Got the real PH of my tank finally...

[sunsplash76]

Hello~
Well, I got the high range Ph test kit finally! Damn water in Hawaii is hard and high Ph. Not as high as I thought however, it is 7.8 or thereabouts. Most of the african cichlids I plan on getting in the next few days should be happy with that for the most part, I may raise the Ph a bit but not much. Since they like hard water that is no problem. I am also going to get an ammonia test today and see how that is looking. I did a partial water change a few days ago to make sure it stays clean. I got rid of the comets yesterday because the tank is done cycling. Now only the angel fish, blood gourami, and dalmation molly are in the 55. They will be going into the 10 gallon once I am done re-doing it.

The 10 gallon went wrong somewhere, so I scrapped it and have started it over. I threw the bio wheel away, the filter, the gravel, the deco & have started a new. I'm getting a new filter (Don't know whether to get penguin or whisper) I got new gravel put in, the tank was cleaned in hot water, and I added all new water with a packet of powder labeled perfect PH 7.0. I am simply going to test the PH and if needed add some of this 7.0 powder. I hope the fishes will be happier this time. I'm going to try my best and hope they live. 10 gallons is hard to keep up with. Wanted to ask what a water softener pillow is? I'm assuming it softens the tank water, but how does it work and is it in the local pet store? I also wanted to know how powerheads work? Do I need one for my 55? Thanks everyone, as soon as the fish are in there, I'll post a pic of them. Enjoy labor day weekend!
~Melissa~

 

[CatfishFanatic]

You mentioned an ammonia test kit. I dont think they are necessary. The kits you really need for fresh water are nitrate and phosphate. Once the tank has cycled, you will not have ammonia unless you dump a ton of fish in at once. You know you have finished the cycle when your nitrate kit reads more than the water used in changes. Nitrate and phosphate are indicators for algae. Ideally you want about 20 ppm or less of nitrate and 0 ppm of phosphate. Algae cannot grow in those conditions but it is fine for the fish.

I dont think pH plays a large factor in fish survival... You do need to slowly let the fish get used to the water and you should be set. I let the fish stay in the bag floating the the aquarium for at least an hour to adjust the temperature inside the bag to tank temp. Next I open up the bag inside a bucket and slowly let tank water drip slowly for at least 2 hours. Airline tubing and a clothes pin work well once adjusted. Last, I net the fish and put it in the tank so you dont contaminate the rest of the setup with strange water.

As for filters, I have an AquaClear 300 (power filter) for my 55 gal and have had no problems with needing extra filtration in the past 1.5 years. And I do admit I have too many fish for my aquarium size. I imagine whatever filter you currently have is fine (as long as the package says it can handle the size aquarium).

You do know it takes about a month for a tank to completely cycle and stabalize... If you let the tank and rocks dry out you have to start the process all over again. You need bacteria to break down ammonia and nitrite into nitrate. It just takes time.

 

[CRaZeeeBiTcHisH]

i would want an ammonia test kit anyway regardless of whether a tank has cycled or not--certain medications can affect your bacterial colonies as well as overzealous cleaning ,and if they do you need to know, especially if your tank is well stocked---as far as pH , as long as there are not drastic swings, most fish acclimate pretty well with no problems--i am a little paranoid, but it has served me well--the only fish i have lost in a great while have been murdered by a particularly hungry tankmate
best wishes!

 

[fishfreek]

I agree,

An ammonia test kit while it might not be something you check weekly on an established tank it should be the first thing you check when you see something strange going on in tyour tank.

Also after adding additional bio load its good to check for ammonia every so ofent to make sure the bio filter is keeping up.

Antibiotic treaments can also be known to destroy bio filters.

The first question I ask anyone who is having problems with fish health is what is the ammonia readings. So its a kit that no one should be without reguarless of tank age in my book.