Hello everyone,
I recently purchased an old 75 gallon tank from a friend of mine. I cleaned the side glass panels with vinegar and rinsed the tank several times with water until the water was pretty clear. I decided I would start things off buying a couple of rope fish (5-6 inches) and two gold gouramis (2 -3 inches). Eventually, both rope fish ended up dying, so I tested the nitrate levels and found them to be pretty high (about 40-80 ppm - maybe more). I use an API Freshwater test kit and there is not much difference in color at that measurement.
Therefore, I did a 75 percent water change and then a 50 percent water change to finally bring the nitrate levels down to an acceptable level. Nitrite levels are 0 and the ammonia levels are maybe a little high (again hard to tell with my API test kit) but still relatively close to 0.
After the water change, I noticed one of my gouramis has a red spot on his body and he often rests at the bottom of the tank. Therefore, I would like to know what you guys think is making my gourami sick and what is making my tank have so many nitrates?
Here is some additional information for you.
The tank is old - there is some black dirt in the aquarium gravel.
I am conducting an experiment to determine if the wood in the tank is causing the high nitrate problem.
I feed my fish Hikari blood worms and tetra tropical flakes. I put worms in the tank once a day and feed the fish flakes twice a day.
The tank has an undergravel filter and a magnum 350 canister filter.
The temperature in my aquarium is usually around 76-78 degrees.
I have a healthy 30 gallon tank with two goldfish in it - I could place my gouramis in this tank while I fix my 75 gallon tank if necessary. I don't have a heater in my goldfish tank though.
I recently purchased an old 75 gallon tank from a friend of mine. I cleaned the side glass panels with vinegar and rinsed the tank several times with water until the water was pretty clear. I decided I would start things off buying a couple of rope fish (5-6 inches) and two gold gouramis (2 -3 inches). Eventually, both rope fish ended up dying, so I tested the nitrate levels and found them to be pretty high (about 40-80 ppm - maybe more). I use an API Freshwater test kit and there is not much difference in color at that measurement.
Therefore, I did a 75 percent water change and then a 50 percent water change to finally bring the nitrate levels down to an acceptable level. Nitrite levels are 0 and the ammonia levels are maybe a little high (again hard to tell with my API test kit) but still relatively close to 0.
After the water change, I noticed one of my gouramis has a red spot on his body and he often rests at the bottom of the tank. Therefore, I would like to know what you guys think is making my gourami sick and what is making my tank have so many nitrates?
Here is some additional information for you.
The tank is old - there is some black dirt in the aquarium gravel.
I am conducting an experiment to determine if the wood in the tank is causing the high nitrate problem.
I feed my fish Hikari blood worms and tetra tropical flakes. I put worms in the tank once a day and feed the fish flakes twice a day.
The tank has an undergravel filter and a magnum 350 canister filter.
The temperature in my aquarium is usually around 76-78 degrees.
I have a healthy 30 gallon tank with two goldfish in it - I could place my gouramis in this tank while I fix my 75 gallon tank if necessary. I don't have a heater in my goldfish tank though.
