Please help - Golden Ram.

[MeganLois]

Hi there,

Please could I have some additional advice on what to do for my Golden Ram.
Im not expecting to save it but I want to try my best.

When I woke up this morning I couldn't see our ram. On further inspection I realised that it was stuck between the filter and the bracket that holds it. When I freed it, I noticed that some of its scales have flaked off, maybe she tried swimming backwards or tried to turned around which resulted in her also injuring her left fin. After a while she was swimming around (not at her usual pace, but not drastically slow either) and seemed too ok.
Checked our water and... our PH has crashed and the ammonia is dangerously high.

We've been struggling with this issue for nearly a week now and I believe its because I was too impatient and didn't allow the tank to cycle fully. BEGINNERS BIG MISTAKE
3 weeks today actually, we decided to upgrade our 25L to a 64L with live plants

The filter in the 25L is big enough to be used in the 64L so we didn't clean it at all and placed it in the 64L tank... We also added old moss balls from the 25L too to try and get all the right bacteria in there. Added the live plants, and 1 large air-stone for more oxygen and aesthetics. Around day 5... tests strips showed that chemically, everything was perfect. So the following day we added our fish in there.
2 yellow minnows (we've had them for nearly 3 years!)
1 neon tetra. (2+years)
1 danio. (1+ years)
1very lazy plecostomus (3+ years)
1 albino plec (1+)
1 Golden ram... 4 weeks... We did buy a blue ram but it jumped out of the tank and died...

Since adding them to the 64L tank all seemed to be ok. All of their behaviour seemed to be normal. The ram kept swimming trough the bubbles up the glass and back down and around the tank... for me personally, I though the ram was enjoying the bubbles but my partner searched it up and it can be seen as stressed and gasping for air... tested the water and the ammonia is dangerously high... so we took a sample of our water to the store and they confirmed that it was and that our pH and general hardness is of concern swell... Went home, did a 15% water change, waited 48 hours and still no sign improvement so we did the same again... Today we would have needed to test the water anyways despite the ram being stuck... but as she was also injured and ammonia was dangerously high and our PH has crashed we went to the store, contemplate on moving the ram into our old 25L tank but agreed that it would only add to the stress considering how high the ammonia levels are. We bought some KH powder and did a 50% water change... added tap water condition and bio boost swell... but now the ram is either at the bottom of the tank not really moving or near the top of the tank... When I sit close to the tank (tank is on our desk) she does come out of the corner to sit on the bottom but near the front... just looking like right at me... I just feel so helpless and really don't want her to die and not sure what else to do...

Any suggestions/tips?!!

Thanks,
Megan

 

[Aiken Drum]

Firstly. What are you considering as "dangerously high" ammonia?

Secondly, what has your pH "crashed" to? What is it normally? What level is your kH at for it to be of concern?

 

[MeganLois]

I say dangerously high as its the highest it can go and its in the danger level - 6mg/l (what it says on the back of the test kit)

Our PH is normally at 7.2 but has crashed to 6.4
I say crashed as there was no slow indication of it going down...

Our KH has been very unstable, its been flitting between 0 and 3. Prior to adding the fish in, we added bicarb soda which got it to between 6-10

 

[Aiken Drum]

One thing i can tell you is the low pH is probably all that's keeping your fish alive.

Ammonia toxicity is related to pH and water temperature. The higher these are the more toxic ammonia is. At the pH you are currently at, ammonia has to be really high to become toxic. The chart i have doesnt go as high as your ammonia test result or pH as low as yours, but it does show what will happen if your pH rises and you arent addressing the high ammonia.

https://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f12/your-guide-to-ammonia-toxicity-159994.html

pH swings like you are seeing is a side effect of such low KH. Your water has no buffering capacity to absorb the acid produced by fish respiration and the pH will drop rapidly when the KH runs out.

You need to get the ammonia down to levels such that rising pH wont push it into toxic levels. Water changes. The flip side of this is that pH will probably rise as you do these water changes.

 

[Caliban07]

Perform massive water changes daily and use Seachem Prime with the new water going in. This will keep ammonia low through dilution and the Prime will offer secondary protection as it renders the ammonia non toxic for a short period.

 

[jake37]

On the bright side your fishes love extremely soft acidic water so i would leave the kh/gh very low. The ammonia is another issue and does need to be address.

To repeat I would not add kh and I would not worry about the ph 'crash' but I would address the issue with ammonia. Also be sure to keep the aquarium around 82F degree with the ram; they do best in warm waters.