tank frustration

[dozer]

I was considering just giving up on keeping fish...I have a 29 gallon tank with 3 green barbs, 3 tiger barbs and 3 neon rosy barbs....things were generally going ok...pH a bit high, but found some postings that reassured me a steady pH (even if it is a bit high) is better than a fluctuating one. Seemed to be working. Then I got a replacement fish for one of my green barbs that disappeared (never found him). Didn't quarantine the new one and things seemed to be ok for about 4 weeks. Then a few days ago, I noticed ick on him. I gave up on meds a long time ago (always ended up killing more than I saved), so I did a partial (10%) water change immediately and then again for the next couple of days. This morning he was dead and to my horror I noticed all my other fish are now covered in various degrees of spots. I put in some salt, raised the temp and turned out the light...I would be surprised if I don't lose 1 more tonight and then the next 2 worst off in the next few days. I guess I'm not really looking for advice..my fault for not quarantining. I just figured my fish were strong enough to overcome a foreign invader. I'm just posting to say thanks. This forum is great. Makes me realize that I am not the only one who screws up sometimes and I think I will continue on. Hopefully I can save a few and then start fresh.

 

[Menagerie]

To further help, what is the pH in your tank? Stick with 86*F and aquarium salt and most of the fish will be saved.

 

[dozer]

My pH is about 8.0....nitrates about 40, ammonia 0, nitrite 0. I have tried putting in pH down, with no fluctuation. I must have very hard water. I tested it right out of the tap..it is 7.2. I am not sure what I am doing wrong that the pH keeps going up. When I first got my tank about a year ago, I was doing water changes about every 4 weeks, just topping up the tank if the water level dropped. (yeah, I now know a huge no no) Thru research I discovered why my fish seemed to be going blind--it was toxic levels of pH for an extended period of time. So I do partial water changes weekly now and I seem to be maintaining at about 8.0. Would live plants help? I just recently switched my lighting from incandescent to fluorescent, so I might be able to provide the right degree of light for a plant. Any ideas?

 

[Menagerie]

tested it right out of the tap..it is 7.2.

Allow the water to sit out over night to get a true pH reading.

What kind of substrate are you using? Do you have any rocks in the tank, if so, what kind?

 

[dozer]

wow...I did the water test again in the morning after letting the water sit, and the pH is 8.0. Why is it so high and is there anyway to change that? As for the substrate, I have an aquaclear filter with a sponge, charcoal and ammonia control insert in it. The gravel I kind of question..kind of white with some shiny metallic areas on them..(think the gravel came with the tank when I got it second hand)..I have a couple of airstones too, but I only turn them on occasionally because my fish don't generally seem to be breathing heavy. (I lost another fish the previous night and 3 more while I was at work yesterday )...so total fish loss right now is 5 out of 9.....The remaining 4 will survive. I have no doubt about that, as they look a whole lot better today. They are also the largest ones, so probably a bit stronger. Should I take them out of the tank and clean it completely, or would that just put added stress on them?

 

[Menagerie]

Leave all the fish in there for now. There's no reason to completely clean the tank. You can still do PWC during the treatment, just replace the amount of salt you removed.

gravel I kind of question..kind of white with some shiny metallic areas on them..(

It's not messing with the pH, since the tap water is high.

Why is it so high and is there anyway to change that?

That's simply the pH of your local water. There are natural ways to change it--peat moss, lots of wood in the tank, or CO2 (if you were doing a planted tank). The other way to get around the high pH is to keep fish that are used to a high pH.

 

[Apocalypse_Gold]

If your water has a high carbonate hardness (kH) it will resist most attempts to lower the pH. I resorted to buying a ro filter (actually I talked with my brother--Hash_baz--about buying one and then he saw one for a good deal on Ebay and bought and then told me that I had bought it). I do 50/50 ro/tap for water changes. My tap pH is around 8.2 but my tanks are now around 7.5.

 

[dozer]

is something like that expensive? Reverse osmosis ultimately gives you something like distilled water right? (it has no minerals in it?).... There's plenty of snow outside where I am right now...I was considering melting some of it and using that for water changes (after I test it of course)....Maybe I'll try some plants.....I'm kind of up in the air with things right now. Just feel so bad that these poor fish ended up in my care...on a bright note though...I rescued a betta from one of those little bowls and put him in a 10 gallon tank....he's doing ok (for now )