Kassi
Aquarium Advice Apprentice
My fiance and I just bought a new 55 gallon tank with a filter, heater, etc... needed to set it up (the Topfin 55 gallon kit). As we are both aware of the importance of cycling a tank, we added three plants to the tank after first purchasing it. During this time I did a 25% water change in my other already established tank and transfered that water to the new aquarium. I also added a little bit of gravel from our already established tank into the new aquarium.
After performing ideal test results three days in a row and noticing that the temperature was stable at 80 degrees, we added some fish to our new tank: 4 neon tetra, a female black molly, and a male and female swordtail.
The fish are acting normal. I did add 1/4 the recommended dosage of aquarium salt for the black molly (not the total recommendation as the tetra are sensitive to aquarium salt) However, I've balanced that out by putting in two air tubes (not certain their correct name) also top fin brand that we placed on either side of the aquarium to circulate water and add to a nice atmosphere. Further tests for the past 4 days that they have been inhabiting the aquarium have shown that everything is in the safe zone.
Except one thing and I've only just now noticed it. During this whole time the Alkalinity reading has been from 0-40 which is low. I didn't realize that a higher Alkalinity such as 120 - 180 was ideal. Here are my other reads:
Nitrate: 0-20 (safe)
Nitrite: 0 (safe)
Hardness: 75 (soft)
Alkalinity 0-40 (low)
PH - 7.0 (neutral)
ammonia levels are very low in the ideal range.
Knowing that alkalinity is related to ph, I added a dose of neutral regulator (by Seachem) in order to possibly raise it.
My main question is this. Is the low alkalinity a huge problem? Is there something I can do to raise it safely to get it into the ideal zone? Have I made a terrible mistake? All of the other reads, as I've said, are in the ideal zone and have maintained that way. What exactly does low alkalinity mean to the health of the fish? Am I putting them in danger?
Thanks for any responses.
Afterthought: oh, and as for the black molly, she's breathing just fine despite the lower salt levels. If I notice her gills moving too much, then I'd immediately add more salt. I think the main idea is that she needs better oxygenated water and that was the purpose of the bubble blower tube things (as well as aesthetics). Like I said before, despite the low alkalinity our fish are acting very normal. No darting around or any unusual behavior.
After performing ideal test results three days in a row and noticing that the temperature was stable at 80 degrees, we added some fish to our new tank: 4 neon tetra, a female black molly, and a male and female swordtail.
The fish are acting normal. I did add 1/4 the recommended dosage of aquarium salt for the black molly (not the total recommendation as the tetra are sensitive to aquarium salt) However, I've balanced that out by putting in two air tubes (not certain their correct name) also top fin brand that we placed on either side of the aquarium to circulate water and add to a nice atmosphere. Further tests for the past 4 days that they have been inhabiting the aquarium have shown that everything is in the safe zone.
Except one thing and I've only just now noticed it. During this whole time the Alkalinity reading has been from 0-40 which is low. I didn't realize that a higher Alkalinity such as 120 - 180 was ideal. Here are my other reads:
Nitrate: 0-20 (safe)
Nitrite: 0 (safe)
Hardness: 75 (soft)
Alkalinity 0-40 (low)
PH - 7.0 (neutral)
ammonia levels are very low in the ideal range.
Knowing that alkalinity is related to ph, I added a dose of neutral regulator (by Seachem) in order to possibly raise it.
My main question is this. Is the low alkalinity a huge problem? Is there something I can do to raise it safely to get it into the ideal zone? Have I made a terrible mistake? All of the other reads, as I've said, are in the ideal zone and have maintained that way. What exactly does low alkalinity mean to the health of the fish? Am I putting them in danger?
Thanks for any responses.
Afterthought: oh, and as for the black molly, she's breathing just fine despite the lower salt levels. If I notice her gills moving too much, then I'd immediately add more salt. I think the main idea is that she needs better oxygenated water and that was the purpose of the bubble blower tube things (as well as aesthetics). Like I said before, despite the low alkalinity our fish are acting very normal. No darting around or any unusual behavior.
