Bettas keep dying after 8 hours- established tank

[Magic1235]

I am having issues with introducing Bettas into my established tank - 30L establsihed for about 4/5 months, was cycled for 5 weeks prior tofish, it’s been stocked with many live plants, 2 snails and 3 tinyorys- all very happy. Never had any issues with ammonia or nitrate (always 0), ph is on the higher end of average but this has always been the case. I treat with quick start and stress coat with all water changes (hoover gravel for left over food every other day), 30 percent water change weekly.

I got a Betta last week, followed all acclimatising (have had a Betta before) guidelines but I noticed a white slime forming on his back before even in the tank. He was fine for a few hours then became very lethargic and started floating at top and not moving, the white slime spread (did water change)but I found him floating dead a few hours later covered in the white slime fish shop thought it might be stressed induced/fungal so I treated the tank as advised for 5 days. Got another Betta today and it died within 8 hours but different symptoms, floating at top not moving same as before but no white slime, saw him swim down to the bottom where he seemed to have some jerking fit and died shortly after.

Where am I going wrong? All other fish seem happy, my Betta before had this tank and was very happy, no issues introducing him.

(Transportation from fish shop was not stressful, kept warm inside coat)

 

[eatyourpeas]

Hello and welcome!
For us to be able to help, could you please let us know more about your tank and post some pictures.
Dimensions
Parameters (Ammonia, Nitrites, Nitrates, GH, KH, pH, temperature)
Do you have a filter? Heater?

 

[Magic1235]

Hello and welcome! For us to be able to help, could you please let us know more about your tank and post some pictures. Dimensions Parameters (Ammonia, Nitrites, Nitrates, GH, KH, pH, temperature) Do you have a filter? Heater?

Hello and welcome!
For us to be able to help, could you please let us know more about your tank and post some pictures.
Dimensions
Parameters (Ammonia, Nitrites, Nitrates, GH, KH, pH, temperature)
Do you have a filter? Heater?

It’s 30L tank H30, W41, D25cm. My test kit ( NT labs, aquarium mini test) only tests ph ammonia and nitrites which are both 0, ph is 8. I’ve ordered an API test kit arriving today to test for the others. I have a filter and heater with temp at 79 (I have a temperature guage in there to check too).

 

[itiwhetu]

pH of 8 is to high for bettas and most fresh water fish.

 

[Colin_T]

Find out what the pH, GH & KH of the water is at the pet shop where you bought the fish?
The shop might have their fish in water with a pH below 7.0 and the fish could be dying from pH shock (alkalosis).

--------------------
The first Betta with the white slime had excess mucous on its body, not fungus. White fluffy fungus (Saprolegnia) is the most commonly seen fungus on fish and takes a few days to grow and only infects damaged areas.

Fish have a thin layer of clear mucous over their body. It protects them from parasitic micro-organisms in the water, as well as chemicals and poor water quality. It also helps them move through the water easier.

When fish are stressed out by something (poor water quality, diseases, chemicals, etc), they produce more mucous that can appear as cream, white or grey patches/ film over their fins, body and head/ eyes. Stressed fish can develop this excess mucous in minutes and go from normal to covered in a white film within a very short time.

If the first Betta had excess mucous in the bag before you put it in the tank, there was something wrong with it before you bought it, and adding it to the tank made it worse and killed it.

--------------------
What is the GH (general hardness) and KH (carbonate hardness) of your water supply?
This information can usually be obtained from your water supply company's website or by telephoning them. If they can't help you, take a glass full of tap water to the local pet shop and get them to test it for you. Write the results down (in numbers) when they do the tests. And ask them what the results are in (eg: ppm, dGH, or something else).

If you have hard water with a high GH and KH, you can use distilled or reverse osmosis water to reduce the GH, KH and pH.

--------------------
Don't get any new fish for at least a month. Find out why the fish are dying and fix that, then look at getting a replacement Betta.

Find out the GH, KH and pH of the shop water.
Find out your GH and KH.
Post pictures of any sick fish.

Don't buy fish if they have only just come in to the shop, or the shop has just done a water change. The fish are stressed out because of these things and can die from stress if they are caught, bagged up and moved into completely different water shortly after coming into the shop or having a water change.

Wait until the fish have been at the shop for a week or two before buying them. Most shops will hold fish for a week or longer if you ask them, and if you pay for the fish they should hold it. Just say you are going away for a couple of weeks and don't want to add new fish before you go away.

If the shop does water changes on Wednesday, buy the fish on Sunday, Monday or Tuesday (preferably Tuesday).

 

[Magic1235]

Find out what the pH, GH & KH of the water is at the pet shop where you bought the fish?
The shop might have their fish in water with a pH below 7.0 and the fish could be dying from pH shock (alkalosis).

--------------------
The first Betta with the white slime had excess mucous on its body, not fungus. White fluffy fungus (Saprolegnia) is the most commonly seen fungus on fish and takes a few days to grow and only infects damaged areas.

Fish have a thin layer of clear mucous over their body. It protects them from parasitic micro-organisms in the water, as well as chemicals and poor water quality. It also helps them move through the water easier.

When fish are stressed out by something (poor water quality, diseases, chemicals, etc), they produce more mucous that can appear as cream, white or grey patches/ film over their fins, body and head/ eyes. Stressed fish can develop this excess mucous in minutes and go from normal to covered in a white film within a very short time.

If the first Betta had excess mucous in the bag before you put it in the tank, there was something wrong with it before you bought it, and adding it to the tank made it worse and killed it.

--------------------
What is the GH (general hardness) and KH (carbonate hardness) of your water supply?
This information can usually be obtained from your water supply company's website or by telephoning them. If they can't help you, take a glass full of tap water to the local pet shop and get them to test it for you. Write the results down (in numbers) when they do the tests. And ask them what the results are in (eg: ppm, dGH, or something else).

If you have hard water with a high GH and KH, you can use distilled or reverse osmosis water to reduce the GH, KH and pH.

--------------------
Don't get any new fish for at least a month. Find out why the fish are dying and fix that, then look at getting a replacement Betta.

Find out the GH, KH and pH of the shop water.
Find out your GH and KH.
Post pictures of any sick fish.

Don't buy fish if they have only just come in to the shop, or the shop has just done a water change. The fish are stressed out because of these things and can die from stress if they are caught, bagged up and moved into completely different water shortly after coming into the shop or having a water change.

Wait until the fish have been at the shop for a week or two before buying them. Most shops will hold fish for a week or longer if you ask them, and if you pay for the fish they should hold it. Just say you are going away for a couple of weeks and don't want to add new fish before you go away.

If the shop does water changes on Wednesday, buy the fish on Sunday, Monday or Tuesday (preferably Tuesday).

This is helpful thanks so much, the second fish didn’t have a white film on him but reacted in a very similar way. What do you think could be wrong with the water? I wouldn’t have thought water hardness could kill a fish that quickly and I have a very healthy tank full of fish with a previous Betta having no issues.