What Is Going On !?!?

[Rinderm]

My apologies if I misinterpreted your tone. I didn`t realise the emoticon was holding a bunch of flowers, so you`ll have to be less of a cheapskate and send a bigger bunch next time.

Dave.

no problem. Thats the problem with the internet. I forget alot of minute details like cyno using light as energy thanks for reminding/educating me. I read somewhere once that polar bears have been found with cyno on their fur giving them a greenish tint. I do appreciate your help. The only way to solve a problem is to ask questions. I know how hard it is to help people when they don't get you enough info. I do need this help because when I go to the higher ups I can have info or facts so they don't think i'm an idiot that can't keep tiger barbs alive. even thought they know were having problems they think it could be the vendor. I think there is more too it. I'm just not sure. I do think the system needs more gallons per hour through it. When I was maintining the 1600 gallon system we had nitrate problems around 400 PPM. It didn't help that the sump was 8 feet long and it had a bio ball chamber that was 4 feet tall by 2 feet wide filled with bio balls. But we were able to keep all that I listed alive. Except clown loaches sometimes they can be touchy IMO when shipping is really bad or the weather is bad. It wasn't automated at all. Its really nice to have an automated system. We also added salt to the system when it would get low the fish would get ich very easily. I think the Nitrates were the cause IMO. Also the heaters were not stable. I have checked for chlorine as well just in case. There is no problem with the salt water system we have. I just don't get it. But its not automated. It would be cool if it was.

R

 

[rowdyburns21]

I think somebody already asked but what is the chemistry of the water the fish are shipped in?

 

[Rinderm]

The fish are shipped from a facility that is North of our location, its about 4 or 5 hours depending on how fast you drive. we tested water from a bag and it came out similar to our water quality. No ammonia, No nitrite, if I remember correctly their was no nitrates or very little. The pH was around 7.6-7.8 our pH is around 8.0. the tests we use to check for pH is those dip strips. Which are brand new but really are crappy for testing pH IMO.

R

 

[Rinderm]

Got some fish in today that we are having problems with, Bala sharks, tiger barbs (sm and lg) (albino, regular, and green). For the first time we have fish we are having problems with live for a week and not die that night or the next day. Our specific gravity is falling a bit to 1.003, people should be adding salt to night to hopefully bump it back up to 1.008 it helped alot last week. If adding aquarium salt is solving this problem, why is it doing what it is doing. I understand salt can ease osmotic pressure maybe this is what is going on?

R

 

[Rinderm]

went in today for an hour to order fish for next week and to do damage control. Suprisingly our tiger barbs have lived as well as the golden algae eaters we received yesterday. This is good since they usually start dieing off over night. the higher salinity is really helping or its a coincidence. the only thing we lost alot of was the white clouds we got in. We have problems with these as well and I think I may have failed to mention this in the beginning. I didn't get to check out the bala sharks....I forgot.

R