Is it even possible?

[Fishyfanatic]

I got the 5, 10, 29, and 55 gal tanks moved to the new place. The 150 is going to have to wait for a few days. I tested the water this afternoon and the pH is 8.4 8O Is it going to even be possible to have German Blue Rams? I know nothing about RO water, but if it is something that I am going to have to buy each week, I'm not interested.

The filter has been running on the 150 for about two weeks now so it is becoming established. When I hook up the filter to the 55 gal, I am going to immediately add fish, most likely the danios or tetras. This way the bacteria doesn't die.

The stores around here don't carry the Rams so I will have to head to a store in Cape. So trying to find them at a store that has the same water source is not going to be possible. Is there anything else that I can do? The Africans are going to LOVE this water, but I dont think the others will.

 

[greenmaji]

The RO/DI water after about 100 gallons you can buy a unit.. one water change and you will be better off buying a unit.. What is the KH of your new water?
RO/DI with a holding tank
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=20684&item=4391301871
RO/DI with a very large refillable DI cartrage- no holding tank...
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=20684&item=4392140344

 

[Fishyfanatic]

Like I said, I am not interested in RO/DI. If that is something that I will have to do, I will just have to replace the Rams with something else.

 

[greenmaji]

GBR's are a bad idea at a ph of 8.4.. if thats the advise you were looking for.. you could probibly keep them alive, with alot of care and work, but I seriouly doubt you would be able to get them to spawn..

 

[krap101]

could try peat? driftwood? maybe if you acclimate them? but magis right, i doubt you'll get them to spawn. but maybe your not wanting them to>?

whats the ph of your tap?

 

[greenmaji]

could try peat? driftwood? maybe if you acclimate them? but magis right, i doubt you'll get them to spawn. but maybe your not wanting them to>?

whats the ph of your tap?

She said the new PH is 8.4..
The artical on this site is pretty comprehensive on PH reduction..
http://www.aquariumadvice.com/showquestion.php?faq=2&fldAuto=40
Do you know what the new waters KH is?

 

[Fishyfanatic]

I'm not trying to spawn them. If they were to just spawn on their own, that would be ok, but I am not going to try and make conditions perfect for it. I wouldn't setup a special tank just for the fry.

That's kind of like putting the cart before the horse. First off is just trying to keep them alive. I know Rams are sensitive to water conditions, and I figured the pH of 8.4 was too high for them. I have a large piece of driftwood in the tank already. The tank is (at the moment), just water and driftwood. I haven't even gotten the sand yet. The driftwood is pretty big. I had to carefully slide it into the tank beacuse the tank is about 1/2 wider than the wood. So it's pretty big. But I doubt that will make much of a difference in the pH.

I also was going to use peat in the filter beacuse liveaquaria.com said that they would appreciate the peat. But again, I doubt that will do a big enough difference to make the pH drop down to 7.

I guess my main quesiton is, would they survive in 8.4 pH. I'm not looking to breed or anything like that, but I don't want them to be miserable and die on me. I would rather the fish be bought by someone else instead of me bringing them home to a tank that is going to have a 99% chance of death.

The fish store that I was going to buy them at has a pH of 8. Would this be too big of a difference in the levels? I realize that I won't be buying them for another 4 or 5 months, mainly because I want the tank to be well established before adding them. But if they aren't going to be an available option, I'll just replace them with something else that can be added earlier.

I didn't test the hardness yet. I meant to do it last night but I'm still trying to get the house in order. I'll be sure to test for GH and KH when I go home Friday.

 

[greenmaji]

I would think that there more sensitive to waste products such as NO3 and DOC's and PH swings then a high PH... You might want to post a question about it over on JC's GBR discussion thread..

 

[TankGirl]

I think if the LFS offering them has a pH of 8 you would be okay keeping them at 8.4. If the store had them at 7 and you moved them into 8.4 that might be pushing it but you could acclimate them up to 8.4, IMO.

I'd try some peat in the filter and see what that does for you, but otherwise I am with you - if I have to mess around with my water params before it goes into the tank I'd rather try another kind of fish.

 

[Jchillin]

You might want to post a question about it over on JC's GBR discussion thread..

True, you would have recieved an great amount of advice if you had.

I'd try some peat in the filter and see what that does for you, but otherwise I am with you - if I have to mess around with my water params before it goes into the tank I'd rather try another kind of fish.

I agree. Unless you can get a similar match in ph (between .2-.4) between your water and the LFS, it wouldn't be prudent. Anything higher could lead to problems.
GBR's are uniquely sensitive to any changes in ph...a sudden drop in a few tenths may be fatal.

The plus side is, once they are in a stable ph, they would have no problems.

HTH.

 

[Fishyfanatic]

That's exactly my thought TG. If I have to keep altering the tank pH, I'd rather not risk it. Because I get so distracted with water temp and levels when doing water changes I'd be bound to mess it up at some point and kill them. I'd rather just not even chance it. I think I'll try two German Blue Rams and see how it goes. If they survive, then I'll get 2 more. If not, then I'll switch to a different fish that can take the high pH. Maybe someday I'll get into the RO/DI water, but at this point, it just doesn't interest me. I did see an AP water purifier online, would that do anything for me?

I have the filter on the 150 ATM and will be moving the 150 to the new house this week. I am going to let it run until I can get the rest of the tank components (ie: sand and decor). Then I am going to transfer the filter from the 150 to the 55, adding at least 1 school of fish immediately.

My question: Am I going to be pushing the bio-load by adding two schools of fish at once? I know, it's probably a dumb question since it's one of the rules of fish keeping to add fish slowly to the tank. BUT, I have the filter currently running on a 150 full of Africans. Do you think the filter will be able to handle the bio-load of 12 fish (Tetra's) adequately? Currently we have 30 fish (including 3 pleco's) in the 150. I'd assume that it would be perfectly fine, but I'm sure there is something that I am overlooking. I am going to start the first few schools with the hardier ones first, just in case of any kind of mini-cycles.

 

[Fishyfanatic]

You posted as I was typing JC. I would have posted in your thread but was unsure if it would be a "hyjacking" so I figured I'd just start a new one.

So you think that if I can find a fish store that has a pH between 8 and 8.2 that I would be fine? This is granted that they have had the Rams in stock for a few weeks to ensure that they have properly adjusted. I will be acclimating them slowly, that way there isn't a sudden pH shock. We have to drive a few hours to this particular fish store and I hate to drive all the way home and they die beacuse of improper acclimation.

Also, do Rams travel well? They will be in a bag for about an hour and a half. I know they are finicky, but I'm not sure how finicky they are in regards to traveling. TIA

 

[TankGirl]

Sounds like it would be okay to me. The vast majority of your biofilter reside in the filter, so you are probably safe.

 

[Fishyfanatic]

I figured that it would be fine to add 2 schools at once, considering that the filter will be holding plenty of bacteria. Right now the tank is setup in the living room and looks pretty bare. Ok, it's just a tank full of water, a heater, and a piece of Malaysian driftwood....so it's pretty bare. I'm going to take great care in planning this tank since it is "MY" tank. Sorry if I'm asking way too many questions, it's just that I don't want to mess anything up in this one. I want to cover all my bases before diving in and ending up making a huge mistake. This is my first experience with real community tank with mixed species and I want to get it right at the get-go.

 

[Jchillin]

You posted as I was typing JC. I would have posted in your thread but was unsure if it would be a "hyjacking" so I figured I'd just start a new one.

The thread is about anything and everything Ram associated...hijacking is not possible.

So you think that if I can find a fish store that has a pH between 8 and 8.2 that I would be fine? This is granted that they have had the Rams in stock for a few weeks to ensure that they have properly adjusted. I will be acclimating them slowly, that way there isn't a sudden pH shock. We have to drive a few hours to this particular fish store and I hate to drive all the way home and they die beacuse of improper acclimation. Also, do Rams travel well? They will be in a bag for about an hour and a half. I know they are finicky, but I'm not sure how finicky they are in regards to traveling. TIA

These are two of the issues currently under discussion. Acclimation and travel. Two hours is fine (gave you an extra half hour) and slow acclimation is desired.

Now...bring your discussion over to the thread...eager Ram keepers are waiting.

 

[Fishyfanatic]

Will do JC. I actually used to read that thread almost daily. But then I lost track of it for a few days and when I found it again, I was MANY pages behind. And using dial-up with AA takes forever so I just stopped reading. But I will check it out. Thanks.

I'm sure you will see me there quite often as the time gets closer to getting them.