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Post by Jess Puff on May 11, 2011 7:11:40 GMT -6
Yea, my husband keeps asking me why I stare at my tanks so much. I told him b/c I'm SUPER paranoid! HAHA
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Post by Jess Puff on May 11, 2011 17:20:26 GMT -6
OMG!!! I just tested my water params and it is totally the NITRATE! It is off the charts. I can't believe it because I do regular water changes and clean the gravel. I obviously don't do enough. Any help is most gracious! I think I'm going to have to grab some meds to get it back down to non-life threatening levels. Any help is much appreciated.
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Post by jgentry on May 11, 2011 19:14:26 GMT -6
Meds will not do anything for nitrates. The only way to control them is with water changes.
What is your feeding and water change schedule? What filter are you using?
Most likely the fish came from a store some nitrates but not real high. If yours are super high then the stress from the big change in conditions could certainly cause split fins. You should also be careful and not do a huge water change to instantly remove the nitrates. Your older fish are used to the nitrates now and the huge change can kill them just as quickly as it can help your new fish. This is called "old tank syndrome". It's very common for someone to have high nitrates and then realize the problem. They then do several huge water changes in a row to get it to zero and the next day some of there fish are dead from the sudden change.
One other thing to consider is testing your tap water. It could have nitrates. Also make sure your test kit is not expired and is accurate.
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Post by jon carman on May 11, 2011 19:19:15 GMT -6
I would do 10-20% water changes daily, and check filter and make sure you don't have a load of organics clogging it. Keep us updated.
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Post by Jess Puff on May 11, 2011 20:29:25 GMT -6
Great... I should've waited until I had some responses. I just did a 50% water change and cleaned the substrate really well (b/c that's what I read on the internet). HA! I hope my fish make it through the night...  I just changed all my filter cartridges because they were pretty clogged. I'm so mad at myself! I hope I don't lose any fish for being stupid. Thanks again for all the help guys. |
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angel
FORUM BEGINNER
My Husband's A Birdbrain
Posts: 40
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Post by angel on May 11, 2011 20:49:07 GMT -6
Is this the tank with the fuzzy stuff? It sounds to me like you might be cycling. Can you test the water parameters? I'd especially suspect the nitrates hearing about fuzzy stuff, but that's where to start is with what's going on in the water chemistry. Still thinking this might have caused the fuzzyness |
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Post by jon carman on May 11, 2011 20:49:21 GMT -6
You should be all right.
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Post by Jess Puff on May 11, 2011 21:03:58 GMT -6
Is this the tank with the fuzzy stuff? It sounds to me like you might be cycling. Can you test the water parameters? I'd especially suspect the nitrates hearing about fuzzy stuff, but that's where to start is with what's going on in the water chemistry. Still thinking this might have caused the fuzzyness No, that was my 10 gal hospital tank. But thanks for looking out  I have since sterilized that tank. Hopefully won't have any more issues. |
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Post by Jess Puff on May 11, 2011 21:05:47 GMT -6
Thanks for making me feel better. I just get nervous and start making drastic decisions. I will do 10-15% changes for several days and let all know how it goes. |
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Post by jgentry on May 12, 2011 5:16:22 GMT -6
50% should be OK. That will only cut the nitrates in half. If everything is fine today I would do 25% water changes every other day untilk your nitrates read below 10. From there a normal water change schedule should take care of it.
Whate was your nitrate reading before you started water changes?
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Post by mruble on May 12, 2011 6:13:55 GMT -6
Looks like you are trying to reach my "experience level". I am an expert at stupidly killing fish! If you would like to know some other ways, just ask.
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angel
FORUM BEGINNER
My Husband's A Birdbrain
Posts: 40
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Post by angel on May 12, 2011 6:47:13 GMT -6
hahaha too funny Mark
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Post by Jess Puff on May 12, 2011 6:53:59 GMT -6
50% should be OK. That will only cut the nitrates in half. If everything is fine today I would do 25% water changes every other day untilk your nitrates read below 10. From there a normal water change schedule should take care of it. Whate was your nitrate reading before you started water changes? It was dark red... which I read to be around 160... Yikes! The fish that had been in there showed no signs of issues but when I added the new fish, I knew there was something wrong. |
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Post by Jess Puff on May 12, 2011 6:54:52 GMT -6
Looks like you are trying to reach my "experience level". I am an expert at stupidly killing fish! If you would like to know some other ways, just ask. Thanks Mark! Yeah, I'm pretty good at it too. I'll be sure to ask you any time I need to kill off some fish. HAHA! |
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Post by Jess Puff on May 12, 2011 6:59:10 GMT -6
So, the lesson I've learned this week is... TEST the water before adding new fish!
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I just changed all my filter cartridges because they were pretty clogged. I'm so mad at myself! I hope I don't lose any fish for being stupid. Thanks again for all the help guys.
Aug 14, 2013 6:59:33 GMT -6