I am new to this forum, and the aquarium hobby in general, please forgive any mistakes/omissions...
I have a newly setup 55g aquarium, which has just completed its 4 week nitrogen cycle. I started the cycle with 6 1" zebra danios.
My tank has a Marineland C220 Canister filter, and a Marineland Penguin 350 Biowheel.
I am on well water, with a "whole house Neutralizer" which results in tap water with ph of 7.0.
After sitting for 12-24 hours, the Neutralizer wears off, and the water settles at 7.8. That's where my tank PH has been since day 1.
Because of this fluctuation, I try to limit my water changes to 20% once a week.
Ammonia is at 0ppm, and Nitrites also 0ppm. Nitrate is <10ppm Temp 81F
My current stock includes the original 6 Zebra Danios (1") 3 Gold Barb (2") 3 cory cats (2") and 2 african dwarf frogs (1")
3 days ago I added 4 Red Swag Swordtails (2 1/2" each)
1 male, and 3 females.
I used my standard method to acclimate these fish. I floated the bag for 20 minutes, then added 1/2c of aquarium water to the bag every 20 minutes for 2 hours.
I then netted the fish into the aquarium, discarding the water from the bag.
They swam happily for 3 days, and this morning, the male, and 1 female were dead on the bottom of the tank.
My feeding includes "TetraMin Pro" flakes, FreezeDried Blood Worms, and SunDried Baby Shrimp
All of the swordtails actively ate at feeding time.
I have read that the Swordtails are well suited for my waters PH levels, and that they are particularly hearty...
I'm just trying to figure out what might have happened to these 2 fish, and if there's anything that I can do to keep the other 2 from suffering the same fate.
Worth noting: one of my three gold barbs has developed a condition where he's not able to swim very well. He kind of drags his tail along the bottom of the tank, and seems to tilt from side to side. When this happens, he will sometimes dart around the tank. He doesn't seem to be eating very well (as opposed to the other gold barbs, who are extremely aggressive eaters) I have read that this could be related to his "swim blatter" and there's probably not much that I can do for him.
Could this "swim blatter problem" be related to the death of the swordtails?
Thanks for reading this far...I look forward to your comments.
I have a newly setup 55g aquarium, which has just completed its 4 week nitrogen cycle. I started the cycle with 6 1" zebra danios.
My tank has a Marineland C220 Canister filter, and a Marineland Penguin 350 Biowheel.
I am on well water, with a "whole house Neutralizer" which results in tap water with ph of 7.0.
After sitting for 12-24 hours, the Neutralizer wears off, and the water settles at 7.8. That's where my tank PH has been since day 1.
Because of this fluctuation, I try to limit my water changes to 20% once a week.
Ammonia is at 0ppm, and Nitrites also 0ppm. Nitrate is <10ppm Temp 81F
My current stock includes the original 6 Zebra Danios (1") 3 Gold Barb (2") 3 cory cats (2") and 2 african dwarf frogs (1")
3 days ago I added 4 Red Swag Swordtails (2 1/2" each)
1 male, and 3 females.
I used my standard method to acclimate these fish. I floated the bag for 20 minutes, then added 1/2c of aquarium water to the bag every 20 minutes for 2 hours.
I then netted the fish into the aquarium, discarding the water from the bag.
They swam happily for 3 days, and this morning, the male, and 1 female were dead on the bottom of the tank.
My feeding includes "TetraMin Pro" flakes, FreezeDried Blood Worms, and SunDried Baby Shrimp
All of the swordtails actively ate at feeding time.
I have read that the Swordtails are well suited for my waters PH levels, and that they are particularly hearty...
I'm just trying to figure out what might have happened to these 2 fish, and if there's anything that I can do to keep the other 2 from suffering the same fate.
Worth noting: one of my three gold barbs has developed a condition where he's not able to swim very well. He kind of drags his tail along the bottom of the tank, and seems to tilt from side to side. When this happens, he will sometimes dart around the tank. He doesn't seem to be eating very well (as opposed to the other gold barbs, who are extremely aggressive eaters) I have read that this could be related to his "swim blatter" and there's probably not much that I can do for him.
Could this "swim blatter problem" be related to the death of the swordtails?
Thanks for reading this far...I look forward to your comments.