Where is my cycle?
- Thread starter Whisker Wrangle
- Start date
Congrats Whisker! I just wanted to add that I also have a high pH, and in our case drip acclimation can be deadly. If your LFS has a lower pH (and usually does) any ammonia in the bag water will turn toxic by order of magnitude when adding our water to it.
In my experience, floating the bag to equalize temperature is the safest acclimation. After that, just pour the fish and bag contents into a net held over a bucket, and quickly put the net into tank, letting the fish swim out. I've never had a problem doing it this way.
Anyway, enjoy your new fish!
In my experience, floating the bag to equalize temperature is the safest acclimation. After that, just pour the fish and bag contents into a net held over a bucket, and quickly put the net into tank, letting the fish swim out. I've never had a problem doing it this way.
Anyway, enjoy your new fish!
GoldLenny
Senior Member? Do I get a 5% disc.?
Jannika,
I'm not sure what you may have done that was deadly but drip acclimation done properly will actually be reducing/diluting any ammonia level because you will be constanly adding/removing some of the old, then mixed with new water with each little PWC.
Lets consider this example.
You bring home a fish and have a pint of water with the fish. You put this pint of water and fish into a larger container and start the drip.. or even adding an ounce or two at a time from the home tank.
If the pH of the fish store water was 7.0 and your tank is 8.0, when you add one ounce (a 7% increase) of water from the tank to the fish store water, that would only change the pH by a 7% between the difference from the fish store water to the tank water... so it should only raise the pH from 7.0 to 7.07. Then when you add another ounce, it raises it to 7.14 and eventually up to nearly 7.5 BUT you will also be removing some of the old/new mixed water as you add in more new water so you will constanly be dilluting any ammonia in the fish store water. Also, I add a small decoration or plant to my acclimation container as that will have nitrifying bacteria growing on it... or the plant will even use up ammonia. Eventually, after enough of these little bitty PWC's, the fishes water will be 99% the same as the tank's water and then you can feel more comfortable knowing that shock will not be an issue. Over the course of an hour or two, depending on the starting differences, it gives the fish time to acclimate to the drastically different water parameters.
I have moderately hard water with a pH in the upper 7's to 8.0 most of the year so ammonia can also be a problem for me when acclimating new fish.. although not as much as someone with a pH in the low to mid-8's... but I've never lost a fish during a slow acclimation process. I've seen LOTS of online threads where fish died and were likely shocked by either pH or osmoregulatory shock when not acclimated properly. pH shock is more common when going from high pH to low pH but osmotic shock works both ways from all I've read.
He already lost some fish when doing a quick acclimation.
I'm not sure what you may have done that was deadly but drip acclimation done properly will actually be reducing/diluting any ammonia level because you will be constanly adding/removing some of the old, then mixed with new water with each little PWC.
Lets consider this example.
You bring home a fish and have a pint of water with the fish. You put this pint of water and fish into a larger container and start the drip.. or even adding an ounce or two at a time from the home tank.
If the pH of the fish store water was 7.0 and your tank is 8.0, when you add one ounce (a 7% increase) of water from the tank to the fish store water, that would only change the pH by a 7% between the difference from the fish store water to the tank water... so it should only raise the pH from 7.0 to 7.07. Then when you add another ounce, it raises it to 7.14 and eventually up to nearly 7.5 BUT you will also be removing some of the old/new mixed water as you add in more new water so you will constanly be dilluting any ammonia in the fish store water. Also, I add a small decoration or plant to my acclimation container as that will have nitrifying bacteria growing on it... or the plant will even use up ammonia. Eventually, after enough of these little bitty PWC's, the fishes water will be 99% the same as the tank's water and then you can feel more comfortable knowing that shock will not be an issue. Over the course of an hour or two, depending on the starting differences, it gives the fish time to acclimate to the drastically different water parameters.
I have moderately hard water with a pH in the upper 7's to 8.0 most of the year so ammonia can also be a problem for me when acclimating new fish.. although not as much as someone with a pH in the low to mid-8's... but I've never lost a fish during a slow acclimation process. I've seen LOTS of online threads where fish died and were likely shocked by either pH or osmoregulatory shock when not acclimated properly. pH shock is more common when going from high pH to low pH but osmotic shock works both ways from all I've read.
He already lost some fish when doing a quick acclimation.
He lost fish because his nitrites were high, not because of quick acclimation. I should have qualified my advice that the tank needs to be fully cycled. He said they were gasping for air, and "nitrites -- couldnt tell... the purple shade is much different than the card.. so it is either off the scales, or shadewise is about 1-2 ppm (if that makes sense?)"
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The tank was cycled... that is why the spike in nitrites were so odd.. But they went down to 0 in about 10 hours.... we are all good now.
