!  

 

[Byron]

 

FarKing has answered the QT (quarantine tank) question.  I do it a bit differently, because I have all my tanks in one room so it is easy to have a small tank permanently running that I use just for new fish acquisitions. But you can have an empty spare tank only used when new fish are acquired.
 

 
My apologies if I jumped in.
 
I tried having one permanently running.....it's now permanently stocked 

I can see this happening again!  
 

 
You didn't "jump in," that's what makes this forum valuable, having different ideas from more members.