Fish Losing all colour then die...

[kiko]

The GH of my source water is given as 7ppm by the water board. KH is given as zero. Only when I raised livebearers and rift lake cichlids back in the 1980's did I increase these, using a dolomite substrate. The pH was in the high 7's.

The pH of the water at source was 5 or lower, my Tetra test kit only went down to 5 and the API down to 6.

I experimented with increasing the GH in one tank by using Equilibrium. The original GH was in the 0 to 1 dH colour, after treating it was 5 dH. I continued this for a couple of years but it did not seem to be worth the risk to the fish. Here are some photos of a few of my tanks over the last 15 years. The 70 had spawning Chocolate Gourami.

I unfortunately no longer have tanks, I made the decision to re-home my fish this past Spring due to terminal cancer preventing me from continuing. Things have improved on that front, but it was still probably the wisest decision, as the day will come.

nice tanks...and I'm sorry about your condition
but as far as water quality goes...0 kh would prevent acids from being neutralized resulting in a ph crash and I find it hard to believe anybody would sustain fish for long at 0kh
and as you've said yourself...you no longer keep tanks nor can you provide a test strip of those fish...

here's one of the tanks where I keep the same type of fish as the OP...also my neon tetras breed in this water
and recently oto's
I do keep some of the same fish...tetras...plecos...rasboras as the OP and my fish all do fine

also Leandro Sousa is a big name for some on zebra plecos
meanwhile when you understand what he's saying...you'll figure he has no idea how to care for plecos and has used his university and expo's as a way to make money on l46's without being fined like everyone else for capturing l46's in the wild and expand his university programs
and then again..I've seen his name being used as weight on zebra plecos threads as a reference point when on his videos he states many times he had no idea what to do and that he had to get outside breeders to come and help.
do I listen to someone that has a PhD or someone that has been breeding that type of fish for many years?
my reference point?
Dean the old guy from the co-op videos....seems to be a great honest and humble guy doing what he loves as his retirement together with a guy (cory) that's in it for the money.

 

[Byron]

On the KH, all I can say is that with the API liquid test it was the lowest colour, which means 0 to 1 dKH. The pH in the tanks went down and I left it alone. I couldn't test below 5, and for all I know it was 3 or 4. I only ever kept wild caught fish from very soft waters, and given their lifespans which honestly did exceed the averages given, and their continual spawning actions, I must assume they were content and healthy. This was all unproblematic, until the water authority decided to add soda ash to increase the pH. I won't go into all that, but I was seriously considering going with RO when I had the cancer report.

The issue is not whether fish will spawn under adverse conditions (we know they will and do), but what all the chemical concoctions may do to the fish. The OP said here fish were all dying. Keeping them in a chemical soup instead of fresh water is not unrelated.

 

[kiko]

On the KH, all I can say is that with the API liquid test it was the lowest colour, which means 0 to 1 dKH. The pH in the tanks went down and I left it alone. I couldn't test below 5, and for all I know it was 3 or 4. I only ever kept wild caught fish from very soft waters, and given their lifespans which honestly did exceed the averages given, and their continual spawning actions, I must assume they were content and healthy. This was all unproblematic, until the water authority decided to add soda ash to increase the pH. I won't go into all that, but I was seriously considering going with RO when I had the cancer report.

honestly you should just keep doing what you love...
my stepdad died of cancer and was very hard specially because I was always the one taking him to appointments or hospitals at 2/3am when I had to start work at 7
he had 6 kids from a previous marriage that helped with absolutely nothing while he was sick
1 came to see him on the hospital 2 days before he died at the hospital on his deathbed
he literally told her...now that I'm going to die is when you come to see me? I don't want you here...you see that guy right there? (me)...he's not my blood...but that's my son right there...
she left without saying a single word and it's something that meant a great deal to me because I was the one there whenever things happened
he also ate anything he wanted and still did his woodworking stuff that he always loved because he knew there was no solution to his disease...
so might as well enjoy life while he was still around...I suggest you do the same xD

 

[Alice B]

I nursed a dog thru cancer for 3 years and as long as he was happy to go for walks (and I have video of him, with fully metastasized mast cell, jumping up and down), I kept giving pills to stop cell reproduction until he got a lot of lumps and had pain. He jumped in the truck and jumped up and down to go walk and hunted in the bushes hoping for bunnies. He taught me a lot about life.

I will do what I love while I can do it, regardless of cancer and etc. It is what I would suggest to anyone.

 

[Byron]

Thank you for the encouragement. We have hijacked the OP's thread, but I'll bring this cancer issue to a conclusion. At the beginning of this year the immunotherapy was not having much effect and the cancer was spreading. We changed drugs. For almost two months I could not eat solid food, could drink certain liquids, lived on soups and water. Anything else immediately came back up. And there were several other extremely unpleasant reactions. In such a state I found even minimal tank maintenance impossible. My closest friend, who knows nothing about fish, knows enough to recognize the work involved, and suggested making plans to rehome the fish was something I should consider, because if I just went off during the night--which was a real concern--what would happen to the three fish tanks? I found an aquarist who seemed to be well versed, and I saw videos of his tanks. He came and took the tanks and fish. One major worry gone. After a break of 3 months, the oncologist suggested a lesser dose, and the two subsequent scans have shown the cancer is significantly less both times. However, I am now beginning to have more serious reactions of the lesser dose, after some four months. I miss my fish, but they are doing well (he periodically sends videos) and I definitely am glad that worry is gone. Like the fish, I do not need stress.

 

[EmmaEsme]

Just popping in to say no other fish seem to be having a problem. We are going to continue to tetracyline treatment thru the week, then work on getting the water back to an acceptable colour so we can sell the tank. Thanks for all the advice and take care.

 

[TNG]

Just popping in to say no other fish seem to be having a problem. We are going to continue to tetracyline treatment thru the week, then work on getting the water back to an acceptable colour so we can sell the tank. Thanks for all the advice and take care.

Some good news there .
Tetracycline should be dissolved (and crushed if necessary) in water first before pouring into the tank, otherwise it'll just sit there.
All the best.

 

[Kyshiara]

Just popping in to say no other fish seem to be having a problem. We are going to continue to tetracyline treatment thru the week, then work on getting the water back to an acceptable colour so we can sell the tank. Thanks for all the advice and take care.

Just skimmed through, that's great news!