New ballon belly mollies and lyretail strange behavor?

[GouramiCichlid]

I just recently got some mollies and I noticed that they were just sitting at the top of the tank doing nothing is this normal? I have them in freshwater btw
Ammonia:0
Nitrite:0
Nitrate:0
Ph: Not sure

 

[Masha]

That sounds as if there might be something wrong. I'm surprised that you have 0 nitrates. Are you sure that is correct? A tank with a working nitrogen cycle should have some nitrates. Are you using liquid test, or strips?

Also, how large is the tank, what other fish are there, and what kind of filtration?

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[GouramiCichlid]

I am using an API liquid test kit
It is a forty gallon tank with a quiet flow 40 I do water changes twice a week about 20% I'm planning on adding another power filter
1x Gold Gourami
1x African featherfin(temporary until it gets bigger then I can put him with the cichlids)
1x Upside down catfish
2x Clown loaches(temporary)
1x zebra loach
1x black molly
2x lyre tail dalmation molly
3x dalmation molly
1x clown pleco
3x Silver dollars (temporary)

 

[Masha]

I suppose it's unlikely that you have a problem with your water parameters or oxygen, if the other fish are not also behaving like this as well as the fact that you are doing regular water changes. The nitrate test might just be showing 0 because it needs to be shaken really, really hard to give an accurate readout, I doubt that has anything to do with it though.

Are the mollies gasping, or just staying near the top?

 

[GouramiCichlid]

Yeah I just read that shaking the 2nd bottle for the nitrate test will give a more accurate reading so I did that and the freaking ppm is at 40! What do I do?
The Mollies are just sitting at the top swimming not really gasping or anything.

 

[Masha]

I wouldn't freak out about that nitrate reading. It's at the top of the recommended "safe" level. Great to get it lower, but it's not "the tank is on fire!" level crisis

You might want to check whether you are overfeeding - that can cause elevated nitrates. I don't know if the tank might also be overstocked, haven't done the calculations on that.

It's possible that those mollies come from a tank with much lower nitrates and that is what's making them uncomfortable. I'd do a bit of a larger water change next time - maybe 30%. And then next time, a bit more. Not a great idea to do a huge water change as the fish might stress from the sudden switch to lower nitrate water. Make it gradual. Does that make sense?

Also - test your tapwater. Actually, do that first. No point in doing water changes to reduce nitrates if the water going in is also full of nitrates.

 

[GouramiCichlid]

Way ahead of ya ;D I tested the tap before I tested the tank again, after vigorously shaking that bottle like no tomorrow. It read 0
Gotcha gradually increase % of water change instead of instantly doing a huge one.
Thanks for the help

 

[Masha]

Glad to hear the tapwater is 0 nitrate. Must be a major pain to have high nitrate tapwater. I hope reducing nitrate levels help. I've also found that sometimes fish just take a while to settle in. I recently added a new female swordtail, and for the first week she simply hid. Only now, after about three weeks, is she happily swimming about.
Good luck!