Two Questions

[love_fish]

1. Why does my pH keep going down? My tap pH is 7.6, and my tank is like 6.4 or less sometimes. Theres nothing in there but some plants and a rock.

2. Can cardinals get Neon Tetra Disease on there own like neons?

THanks in advance.

 

[Teelie]

Cardinals can catch it, yes. Your pH is probably going down because your water doesn't have a lot of buffers. When it comes out of the tap, it's been under pressure and not in it's "natural" state.

 

[love_fish]

Cardinals can catch it, yes. Your pH is probably going down because your water doesn't have a lot of buffers. When it comes out of the tap, it's been under pressure and not in it's "natural" state.

OK, thanks for the reply. But I was asking if Cardinals can be the source of NTD like neons. Kinda a dumb question because its named neon tetra disease, but I was just wondering because they're similar.

What do you suggest I do about my water though?

 

[Teelie]

Neon Tetra Disease is named that because it first was seen in Neons but it's since been found to affect all Tetras and even non-related groups. To fix the pH problem, add buffers. Calcium carbonate is one good source, often found to cause high pH when it's too plentiful. There are plenty of sources but the best I've found is seashells or cuttlebone which is fed to birds. How much depends on the size of the tank and amount of buffering needed.

 

[love_fish]

Neon Tetra Disease is named that because it first was seen in Neons but it's since been found to affect all Tetras and even non-related groups. To fix the pH problem, add buffers. Calcium carbonate is one good source, often found to cause high pH when it's too plentiful. There are plenty of sources but the best I've found is seashells or cuttlebone which is fed to birds. How much depends on the size of the tank and amount of buffering needed.

lol, see, I know it will affect all tetras. and all fish. But neons are the only source of this disease right. Say, if I had cardinals not neons, so I wouldn't have any worries about NTD right?

Are there any kind of rocks that will do this for me? My LFS has Tufa Rock, could that be a source.

OK, I also have another question.

3. Why dont my neons stay together? Everytime I look, they're spread out around the tank. They stil have there colors, and look really healthy. They used to stay in a big group, now like 2 days ago, they started to disband. But the 3 cardinals I have always stick together. Why is this?

 

[Teelie]

The disease is poorly understood by people who know far more than I do so I can't really answer that one. As to rocks, anything with pH buffers in them will work, I don't know where to begin on this but I think The Wolf has a pinned thread in the FAQ that discusses some of them.

Neons don't school unless they're frightened. To see them spread out means they feel secure and at ease from danger which is a good thing. Remember, most fish school as a defensive tactic against predators. When they don't sense predators aronud or are in familar places they aren't as prone to school. The Cardinals should be in a group of five or more but aren't so they stick together. The higher their numbers, the less they'll feel the need to school, usually.

 

[love_fish]

The disease is poorly understood by people who know far more than I do so I can't really answer that one. As to rocks, anything with pH buffers in them will work, I don't know where to begin on this but I think The Wolf has a pinned thread in the FAQ that discusses some of them.

Neons don't school unless they're frightened. To see them spread out means they feel secure and at ease from danger which is a good thing. Remember, most fish school as a defensive tactic against predators. When they don't sense predators aronud or are in familar places they aren't as prone to school. The Cardinals should be in a group of five or more but aren't so they stick together. The higher their numbers, the less they'll feel the need to school, usually.

Oh, ok then. Thanks for the help.

 

[OohFeeshy]

Actually, I've heard Cardinals are immune to NTD, but you'd have to Google it.

 

[love_fish]

Actually, I've heard Cardinals are immune to NTD, but you'd have to Google it.

Oh, thats good to hear. But I'll still google it.

Well, I got Tufa Rock today at my LFS. It's for marine aquariums, but I put some in my 10 gallon a long time ago, and it succesfully raised the pH for me.

 

[love_fish]

Oh, and I did google that, and Cardinals are immune to NTD.

Another question:

Why do fish jump out of tanks? One of my neons disappeared, and I found him 3 days later, next to my bed! Is there any reason for this?