Hardy fish for "soft" water

[warthog76za]

Ive got 6 Glowlight Tetras, who seem to love the set up, in the soft water and I have corys as well.... but since I would like add variety to the tank I would like another breed of hardy fish for soft water, any advice?

 

[eco23]

How soft is soft? IMO, hardness and pH are two of the most overrated measurements in the hobby. As long as fish are acclimated to the tank properly and the levels are consistent and not fluctuating...virtually all (except SUPER sensitive) fish can adjust to your natural hardness and pH. A nice slow drip acclimation and almost any fish should be fine.

If your water is severely depleted in minerals, some inverts might have a challenge and need supplementation.

 

[alLexX]

most fish can adapt to almost any hardness(same with ph) unless its super crazily soft or hard.

 

[warthog76za]

Well my degree of GH is between 4-6 and yes you are right, the fish I have, specially the Mollies and corys are well at home in that set up but Ive always had losses having swordtails, every other fish, Ive never had problems with, soon as i have a swordtail after a while they die. Its frustrating, cause one does start thinking, "Is it my fault?"

Most of my fish have had babies, the snails and shrimp are thriving but I just cant get my swordtails to survive. The water here, where i live is soft and Ive been using crushed coral but that lasts a week or so to then you get a real sharp drop in GH.

 

[alLexX]

if its only swordtails dieing off,id guess its just bad stock.try a different pet store.

 

[eco23]

My understanding is that CC will buffer basically until it dissolves which is quite a long time.

How have you been acclimating the fish? Have you tried drip acclimating?

 

[warthog76za]

Yes I have been acclimating the fish but not the drip method.

 

[eco23]

Here's the way I do it...excuse the copying and pasting, I posted this in another thread.

- Float bag (the one the fish are in, lol) for ~15 mins to match temperature (probably unnecessary)

- Place fish and bag water in a clean pitcher (also inside bucket to catch overflow)

- Use a piece of air line tubing and start a siphon from your tank into the pitcher (just suck on the end), then tie a couple knots in the tube limiting water flow so there's a slow but steady drip, drip, drip

- Go watch TV for a while

- Let the pitcher fill, dump out half the water than repeat

- More TV

- Once the pitcher fills the second time, I net the fish (pitcher comes in handy) and place him in the tank. Don't let the store water get into your tank!

 

[adeebm]

+1 for drip acclimation

I think matching the temperature at the end, just before you put the fish in would work better. Since the fish is being acclimated in a separate bucket, it's likely that the temperature will be closer to the ambient temp, not the tank temp. I even go as far as adding some prime to neutralize any ammonia that the LFS water might have come with haha.

--Adeeb

 

[eco23]

+1 for drip acclimation

I think matching the temperature at the end, just before you put the fish in would work better. Since the fish is being acclimated in a separate bucket, it's likely that the temperature will be closer to the ambient temp, not the tank temp. I even go as far as adding some prime to neutralize any ammonia that the LFS water might have come with haha.

--Adeeb

I also add a single drop of Prime into the pitcher when I first put the fish in, it's a great idea and one I forgot to mention. How do you recommend rematching temps though? If the fish is in a bucket or pitcher, obviously you can't float the whole thing in the tank...and I'm thinking the fish would prefer a degree or two of temp swing as opposed to being relocated to what would amount to 5 different environments within a matter of a couple hours (store tank, bag, acclimation bucket, new bag to match temps and finally DT).

 

[shadowstars123]

I also add a single drop of Prime into the pitcher when I first put the fish in, it's a great idea and one I forgot to mention. How do you recommend rematching temps though? If the fish is in a bucket or pitcher, obviously you can't float the whole thing in the tank...and I'm thinking the fish would prefer a degree or two of temp swing as opposed to being relocated to what would amount to 5 different environments within a matter of a couple hours (store tank, bag, acclimation bucket, new bag to match temps and finally DT).

I personally use a double bagged freezer ziploc bags held in place with clamps in a bucket, drip acclimate, remove the bags , and then temp acclimate

 

[eco23]

I personally use a double bagged freezer ziploc bags held in place with clamps in a bucket, drip acclimate, remove the bags , and then temp acclimate

Makes sense, I suppose you could also use the same bag the fish arrived in. My only concern would be that the volume of the bag wouldn't be enough for a sufficient acclimation, but I guess you could either let the bag overflow significantly into the bucket or empty it a few times during the process. I assume the 2 waters would mix well, I've just always liked the large pitcher or bucket idea since if feel the water is being more evenly distributed (I'm not sure my theory makes any scientific sense though). Good thought and I might try it next time

 

[adeebm]

I skip the initial temp acclimation since it's going to change anyway. Once I'm done dipping, I scoop the fish with the leftover water and put some back into the original bag. Then temp acclimate for 10min, net and release.

--Adeeb

 

[eco23]

I skip the initial temp acclimation since it's going to change anyway. Once I'm done dipping, I scoop the fish with the leftover water and put some back into the original bag. Then temp acclimate for 10min, net and release.

--Adeeb

I agree with the idea, but that still leaves the issue of being netted or plopped into a new environment 4 times in the span of a couple hours.

 

[adeebm]

Well netting into the bag and out can't be avoided. You could pour the fish in and out of the drip container, might be less stressful. And prime is supposed to include similar ingredients to stresscoat I think, so that might help. But I don't know if you can avoid stress anymore than that. The point of drip acclimation is so it's not a "new" environment, and it's give them time to settle down between being moved about. Also, I think keeping the lights off while introducing them and for the rest of the day helps. I don't do it, but if I had a super finicky fish I might.

--Adeeb

 

[eco23]

We're all on the same page and just have slight variances in the technique . The main point is that we all support drip acclimating. It confuses me when people say it's only for expensive saltwater fish, I agree it's not always necessary, but why not go the extra mile to ensure the transition is as smooth as possible. I actually find it easier than bag acclimating anyway.

 

[adeebm]

Haha yeah. We should make a sticky/discussion page on how to best drip acclimate I actually bag acclimated my one SW fish because it was winter and ambient temps were 60F :O

--Adeeb

 

[jetajockey]

I think the original topic has gone a bit off track. Drip acclimation works, but in many cases it's overrated. I've done it, but only with really expensive or notoriously sensitive fish.

The thread has taken the direction that implies that the OP has done something wrong via acclimation, and I don't think it's fair to narrow it down to that just yet.

Up to this point in the thread, it appears that the OP has a decent amount of experience in fishkeeping, so I wouldn't play the 'faulty acclimation' card just yet.

Drip acclimation is great and probably the best acclimation procedure for small fish, but there are other methods that work fine and have been used for ages.

I'm leaning towards a possible issue with bad stock as well, If you really think its a soft water issue, what is your water change schedule? Frequent water changes can help keep the ph from crashing, my water is way softer than yours, barely registering 1gh most of the time, and in most of my tanks I do not buffer the water at all.

 

[eco23]

I don't believe anyone is making accusations towards the OP. We're simply giving advice on the best way, we believe, to acclimate new fish if there truly is a dramatic difference in the water chemistry.

The OP's question was what are hardy fish that can adapt to soft water, our personal advice is that virtually all fish can adapt if acclimated properly...then there was a discussion on what the best process to acclimate is.

The point regarding water changes is a very valid one though, and a point we did fail to mention.

 

[Mr. Limpet]

I don't believe anyone is making accusations towards the OP. We're simply giving advice on the best way, we believe, to acclimate new fish if there truly is a dramatic difference in the water chemistry.

Proper acclimation is the most important way to start off new fish no matter what your water conditions. pH shock alone has killed many a fish over a short period of time IMO/E/research. If you don't start them out properly and there's an issue a day or a week later, how can you know what caused it?

As an example: I got some Cards and acclimated them properly, did everything right and they died off slowly. I later found out in researching them that wild caught didn't do well in aquariums, so I got farm raised and they're doing great in my betta community tank.