I think my cory has something in his eye :(

[AoiGSR]

Just decided to do some testing with my water at my home tank.

Tests were done with Aquarium Pharmaceutical's test kits.

Tank: 10 Gallon set up for over 1 year.
Filtration: Emperor 280
Substrate: none
Accessories: air stones, driftwood (I assume it's malaysian)
Plants: Java Moss and Anacharis (added Anacharis same time as the Amanos and the Otos)
Temp: 80-82
Inhabitants: 8 Corydoras Aeneus (2 of them are 3 month old babies), 2 amano shrimp, 1 Otocinclus (had 2 more that died supposedly due to temp and nitrates)

Water Parameters:

Large image here:

Water change done on Saturday at 50% (nitrates still same even after doing the change. Tested on Saturday, and then on Tuesday) and changed the carbon and filter.

I've had the corys for a LONG time. Had 3 otos and 2 died. (LFS said Nitrate was too high, antoher shop said the temp was too high and a combo of both might have stressed it out). Amano Shirmp were gotten last Wednesday.

Type of food served: spinach, Hikari Algae wafers, Marineland Bio-Blend

Are the Nitrates still too high? Nitrates in my tap and after conditioning are at 0ppm.

Any meds for this? He's been a strong Cory for several years.

 

[youronlysin]

Your Nitrate level is practically off the chart its so high. Although fish might seem to live normally in it for a while, They definitely wont survive as long as they could No doubt, they are suffering to some degree. I cant say that the Nitrate level or the temperature would have caused the problem with the eye on the Cory....Im not really sure what that can do to a fish.
I would step up the water changes to every other day or so untill you start to see a decline in the Nitrate level, then make sure you keep up with your water changes at least weekly. Make sure the tank is cleaned of any left over food, dead plant matter, etc. I wouldnt worry about the temperature too much...your right in the range for a tropical tank....fish can adapt quite well over time. Cut down on feedings for a while too, at least while your trying to get the Nitrate levels down. You dont need to starve your fish, just know that they will be quite well if they go a day or two without food. Maybe reduce the amount you feed at once.
As for the Cory cat, I dont have the answer for you...There will be someone else with more experience in that area here soon Im sure. Good luck! Let us know what happens.

 

[AoiGSR]

That's what my LFS said, mentioned the cutting down of food, pick up remains, etc.

I thought maybe the 50% change in water on Saturday would have made a difference but I didn't get my Nitrate test till today The pH was around 6.2 on Saturday and now the pH is less acidic (in the blue).

I have water ready to swap out so i'll continue to do that.

Any other comments are appreciated (constructive criticism too is welcome).

My betta 3 gallon tank is in MUCH better shape Nitrate wise.
A+

 

[youronlysin]

The more fish eat, the more waste they produce. Also, anything left to decay in the tank adds to the waste. Waste gets broken down through the normal biological processes in your tank and one of the products of those processes are Nitrates. Its all part of the Nitrification process, or Nitrogen cycle. Whatever you chose to call it, it works the same way. There are a number of reasons that your Nitrate levels could be so high in a mature tank. Overfeeding, Too many fish for the size of tank (which you might be pushing a bit), decaying plant matter, decaying fish, Any leftover food left to decay in the tank, etc. As far as the pH change, again, Im not too sure. I wouldnt worry about it now, your pH is neutral, so thats not a bad thing. Keeping up with your water changes might also help stabilize that.

At any rate, definitely keep going with the water changes until that Nitrate level starts to degrade. Since you changed the carbon and filter as well, you might experience another small cycle, especially if you have no substrate. Just be aware that you might get some weird test results over the next few weeks...notably changes in your ammonia and nitrite levels in addition to the nitrate issue you have now. If you see any of those changes, just keep up with your 20 - 30 percent water changes and wait for the cycle to mature. It will stabilize again soon.

 

[Meredith]

Its hard to tell by the picture, but your cory may have pop eye. In any case keep up your water changes and you may try using some melafix to help out with his eye.