Fish having trouble in 55 gal tank. Would like some opinions

[SouthernSon]

I am currently cycling/cloning my 55 gal tank with 4 giant danios. I came home today and one of them was at the bottom of the tank acting lethargic and later died. I tested my water the amonia is around .02 and the nitrate and nitrites are almost non existant and the pH is between 5.5 and 6. The other three danio are acting fine swimming around full strength by the looks of it. I was just curious on yalls opinion, do you think it was the fish or is this an early warning sign of more danio deaths?

My 55 gal has been running for a week now and this is the first sign of trouble I have seen. I am using my mature 30gal tank to clone this 55 gal.

Also something odd i noticed was that the danios underside was very yellowish which I did not notice there until it was dying(99% sure it wasn't there before).. All the others in the tank have a very white and shiny underside but this ones was a yellow tint. I am not fimillar with fish diseases so I couldn't be sure, but that was the only thing out of the ordinary about the fish.

 

[Kat1103]

1st. Your ph is kind of acidic.
2nd. Cycling with fish is very stressful and takes a toll on them. Not all of them will probably make it.
3rd. Could also be a bad batch of fish. Most danios they sell around here aren't very healthy. Not sure about where u live though.

 

[Mr. Limpet]

Not sure what happened to your danio, but what kind of testing system are you using?

Your tank isn't cycled IMO and I'd suggest you read the link below and be prepared for lots of PWC.

I just learned about cycling but I already have fish. What now?!

If you can relocate them or take them back and do a fishless cycle, read this one.

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f15/fishless-cycling-for-dummies-103339.html

 

[ejaramillo01]

Not sure what happened to your danio, but what kind of testing system are you using?

Your tank isn't cycled IMO and I'd suggest you read the link below and be prepared for lots of PWC.

I just learned about cycling but I already have fish. What now?!

If you can relocate them or take them back and do a fishless cycle, read this one.

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f15/fishless-cycling-for-dummies-103339.html

I understood, maybe I'm wrong, that the OP is using a cycled filter from an old 30 G tank.

Also I'm interested what kind of test are you using to measure the water quality. How did you read 0.02 ammonia?

 

[Mr. Limpet]

I understood, maybe I'm wrong, that the OP is using a cycled filter from an old 30 G tank.

Also I'm interested what kind of test are you using to measure the water quality. How did you read 0.02 ammonia?

Yeah, but I didn't know what "clone" meant (no mention of filter) and the symptoms seem to lean more towards an uncycled tank IMO.

 

[SouthernSon]

I don't know the exact brand of the testing kit. It's called easyread or something like that. It's a tube I fill with water, add some chemicals and a color comes out that I match it to a chart it came with. So it could be just a batch of bad fish? The other three are still showing no signs of stress and are swimming along fine.

 

[pantherspawn]

Could be a whole list of things causing it. Best bet is just to keep monitoring the fish for any sign of illness. If you aren't sure what the different symptoms are, you should Google a list of known problems and sicknesses and keep an eye out for telltale signs.

 

[Mr. Limpet]

I don't know the exact brand of the testing kit. It's called easyread or something like that. It's a tube I fill with water, add some chemicals and a color comes out that I match it to a chart it came with. So it could be just a batch of bad fish? The other three are still showing no signs of stress and are swimming along fine.

I'll have to look that one up, never heard of it. I guess it could be bad fish. I had some wild caught Cards that were bad stock, but my tank was fully cycled so I was able to rule that out.

EDIT: All I could find was a Mardel test strip kit called easyread, which doesn't sound right.

 

[SouthernSon]

I'm not 100% sure it's called exactly easyread I was just going off what it says in bold writing on the little chart there doesn't seem to be a name brand name on it. The other three are still doing fine so I'm just assuming it was a bad fish. Thanks for the help guys I appreciate it.

 

[eco23]

While Danios are hardy, I believe a pH of 5.5 is potentially below what they can thrive in. 6.5-7.0 is ideal for them. Another issue as well IMO is that beneficial bacteria is not as productive at colonizing in extreme pH levels which will result in an extremely long cycling period...if at all.

I'm usually against altering pH levels, but considering the acidity of the water, an item like crushed coral may be an ideal solution to assist in cycling your tank as well as providing better conditions for your fishy friends

 

[SouthernSon]

Awesome I will do that right now actually. I assume they sell it at large retailers like petsmart? I have never used crushed coral so is there anywhere I could read up on how much to use or what brand? Also this might sound dumb but I heard baking soda works too?

 

[eco23]

Awesome I will do that right now actually. I assume they sell it at large retailers like petsmart? I have never used crushed coral so is there anywhere I could read up on how much to use or what brand? Also this might sound dumb but I heard baking soda works too?

Baking soda does work but it needs to be added during each water change. Crushed coral can be added directly into your filter or anywhere in the tank and instantly raises pH and buffers the water without having to replace it. It is sold at virtually any chain or lfs. It is normally used as a substrate, so tends to come in large bags. You really only need a good sized handful. I recommend putting it into a mesh bag and placing it in. Petco/Petsmart also sell mesh bags for aquarium use.

 

[SouthernSon]

Cool thanks man I am out the door now. How long should it be before I see results? And if I add too much will my pH shoot off the scale going the other way?

 

[eco23]

Cool thanks man I am out the door now. How long should it be before I see results? And if I add too much will my pH shoot off the scale going the other way?

You're going to want to add it VERY slowly since you have fish in there. Any dramatic swings will shock the fish. Just stick a TINY little bit in the bag at first. Every few days just add a small portion more until your pH becomes closer to neutral. It won't take much to do it. You'll see results in about 5-10 minutes if it is added to your filter.

*BTW, by "tiny", I literally mean only a few pieces as first. See what it raises it to, and stop once you see a small amount of movement.

Maybe another member can remind us what a safe pH swing would be and in what time period? I know Mr. Limpet knows if he's still here.

 

[SouthernSon]

One more quick question. Once I get the pH stable with the crushed coral do I have to leave it in there? Will the pH go back down if I take it out?

 

[eco23]

One more quick question. Once I get the pH stable with the crushed coral do I have to leave it in there? Will the pH go back down if I take it out?

What is the pH of the tap water? Test it straight out, and also leave a glass sitting out for 24 hours and test it then. I'm not sure if the pH is being affected by the cycle or if is naturally that acidic.

 

[SouthernSon]

I just used my last test so I will have to wait till tomorrow to pick up another box. But I'm fairly sure it comes out pretty acidic because I remember testing my other tank and the water being slightly acidic but I don't ever remember it being this bad. I added a little bit of coral and didn't see any real change in the pH so I added a little less than a handful and it moved up a bit so I will let it sit for tonight and retest my water tomorrow and add more accordingly.

 

[eco23]

I just used my last test so I will have to wait till tomorrow to pick up another box. But I'm fairly sure it comes out pretty acidic because I remember testing my other tank and the water being slightly acidic but I don't ever remember it being this bad. I added a little bit of coral and didn't see any real change in the pH so I added a little less than a handful and it moved up a bit so I will let it sit for tonight and retest my water tomorrow and add more accordingly.

Good deal. Make sure it is a liquid test kit you pick up. On the site we all recommend API Master test kits. If you're well stocked for the other tests, I think you may be able to find just the liquid pH kit from API.

 

[SouthernSon]

Well this is odd....i got the api masters pH test you recommended and I tested my water and its 7.6 now....I have not added any more coral either. Well I guess this either means the first test kit I had was a piece of crap or the pH is just jumping around due to the cycle. The fish in there are still doing fine so maybe it was just the first test kit I had wasn't good. Should I leave the coral in or take it out?

edit: Just found one of the danios dead...maybe I added too much coral in a short period of time? I think I must have messed up somewhere.

Well now I'm just confused....I tested the tap water and the water from my mature tank and they both have readings of 7.6ish too. Maybe this test kit is a dud?

 

[jetajockey]

I'd avoid messing with the ph at all, it really has to be on one of the extremes to really cause any kind of issue.

Double check the tap water again, be sure to aerate it for a few hours before you test it.

Nitrification slows as ph level drops, and if it was really in the 5's it wouldn't be doing much at all.

Crushed coral shouldn't kill off anything, I use aragonite substrate in some of my tanks to increase hardness and I've never seen an issue directly related to adding it.

One other thing I thought of. My water here is in the 7s, but it has really low hardness. (GH <1). I know if I go for too long without water changes the ph can fluctuate or even crash out because of the lack of buffer.