New Aquarist, And I Need Soe Help (Please) :)

[bolisnide]

I have a 10 gallon tank, about 2 years old.
I will admit that I got the tank with very little knowledge of the biological filter, and how to maintain it.
I will also admit that I didn't get very good advice at the lfs, so unfortunatley have lost a couple fish along the way....

Up until recently I had 5 glowlight tetras (down to 4):
Hemigrammus erythrozonus - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

3 zebra snails:
Neritina natalensis - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

1 albino pleco (about 4 inches long):
Albino Plecostomus colorful tropical fish pictures

1 japanese algae eating shrimp:
Petshrimp.com -- All about shrimp

3 Amazon Sword tail plants:
Aquatic Plants for Freshwater Aquariums: Amazon Sword Aquarium Plant

I realize I'm overstocked (now), and never realized how large the pleco would get

! He was a little one of about 1.5 inches when I got him...

So here comes my question:
One of the glowlight tetras died last week, I replace it with another which died one day later. I haven't replaced it yet, do I need to? The local lfs said I need 5 tetras for them to feel safe and secure.
I tested my water:
Zero Ammonia, Zero Nitrites, and 40 ppm of Nitrate. I have done 25% water changes every day and still can't get my nitrates down.
PH is 8.... (I've tried getting down with PH lowers, but have never been able to get the PH below 7.8).

My other question:
My plants are dying! did really well for a couple years, but are now suddenly dying off... Any connection? I recently started adding CO2 to the tank (per the advice of lfs), should I fertilize as well?

I'm stuck on what I should do to proceed...
Any help or advice, etc. is very much welcome!

Oh, and here's a photo of the tank:


Here's a picture of the plants:


Also should add, I have an aqua clear filter, 10-20. And a bubbler
(as you can see in the pics)

Thanks guys!

•  

 

 

[phoenixgsd]

are you using  a liquid based test kit or paper strips? plants love nitrate, i dont think 40pmm is that high a level for a cycled tank

 

[attibones]

Your nitrate levels are normal. You don't want them to exceed 100, but at this level they are fine.

Did the fish display any sort of symptoms before it died? Sometimes the stores just carry weak stock. If that is the case, I would wait for the next shipment of fish (see if you can't rehome that pleco), and up your school to around six. If there were any symptoms, please list them here.

I use API plant food weekly with my water change and all my plants benefit from it. I haven't lost one in my main tank.

Your tetras could have died because of your pH. Test your tap water. What is the tap pH? Is it lower? If yes, you'll need to hunt in your tank for the source of the increase. I had one tank with a pH of 8.8+, but my tap water is 7.4. I took out the gravel, and the pH dropped immediately to 7.4. If your tap is lower, check your substrate first by taking a handful into a bucket, filling it with water, and then testing.

 

[fluttermoth]

It would be worth testing your tap water for nitrate, if you haven't already. If you have 40ppm from the tap (and many people do), you'll never be able to get it lower, however many water changes you do
 
It might be worth drip acclimatising any new fish, in case your pH and the pH of the shops water is very different.
 
As for your plants. If you're adding CO2, you'll defintely need to be fertilizing as well; it might be worth you starting a new thread in the planted tank section for more advice on that.
 
One thing that occurs to me though; your light tubes might need replacing. Some kinds of tube can lose of lot of the spectrum they should put out over time. It's not really noticeable to the eye (although you'll notice when you put new ones in!), but the plants will feel the effects.

 

[bolisnide]

are you using  a liquid based test kit or paper strips? plants love nitrate, i dont think 40pmm is that high a level for a cycled tank

 
I use the API freshwater master testing kit (liquid based).  How often would you suggest I perform a water change?  I thought 40 ppm was a little high, so did 3 water changes daily of about 25%.  The nitrate didn't change....
I read on this forum that the bottle #2 for the nitrate testing should be shaked for a long time, so I will re-test after I shake more...
 

Your nitrate levels are normal. You don't want them to exceed 100, but at this level they are fine.

Did the fish display any sort of symptoms before it died? Sometimes the stores just carry weak stock. If that is the case, I would wait for the next shipment of fish (see if you can't rehome that pleco), and up your school to around six. If there were any symptoms, please list them here.

I use API plant food weekly with my water change and all my plants benefit from it. I haven't lost one in my main tank.

Your tetras could have died because of your pH. Test your tap water. What is the tap pH? Is it lower? If yes, you'll need to hunt in your tank for the source of the increase. I had one tank with a pH of 8.8+, but my tap water is 7.4. I took out the gravel, and the pH dropped immediately to 7.4. If your tap is lower, check your substrate first by taking a handful into a bucket, filling it with water, and then testing.

 
My tap water tests at Ph of 8 also.  I have very alkaline and hard water.  Any products you suggest for lowering the PH?
EDIT: I have never tested my tap for nitrate, good idea.
 
The tetra did show some strange behavior before passing.  It stopped eating as much, and swam up and down slightly confused, seeming to gasp for oxygen.
The tetra I replaced it with showed no signs and seemed to die unexpectedly.  My remaining 4 tetras seem fine, but are not schooling like they did before when I had the 5.
 
Thakns for your help!

It would be worth testing your tap water for nitrate, if you haven't already. If you have 40ppm from the tap (and many people do), you'll never be able to get it lower, however many water changes you do

 
It might be worth drip acclimatising any new fish, in case your pH and the pH of the shops water is very different.
 
As for your plants. If you're adding CO2, you'll defintely need to be fertilizing as well; it might be worth you starting a new thread in the planted tank section for more advice on that.
 
One thing that occurs to me though; your light tubes might need replacing. Some kinds of tube can lose of lot of the spectrum they should put out over time. It's not really noticeable to the eye (although you'll notice when you put new ones in!), but the plants will feel the effects.

Thank you, I have never replaced my bulb!  i didn't realize they lose a lot of the spectrum over time!

 

[attibones]

Since your tap pH is so high, there really is little you can do. There are some products available for lowering it, but you'll find they aren't very stable and it is much better for you to choose fish which live in your pH range. The replaced tetra probably died of shock.

 

[bolisnide]

Since your tap pH is so high, there really is little you can do. There are some products available for lowering it, but you'll find they aren't very stable and it is much better for you to choose fish which live in your pH range. The replaced tetra probably died of shock.

 

Well, like I said, I had no idea what I was doing in the beginning.... Would you suggest rehoming the tetras?

 

[attibones]

Yeah I would. I'm going to do some research for you to see what sort of fish would be better.