I got new fish! Questions

Colin_T said:

You want to avoid getting testing solution on your skin because they are all toxic. Put a piece of plastic wrap over the lid and then put your thumb/ finger over the top so the chemicals don't come in contact with your skin.

-----------------------
You can distill water using the sun. Get a large plastic storage container (the dark colours work better so get black if you can). If you can't get black containers, just spray paint the outside of some clear containers black or wrap them in black plastic when out in the sun. Put the container in the sun or a warm room and half fill it with water. Get a clean 10 litre (2.5 gallon) bucket and add a few river rocks to it. Put the bucket in the water in the plastic storage container. The river rocks hold the bucket down in the water and stop it moving about. Put the lid on the plastic storage container and put a small rock on top of the lid near the centre.

As the water in the plastic storage container evaporates, the water vapour condenses on the lid and runs towards the centre of the lid due to the rock on top. It collects in the centre of the lid and drips into the empty bucket in the water. When the bucket is full, pour it into a water holding tank and you have pure distilled water. Then replace the bucket and top up the storage container.

The warmer the water the faster it works, so using a black container in the sun will create more distilled water faster. Having the water in a warm room helps, and you can use an aquarium heater to warm the water too. If you do use an aquarium heater, make sure it remains underwater at all times and the evaporating water does not leave it exposed to the air.

Even on an average property you could have a few containers doing this and collect a heap of distilled water, then use it 50/50 (or whatever combo you like) with well water.

Click to expand...

Colin_T said:

You can distill water in the house, just have the container in a warm room.

If you use an aquarium heater, set it to maximum.

In Summer in Australia, I can get 10 litres per day from 1 container out in the sun. if you have several containers you obviously get more. You might need 5 or 6 x 200 litre containers out in the sun to get enough for a water change but you need to experiment a bit and find out how much you need. you might get enough from 2 or 3 containers.

If you put the containers in a glass house/ green house that will help warm the water up too.

Click to expand...

Colin_T said:

You can use any size container as long as it's clean and holds water. You want a container that can hold a 10 litre (2.5 gal) bucket for practical purposes. Smaller containers will also work but you need to empty the collection container more frequently.

A greenhouse is easy to make. A metal or plastic frame covered in plastic. For heating water cover it in black plastic. It doesn't have to be huge, you can make up a frame 10foot long x 3 foot wide and 2 foot high. Put the plastic storage containers in that and set them up, then cover the lot in black plastic.

Click to expand...

Colin_T said:

A plastic trash can is fine, but avoid galvanised.

You want plastic containers so you can put a small weight on the lid to cause the lid to sag a bit in the middle. This allows the condensation to run towards the middle of the lid and drip into the empty bucket in the container.

You need something in the empty bucket to stop it floating around. I just use a couple of rocks and they weigh the bucket down in the water and stop it moving about. If the bucket moves around it can tip over and you lose the distilled water, or the bucket moves away from where the condensation is dripping form the lid and you don't get any water.

Click to expand...

Colin_T said:

I use a rock to stop the green bucket floating around but if you can make something to stop the container moving about that is also fine. I have seen people use string to tie each side of the green bucket to the sides of the storage container. Others use netting and hang the bucket in the middle to stop it moving around.

It doesn't matter what you use as long as the collection container is under the area of the lid where the water drips.

Click to expand...

Colin_T said:

The glolight in the picture appears to have a cream coloured body. Does the fish have an opaque/ creamy colour to the muscle tissue in its back and body?
If yes it is probably Microsporidian disease. It is a muscle wasting disease that causes the muscle tissue to turn cream/ white. There is no treatment or cure for it other than trying to keep the tank conditions really good and hope for the best. If conditions are good then the infected ones usually die and the others are fine.

I have stoped the disease spreading by using salt, but the levels were quite high and I don't know if tetras will tolerate the levels I used. But you could try adding salt to the tank for a couple of weeks and see if it helps.

You can try adding 2 heaped tablespoons of salt per 20 litres of tank water. 48 hours later add another 2 heaped tablespoons of salt so there is a total of 4 heaped tablespoons of salt per 20 litres (5 gallons).
Keep the salt level like this for 2 weeks then do daily 10% water changes (for a week) to dilute the salt. then do bigger water changes after that.

This level of salt might affect some plants but most should be ok.

You can try salt even if the fish has a normal coloured tissue, it helps sometimes when nothing else has.

------------------
The fish does not have neon disease.

Neon disease is a bacterial infection that starts eating the fish, usually from the back below the dorsal fin, and it kills fish very quickly. But is quite distinct in appearance, and is treated with anti-biotics. True neon disease is uncommon in aquarium fish and most neons die at the importers or shops long before any customers get near them.

Click to expand...