Swordtail problem
- Thread starter Richie30
- Start date
The April FOTM Contest Poll is open!
🏆 Click to vote! 🏆
Tank is beautiful! I hope you don't decide to re-do it after treatment, it's lovely as it is! Maybe add some more plants if you want to change things up (I love planted tanks so I'm always in favour of more plants!) but it looks good as it is, and very clean and well maintained.
I am slightly concerned that you're not showing a reading for nitrates at all though, usually you'll have some sort of reading. Even in my very heavily planted tank just after a water change, nitrates aren't at zero.
What filtration do you have, and what do you do usually to clean the filter? Do you know what the nitrogen cycle is?
Once the fry are large enough to avoid being eaten, you can put them back in the main tank. Better for them than being in the cramped breeder box for too long. Once they're about three weeks old, they're usually big enough and fast enough to avoid the adults, and the adults think twice about chasing them down if they're usually well fed enough.
Richie30
Fish Fanatic
Im using the nt labs test so going of the chart.
Ill try a strip tonight. Just at families for inlaws birthday.
My filter is the juwel bioflow m i have from the bottom
Cirax phorax sponge foam pad bottom cage
sponges foam pad top cage
Used have carbon in but took out for meds.
Ive heard of the cycle and had the tank running for a while before adding fish.
Cleaning is shake and squeeze in old water and replace pads
Your right about not showing its weird. Albeit im not showing ammonia either
Ill try a strip tonight. Just at families for inlaws birthday.
My filter is the juwel bioflow m i have from the bottom
Cirax phorax sponge foam pad bottom cage
sponges foam pad top cage
Used have carbon in but took out for meds.
Ive heard of the cycle and had the tank running for a while before adding fish.
Cleaning is shake and squeeze in old water and replace pads
Your right about not showing its weird. Albeit im not showing ammonia either
Richie30
Fish Fanatic
Apologies guys.
Test done again using a tetra strip
Shows 0.38mg/l nitrite, nitrate still at 0
Just done another 20l water change and changed my white pads.
Going to get some more sponges and put them where the carbax was and maybe cut one in half thickness to go in the wasted space on the bottom section.
Ill test again with a strip in a hour
Ps this strip saying my carbonate hardness is 15
Test done again using a tetra strip
Shows 0.38mg/l nitrite, nitrate still at 0
Just done another 20l water change and changed my white pads.
Going to get some more sponges and put them where the carbax was and maybe cut one in half thickness to go in the wasted space on the bottom section.
Ill test again with a strip in a hour
Ps this strip saying my carbonate hardness is 15
Sorry, test shows 0.38mg of what?
Can you test ammonia, nitrites and nitrates again and share the numbers please?
Sponges in filters are good, lots of surface area for bacteria to grow, and also mechanically filter out the larger gunk, and easy to rinse off in a bucket of tank water. No reason to waste space in a filter when we can modify them to do more!
Glad you've heard about the nitrogen cycle, it's a crucial thing to understand when it comes to keeping an aquarium, but can get complex and confusing at times. Look me a while to wrap my head around it, and still no expert by any means. Found this video very helpful when I was first trying to understand it, he explains it so clearly, while a lot of others lost me quickly.
Richie30
Fish Fanatic
I forgot to note and had to re-edit the thread
Hope below helps
Just going to rinse the test tubes for the nt labs kit and try again
Hope below helps
Just going to rinse the test tubes for the nt labs kit and try again
Hmm. It does help a little, although are you able to run the NT lab tests, especially the one for ammonia?
That you're getting a reading for nitrite, and yet nothing for nitrates, is worrying me. Either the test is inaccurate, which is possible, or your tank isn't cycled yet. How long have you had the tank set up and fish in it? Is it quite new?
Going to tag @essjay and @Ch4rlie for cycling/test results advice, I have to go in a minute and they're brilliant with these things. Hope you guys don't mind my tagging you in these things all the time! Can tell me to stop if you want!
Oh, I'm sorry, also please do a water change now. Change 50-75% of the water, that should return nitrites to zero and keep the fish safe. We never want ammonia or nitrites to be above zero, since these are toxic to fish and harm them. You can save some of the old water to test it after the water change is done
Richie30
Fish Fanatic
Ive had the tank setup since the middle of june. Set it up with plants from the beginning.
Fish went in about 4 to 5 weeks later
It was reading for amonia when i 1st took a sample in for testing and did my own. Held off for another week took samples in again and tested all was coming back ok
Fish went in about 4 to 5 weeks later
It was reading for amonia when i 1st took a sample in for testing and did my own. Held off for another week took samples in again and tested all was coming back ok
Richie30
Fish Fanatic
Ive already done a water change yesterday and my partial one this morning.
Tests again on the nt labs kit
Ammonia 0 colour yellow
Nitrite 0 clear
Nitrate 0 clear
Ph 8
I didnt run the other 2 tests and i rinsed the test tubes out 1st under a running tap. The shook for a bit in the tank water to eliminate that as a cause.
Tetra strips shows the below
Tests again on the nt labs kit
Ammonia 0 colour yellow
Nitrite 0 clear
Nitrate 0 clear
Ph 8
I didnt run the other 2 tests and i rinsed the test tubes out 1st under a running tap. The shook for a bit in the tank water to eliminate that as a cause.
Tetra strips shows the below
Attachments
Test strips are not as accurate as liquid testers, I'd go by what they say. Since the NT labs testers say your levels are zero I wouldn't worry. But any time the liquid testers show ammonia or nitrite over zero, do a water change.
Carbonate hardness is only important to fish indirectly - it stabilises pH. Your level means pH is very stable.
GH (total hardness on the strip) is the more important number as that does directly affect fish.
Carbonate hardness is only important to fish indirectly - it stabilises pH. Your level means pH is very stable.
GH (total hardness on the strip) is the more important number as that does directly affect fish.
Richie30
Fish Fanatic
Many thanks for the help and advice
How does the gh affect the fish. That was at 178mg/l when i last did the test.. what should i be looking for and to keep it in that range
How does the gh affect the fish. That was at 178mg/l when i last did the test.. what should i be looking for and to keep it in that range
GH is the amount of calcium, magnesium and trace amounts of other metals. Fish have evolved over thousands of years to deal with the amount of these minerals in the water.
Hard water fish have bodies which excrete most of the calcium they take in from the water. If they are kept in soft water, they continue to excrete it but there is very little in the water and they can't get enough to maintain body function. This stresses them and stressed fish get sick more easily.
Soft water fish have evolved to hang on to the few minerals in the water. Keep them in hard water and their bodies still hang on the them. This causes calcium build up in their kidneys which slowly kills them.
This is why we always say we should aim to keep fish that come from water with roughly the same GH as our tap water.
Tank GH is the same as what comes out of the tap. Unless something is done to alter GH, it usually remains stable in a tank. For example, decor made of calcium carbonate (limestone rock, coral etc) dissolves slowly adding calcium to the water and increases GH; or deliberately using water which has had all the minerals removed (eg reverse osmosis) which will reduce GH.
If you use only tap water to do a water change and none of your decor or substrate is made of calcium carbonate, your GH will remain the same.
Hard water fish have bodies which excrete most of the calcium they take in from the water. If they are kept in soft water, they continue to excrete it but there is very little in the water and they can't get enough to maintain body function. This stresses them and stressed fish get sick more easily.
Soft water fish have evolved to hang on to the few minerals in the water. Keep them in hard water and their bodies still hang on the them. This causes calcium build up in their kidneys which slowly kills them.
This is why we always say we should aim to keep fish that come from water with roughly the same GH as our tap water.
Tank GH is the same as what comes out of the tap. Unless something is done to alter GH, it usually remains stable in a tank. For example, decor made of calcium carbonate (limestone rock, coral etc) dissolves slowly adding calcium to the water and increases GH; or deliberately using water which has had all the minerals removed (eg reverse osmosis) which will reduce GH.
If you use only tap water to do a water change and none of your decor or substrate is made of calcium carbonate, your GH will remain the same.
I'm a bit confused about the constant readings for zero nitrates though, which is why I was worried about OP getting nitrite readings on wednesday, yet zero nitrates in each test. Photos of tank on page four, and it has elodea, but not heavily planted and well stocked (not overstocked) enough that I don't understand why nitrates are always zero?
Even in my heavily planted tank right after a water change, where nitrates rarely get above 5 and never above ten, there is still some detectable nitrate, even when it's less than 5%. Please help me understand! lol. I was concerned that the ich and worming meds might have impacted the cycle, and don't know how old the tank is either.
Yes, there should be some nitrate if the tank is not planted like a jungle.
I know that NT Labs nitrate test is a bit different from API. API has two liquid bottles, and one has to be shaken very well. With the NT Labs test, the bottle with the same reagents contains a powder not a liquid so we can't blame a false zero reading though failing to shake the bottle.
The nitrite above zero was using a strip (I think) so I'd go by the NT Labs liquid test results.
I know that NT Labs nitrate test is a bit different from API. API has two liquid bottles, and one has to be shaken very well. With the NT Labs test, the bottle with the same reagents contains a powder not a liquid so we can't blame a false zero reading though failing to shake the bottle.
The nitrite above zero was using a strip (I think) so I'd go by the NT Labs liquid test results.
Most reactions
-
253 -
244 -
151 -
142 -
141 -
136 -
108 -
108 -
93 -
89 -
85 -
83 -
78 -
69 -
62
