addendum: I just remembered that I have a house plant that can be rooted and even grown in water. I deduced that if plants love nitrates and I have too many putting a cutting in the water column to take out nitrates from there then that's one of my problems taken care of. Why didn't I remember this, I like to water my plants with old aquarium water. For nitrites I'm thinking about a bag of [FONT=Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, san-serif]zeolite in my power filter to take out the ammonia fuel source. What do you think of this idea?[/FONT]
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Yes, this is another option. Aquatic plants (most of them, there are a few exceptions) only take up nitrates as a last resort, after ammonia/ammonium first and nitrite second. Terrestrial plants, if I remember correctly, primarily use nitrate. Again going from memory, but I believe you can have philodendron with their tendrils in the fish tank to achieve nitrate uptake. Just be careful with any cut ends in the water as some terrestrial plants have very toxic substances that if released into the aquarium might harm fish and other life.
The aim though must be to find the source of the nitrate and deal with that. Zeolite is another option, but again this is ignoring the root issue which is what needs to be fixed. And if you do intend aquarium plants, you do not want zeolites or carbon or any other chemical filtration media removing plant nutrients.
The plant I'm sure would be okay, my cat has eaten a good amount of it starting when he was a kitten and my mom had a beta with the same type of plant in it's bowl and it lasted for like two years and they just kept the water topped off in it's bowl. The plant cutting and the [FONT=Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, san-serif]zeolite are more like a band aid to keep the fish alive by lowering the waste enough to at least buy me time. If the problem is that my bacteria levels are too low the zeolite may slow the re-cycling a little but the fish come first. My ruffled sword is loving the water, it even has a stem sticking up that looks like it'll flower [/FONT]
Don't lose hope. I do know what it is like having fish dying and not being able to find the reason. I think you are on the right track with getting things balanced via water changes. It is always better to let nature fix things, rather than adding more substances.
I let the GH pass previously because there have been other more significant issues, but I will mention it now. At 120 ppm, or 7 dGH, this is soft water. You will have no issues with most plants (we can talk plants later), such as swords that you mention. Livebearers will find this a bit low though, and this could have been one contributing factor. As you think about new fish when this is resolved, look at soft water fish: tetras, rasboras, most catfish, etc., and there are many that would do well in a 30g.
The inflorescence from the sword will likely produce adventitious plants from the nodes. Flowering is rare when the plant is grown submersed. I did once have flowers from this plant, but only once. But new plants are exciting too, and when they are large enough with some roots you can plant them.
Byron.
I let the GH pass previously because there have been other more significant issues, but I will mention it now. At 120 ppm, or 7 dGH, this is soft water. You will have no issues with most plants (we can talk plants later), such as swords that you mention. Livebearers will find this a bit low though, and this could have been one contributing factor. As you think about new fish when this is resolved, look at soft water fish: tetras, rasboras, most catfish, etc., and there are many that would do well in a 30g.
The inflorescence from the sword will likely produce adventitious plants from the nodes. Flowering is rare when the plant is grown submersed. I did once have flowers from this plant, but only once. But new plants are exciting too, and when they are large enough with some roots you can plant them.
Byron.
I love platys, I've had them for years so I hope that I can keep them, maybe epson salt and/or a calcium source would help. I only have an inch of sand in my tank should I add more to it? It might not hurt to look into protein skimmers or building one.
Thanks for all this help.
Thanks for all this help.
You don't need protein skimmers in freshwater. You could add another inch (no more) of sand, though you don't need to, but your sword will develop an extensive root system and 2 inches would be better.
Epsom salt is not a substitute for hard water, though it does raise GH (it is magnesium sulfate, one of the "hard" minerals) but the calcium is the real important mineral for livebearers. Crushed coral mixed in the sand is probably the best way to raise GH. But before you go down this road of adjusting water parameters, think carefully. I've done it.
The guy at the pet store today round of stability to help the biological filtration in my tank since he though it sounded like the bacteria system collapsed or just wasn't keeping up. The stuff was $7 U.S. for 100 ml but cheaper then buying new fish. I also got the Marina 100 air pump for better aeration which from my studies on the net showed that increased aeration does help with getting ammonia and Nitrite to convert more easily as well as helping ammonia and both of the N to out gas a little. The little guys look like they are doing okay and the ruffled sword plant is swaying gently.
For protein skimmers everything that I found said that they are not needed for freshwater tanks but wouldn't hurt and I ran out of ideas, maybe a DIY one day.
I'm frustrated and stumped with this tank but but I also love it, have aquariums is addicting.
For protein skimmers everything that I found said that they are not needed for freshwater tanks but wouldn't hurt and I ran out of ideas, maybe a DIY one day.
I'm frustrated and stumped with this tank but but I also love it, have aquariums is addicting.
I'm thinking that everything in my tank are starting to do better now. The ruffled sword's steam thing seems like 9-12 inches long now I think. I add a cutting from my pothos and have it hanging in the water along with a small part of my spider plant. I also got 3 aponogeton bulbs but I seem to be only to get 1 out 3 to grow most of the time. All these plants should take out ammonia fast but I'm going to finish the week of treatment with the stability before I test again.
My bumblebee platy is spending tons of time alone at the surface and her head that is black has gotten a little lighter. These pollution levels need to drop fast but I think that changing the water would set me back on the bio filter building.
My bumblebee platy is spending tons of time alone at the surface and her head that is black has gotten a little lighter. These pollution levels need to drop fast but I think that changing the water would set me back on the bio filter building.
