Please could somebody help me! The past week or so my water in my tank has been really cloudy, loads of bits floating around in the water and everything in the tank is slimey. I have done nothing different, I always do a 30 ish percent water change every 7-10 days. The only thing I have done is use some Interpet fin rot and fungus treatment, because my Ruby Shark has a nasty sore on his nose. I have checked everything I can think of - the filter sponges, the pump, the plants.... I just don't know what else to do and am getting very stressed and worried for my fish, they seem to be off their food now, and who can blame them!!
What's wrong with my water?
- Thread starter Mummynicks
- Start date
I have been doing a bunch of water testing lately. I bought some of those test strips just to make it easier. The one thing I noticed is that they do not test ammonia. The readings they do give nitrate, nitrite, GH, KH, PH are pretty good I have double checked them all.
Keep the test strips wel sealed and store in a dark place, they are very sensitive to drying out and to bleaching by the sun. It's also worth it to test them vs. liquid tests every so often (like bimonthly) to make sure they're on the mark. Test strips are less reliable than liquid tests, but more convenient.
NO3 - 10
NO2 - 0
GH - 16
KH -3
ph - 6.8
The water does seem to be clearing now though, so it looks like the panic is over! However, things did get worse for a while. I put some green algea treatment in the tank to see if that would at least clear the slime, and all my fish started to act strange and the loaches and cat fish started to breath really fast. The instructions said that if the fish acted strange to immediately do a 50% water change, so obviously that is what I did. I am beginning to wonder whether all these potions you can buy for the fish are actually worth it, they seem to be more trouble than they are worth! Anyway things seem to be getting back to normal, they are starting to eat again. The only thing now is the sore on Bruce's (my Ruby Shark) nose, what do I do, treat it, or see if it will clear up on its own?
NO2 - 0
GH - 16
KH -3
ph - 6.8
The water does seem to be clearing now though, so it looks like the panic is over! However, things did get worse for a while. I put some green algea treatment in the tank to see if that would at least clear the slime, and all my fish started to act strange and the loaches and cat fish started to breath really fast. The instructions said that if the fish acted strange to immediately do a 50% water change, so obviously that is what I did. I am beginning to wonder whether all these potions you can buy for the fish are actually worth it, they seem to be more trouble than they are worth! Anyway things seem to be getting back to normal, they are starting to eat again. The only thing now is the sore on Bruce's (my Ruby Shark) nose, what do I do, treat it, or see if it will clear up on its own?
In most cases, they are not, you're right, more trouble than they're worth. They treat symptoms they do not remedy the actual problem, which just means that the problem will reemerge at a later time. The manager at the lfs that I frequent can't stand them, but he sais that he can't afford not to carry them. He doesn't carry any "algae destroyer" crap yet, but he told me he's being pressured to do so. He's in a tough spot, when people come into the store he advises them about proper maintenance and keeping fish healthy and never pushes product on anyone, but at the same time he sais that people just come in looking for the magic pill (or potion as you put itMummynicks said:
) to set everything right, make the fish happy, never need water changes, etc. They usually just let him talk then go out to one of the other pet stores and buy the 'magic potion' anyway. Every now and then one comes back after spending tons of money on new fish and various potions and wants to do things right, but in the mean time, he's lost a customer and the income in most cases.Sorry for the rant, apparently I'm feeling sanctimonious today.
Anytime you face a problem, the key is to determine what is causing the problem. Which is exactly what you're doing, kudos.
The cloudiness was caused by an imbalance in your tank. A sudden change in water parameters led to a bacterial bloom which now that the tank has been stable for a while is starting to clear out as the tank's microbes come back into blance.
As for the 'sore' on the nose, has he had any other behavioral changes?
Do any of these look familiar?
http://www.2cah.com/pandora/Disease.html
In all likelihood, keep the tank clean and conditions healthy and he will recover on his own. But in case it's something else, the above should help you diagnose it.