What is this a symptom of?

[asincero]

I did my usual 50% water change last night. This morning, I found all of my fish at the surface of water as if gasping for air. One fish actually died :sad:.

It's been a few months since I've had any fish problems and I thought I finally got over the newbie phase. And I always do a 30% to 50% water change every week. So I don't know what gives here.

I only checked ammonia and pH ... ammonia was at 0 and pH was a little low at around 6.6. I wish I had checked the pH before I did the water change. Maybe I'll start doing that from now on.

Could it be due to a lack of oxygen? I seem to recall reading that the "gasping at the surface for air" behavior could be due to a lack of O2 in the water. I neglected to turn the bubble walls back on ... I usually keep them off for a bit after doing anything significant in the tank to give any floating debris a chance to settle down back to the bottom. I would'nt think aerating the tank would be so important since I also have several amazon swords in the tank. In fact, I was thinking of stopping the use of the bubble walls altogether since I read that could be bad for plants since it can cause CO2 to be liberated from the water.

Anyway, anybody have any hints?

 

[dorkfish]

the fish have probably gotten used to the well arated water, put it back on full blast for now and if you want to take it off later use a gang valve to turn it down (so you can let some air get out and not risk making your air pump get really loud).

 

[Jericho]

Did you treat the water for chloramine?

 

[asincero]

Did you treat the water for chloramine?

Yes I did. I put in enough Prime for a 50g tank (the tank is 36g) like I always do before pouring in the new water with my Python.

 

[knotty47]

where did your replacement water come from? Was it from your usual source? Was your water the same temperature as the water from the source?

I've noticed on my tank that if water added to the tank is slightly warmer, my fish seem to gasp for oxygen at the surface. Saying this they usually calm down after 20 minutes of the filter being on.

knotty

 

[Roan Art]

Run some tests on your tap water, assuming that is what you used. You never know when the municipality might make some major changes and not tell you at all.

Roan

 

[TheZoo]

Could your equipment have been accidently contaminated with some kind of chemical?

 

[asincero]

Could your equipment have been accidently contaminated with some kind of chemical?

No, I don't think so. I only used aquarium water to rinse off the equipment.

When I measured my pH this morning, it was at a low 6.5 or thereabouts. When I measured it earlier this evening, it was a more suitable 7.8. I'm not entirely sure as to the exact cause of the raise in pH. It could be because I turned the bubble walls on, thus causing CO2 to be liberated from the water due to the water agitation. Or it could be because the lights are on, and the plants are sucking the CO2 out of the water for photosynthesis. I can't be sure at this point. Probably a combo of both :huh:.

Measuring the kH, I found that it was only at 2 dH. Perhaps the fish are not liking these intense swings in pH. I'm not totally conviced this would be the cause of my fish fatality as I've been doing the same thing for a few months now without any deaths. However, fish appreciate a more stable pH anyway so I'm guessing I should add some baking soda or something to raise my kH. I'm thinking it would certainly help, right?

Anyway, I'm relieved that at this point all the fish are all lively and acting normal.

 

[TheZoo]

No, I don't think so. I only used aquarium water to rinse off the equipment..

I was talking about your buckets, etc, but it doesnt seem like it now. Im glad your fish are ok!

 

[Roan Art]

Test your tap water for ammonia, nitrites and nitrates. Take a cup of it and let it sit out over night (at least 12 hours) and test it in the morning for KH, pH and GH (if you have a GH test kit). Post the results here.

Roan