Upgraded Tank's Water Stats

[Marco84]

I upgraded my fish from a 75L tank to a 180L yesterday. Using filter media and water from the old tank in the new tank.

One lampeye died in under one hour from the move, I guess from from stress

This morning I noticed all the fish and even the loaches were at the top gasping for air, they seem much better after a couple of hours after putting an airstone in.

I bought a master water testing kit today and my stats are...

Ammonia: 0.1
Nitrite: 0.25
Nitrate: 12.5
pH 8.5

How are they?

 

[deathy]

Hi, do a 50% water change, your ammonia should be 0 same for nitrite.

Not sure on your p.h though,

can you give a better description of your tank, i.e filter, heater, fish etc.

but get that water change done soon as.

 

[Marco84]

Hi, do a 50% water change, your ammonia should be 0 same for nitrite.

Not sure on your p.h though,

can you give a better description of your tank, i.e filter, heater, fish etc.

but get that water change done soon as.

Ok I will do a water change after typing this out.
My fish tank is a Juwel 180, with juwel filter and heater @ 24c
The fish I have in the tank are

7x White cloud
6x Endlers
4x Lampeyes
3x Guppies
2x Dwarf Gouramis
2x Polkadot loaches
2x Rainbow loaches

 

[drobbyb]

You will need to treat it like a fish in cycle until your tests show no presence of ammonia or nitrite. Seeing how you used your old media, this process shouldn't take too long.

 

[Marco84]

The past few days I have lost a Rainbow loach(found it dead in there last night, looks like it has been dead a while), a lamp eye (its head was 90% off yet it still wiggled) and my male dwarf gourami this morning.

I have been doing a 50% water change everyday and the water quality is getting worst!
I was told before up grading my tank my fish would fine as I be using filter media and water from my old matured tank.

Water stats of yesterday evening are.

Ammonia: 0.4
Nitrite: 0.5
Nitrate: 12
pH 8.5

What do I do now?

 

[Curiosity101]

How long were your fish in the old tank?

How did you cycle the old tank?

Had you ever tested the water in the old tank?

Just keep up the water changes. Though 2 x 50% a day looks like a better amount to do if possible.

 

[Marco84]

My fish were in the old tank for about 2 months, the old tank was cycled with my 7x white cloud minnows for one month,
Had my water tested at the best lfs in my city before upgrading and it was spot on. Now I test my the water in my new tank with my own masters kit.

 

[Marve99]

You cycled the old tank with

7x white cloud minnows for one month,

Question - did you add

6x Endlers
4x Lampeyes
3x Guppies
2x Dwarf Gouramis
2x Polkadot loaches
2x Rainbow loaches

at one time when you upgraded you tank?

If so, even despite the old mature media, this would represent a huge increase of load on the filter/bacteria. It will need time to catch up with the additional ammonia now being produced by the additional fish. Keep up witht he water changes until ammonia and nitrites are 0 (anything above 0.25 demands urgent water changes)

 

[Marco84]

You cycled the old tank with

7x white cloud minnows for one month,

Question - did you add

6x Endlers
4x Lampeyes
3x Guppies
2x Dwarf Gouramis
2x Polkadot loaches
2x Rainbow loaches

at one time when you upgraded you tank?

If so, even despite the old mature media, this would represent a huge increase of load on the filter/bacteria. It will need time to catch up with the additional ammonia now being produced by the additional fish. Keep up witht he water changes until ammonia and nitrites are 0 (anything above 0.25 demands urgent water changes)

I added the other fish over a peroid of one month. The water was right in the old tank. Now I have less fish in the new tank due to the losses of 4 fish.

 

[arobinson1984]

I'm guessing this is just a case of the little bit of bacteria that you had in your old tanks substrate would now be missing in your new tank unless you moved the substrate as well?

If not, you will just be experiencing a small spike whilst the filter media colonize enough new bacteria to cope with the extra bio load that the substrate bacteria were helping with before.

Advance as you would in a fish-in situation with water changes when ammonia / nitrite levels rise above 0.25ppm and it should all stabilise within a week or 2

Andy

 

[Marco84]

Just tested my water again the Ammonia has gone back down to 0.1 and Nitrite to 0.25. Better than yesterday. I guess it was the missing dead rainbow loach that rised it. Sad for losing my
dwarf gourami today, he looked so healthy yesterday, the female has lost 2 males now.

 

[Geoff1991]

Keep up with the water changes while your filter catches up mate, don't worry about the losses, they weren't your fault.

Keep testing and changing the water, don't be afraid to do larger water changes and more than one per day. Try to keep the ammonia and nitrite and a maximum of 0.25 but if possible keep it as close to zero as you can.

You can tell if they are being poisoned by ammonia or nitrite because they will either hang at the top/by the filter or sit on the bottom. For them to die from the ammonia or nitrite, you would have noticed them being lethargic and acting strange before, i don't think they would have died instantly.

Edit:

I had a spike after changing a filter in the same tank for a couple of days even though i used all the same media. Apparently i lost bacteria that was situated on the housing of the filter. So you probably did lose a bit when you changed.