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Nearly reached 100 here in Boston. My son and I biked 12 miles to go visit a monument and access to it was closed due to the heat (you climb some 300 steps to get up to the top) every summer brings one or two heat waves and then it's over before you know it and it's time to get long sleev shirts...

I had to learn that the hard way, and also learned not to buy any fish during extreme weather. Last winter we had a real brutal couple of cold snaps, whatever fish made it to the store were almost certainly going to buyer's tanks to die. And the last week we've had the usual summer month "heat...

Ain't that the truth. Although I have to admit, on my last purchase (from petco) I finally got all 6 to survive, and finally have a little school of lucky 13. It took me weeks of constantly going to the store, learning their stock arrival and transfer patterns, and plain observation of the...

🤷🏻‍♂️🤣🤣🤣 I guess so.

Hi Byron, they're as shown on picture on post 15 in this thread. Almost looks as if the 2 smaller tanks revert to a level similar to that of dissipated tap water.

Yes, so it seems per these results. I still haven't found out what they use to achieve their "goal" of high pH. And I still don't know what causes the 29g tank to have a lower pH than the other 2, I can only speculate that it's the plants, but that gets thrown out the window by the quarantine...

Left a glass of tap water sitting out for a day, tested for pH next to water I took just off the tap. Whatever it is, it seems to somewhat dissipate.

Thanks a lot for the info. I think this whole pH, GH and KH situation is perhaps the biggest issue new hobbyists face and the one most prone to confusion, as a simple gh test, which is the one most of us do; lead me to believe this water is hard when it is actually soft. Well that's a relief...

These are the readings. Tested via strips. Where I mentioned ranges in is because that's where they are, not quite one or the other color, but somewhere in between.

The plants in the 29g REALLY seem to help. The quarantine tank has plenty of plants for its size, and sand. The gourami tank has a decent amount of plants and gravel for substrate. Yet those 2 tanks have a harder water (left and right on this picture), almost identical in reading;compared to the...

It's a fine balance and one can't go to extremes or you'll be in a perpetual state of worry and stress. Get your basic building blocks solidly in place, and the fish will be fine. Like every other living creature there'll be times when you do all you can and they'll still get sick, and yes...

They'll do fine, they (kuhli) can even live in that temperature actually. Just make sure you "ramp it up" slowly instead of a quick crank to your heater, and yes, increasing the water flow, and adding a bubbler if you have it, will help with the oxygenation while the water is warmer.

We seem to be working backwards, I remember your other post about the cories, and you received plenty of good feedback there. Glad to see you moved ahead with the sand. There was a point made about keeping your nitrates low because keeping them at anything over 5 to 10M contributes contributes...

Only thing I've ever used is melafix, and you'll find a 50/50 debate about whether it helps anything or any fish, or not. If you're not sure about what caused the previous die out, maybe it'd be better to "disinfect" your current tank, before you add any more fish to it.

Yeah, that's ick. Best way to treat is increasing tank temperature. See following excerpt: It is recommended to increase the temperature to at least 86 degrees (30 celcius) from its current state. It is not recommended to exceed 90 degrees (32 degrees celcius). Most tropical fish will be able...

Sorry for the loss and congrats on the sand change. Not knowing what killed them makes it hard to recommend anything. As with humans, better not to put things in their bodies unless you know for sure what you're up against.

They also could be putting chemicals to artificially lower the pH. API sells both "pH up" and "pH down" products and a few drops do indeed bring the pH to the level you want rather quickly, however the effect is short lived. Big chains and LFS alike, I would hope at least; would have water...

This is my tank that's been running for 8 months now. I have 3 tanks total a) 29g, 5 cories, 2 ottos, 13 neon tetras, 1 nerite and 2 mystery snails. Plan to move them to a 55g next year b) 10g, 1 dwarf gourami, 1 nerite and 1 mystery snails c) 10g quarantine/planting tank. 1 hitchhiker guppy...

This is their explanation: Treated Water - pH and Alkalinity Compliance MWRA adjusts the alkalinity and pH of Wachusett water at CWTP to reduce its corrosivity, which minimizes the leaching of lead and copper from service lines and home plumbing systems into the water. MWRA’s target for...

I think you had commented on a related thread I had posted. Although I'm a bit more familiar with these terms now (by having to read and learn about this so I can give my fish the best environment I can provide) I still can't answer what changed or when exactly it happened, but it did. I...

You could try to control the water flow by pinching the hose a bit. Some siphon sets even come with some plastic xontraption to do just that. Although slowing the flow takes from the vacuum action, it also helps with not taking too much water too quickly. Maybe you could also try to rig a pvc...

You're right, it's pH. KH increases here in the summer months, and the water company report indicates they aim for a pH of 9.

Sigh. Just an update on the water situation. From left to right: Off the tap Filtered (brita jug) Off my 10g tank Can't wait to get my RO system installed, water changes have become a royal PITA for the past couple of months

I think that going up to 30 would be safe and near foolproof. As mentioned just keep a close eye for any spikes on ammonia or nitrites for the first week or so. Going up to something larger, personally I would definitely have "bacteria in a bottle " to help support and boost the existing...

Ahhh,I see. Well,, I did a transfer from a 10g to a 12g. Just got lucky and got a free, bigger tank that I could put my dwarf gourami on. Did it just as described, fish and plants still thriving. I plan on doing the same when I move my other fish from the 29g to the 55g that I have sitting in...

It just occurred to me that the bqcteria inside the glass surface won't transfer. So, as a way to help, maybe buy a bottle of "bacteria in a bottle" to help boost the colony in the new tank. As long as you have the existing colony transferred and keep monitoring the water for the first 3 to 5...

The fish will be a bit "spooked" for a couple of days, but other than that, transferring all the surface stuff (filter, filter media, plants, decor, and even substrate" means you don't have to cycle, as all these surfaces carry the bacteria on them. Just don't let the surfaces out of the water...

Hitchhiker is getting harder to photograph, he moves a lot. I definitely think by month's end he'll be ready to go in the big tank

As far as I know those are to be used when cycling a new tank or when you add more fish to an already established one to - again -help speed up the natural process. Like everything else, opinions vary and some people disregard them as little more than gimmicks, i personally think they do what it...

You could help speed up the process a bit by adding "bacteria in a bottle" products. It won't magically cycle the tank, but certainly helps. And like others said, welcome; and that's a vey nice setup and fish you have.

Clownfish as in the salt water type? From my limited experience the salt water side of the hobby is more complicated because you have more stuff to deal with (as far as water parameters and general upkeep) than fresh water tanks. If you're starting, and with the schedule you mentioned, perhaps...

It is. Now the bacteria colony that does rhe nitrite to nitrate work will start to ramp up, soon you'll have zero ammonia and nitrites.

Is he alone in this tank? How big is the tank? Any other fish in it?