Okay, I've Tested And My Guppies Are Still Dying.....

[greekcardinal]

I have a 10 gallon tank with 9smaller guppies in it and they continue to die!! I feed them once a day, do 20% changes every other day, the water temp is at 82degrees, amonia is at 0 and the ph is 7.0. Does anyone have any ideas?

Also, I checked the ph in my fry tank and it is like 7.6. Is this a bad thing and how do I fix it? (Ammonia is 0)

 

[Christine1014]

What's the nitrite and nitrate?

 

[poopsydrew]

I have a 10 gallon tank with 9smaller guppies in it and they continue to die!! I feed them once a day, do 20% changes every other day, the water temp is at 82degrees, amonia is at 0 and the ph is 7.0. Does anyone have any ideas?

Also, I checked the ph in my fry tank and it is like 7.6. Is this a bad thing and how do I fix it? (Ammonia is 0)

NitrIte and NitrAte Readings???

 

[greekcardinal]

I have a 10 gallon tank with 9smaller guppies in it and they continue to die!! I feed them once a day, do 20% changes every other day, the water temp is at 82degrees, amonia is at 0 and the ph is 7.0. Does anyone have any ideas?

Also, I checked the ph in my fry tank and it is like 7.6. Is this a bad thing and how do I fix it? (Ammonia is 0)

NitrIte and NitrAte Readings???

I


I have no way to test those. The tests that I have I was given by a friend and it is a liquid test tube thing!

 

[ArauraDiscus]

take a sample to your local fish store, they will test them for you for free!

 

[greekcardinal]

take a sample to your local fish store, they will test them for you for free!

that would be great.....but the lfs closes in 15 minutes!

 

[theotheragentm]

You are missing a lot of information here that will help others figure out what's going on in your tank.

1. How large is the tank?
2. What is in the tank? Living things, decorations, and equipment.
3. How long has the tank been running?
4. Do you have a thermometer or is your heater set at 82 F?
5. Nitrite and nitrate levels? I know you can't measure this right now.
6. Fish exhibiting any signs of illness? Fuzziness? Specks? Redness on the gills? Loss of color?

Just because you are measuring no ammonia, doesn't mean a bioload still doesn't exist in your tank. Doing too many water changes is going to take away the ammonia and prevent the bacteria from becoming established. Unless we find out with questions 1 and 2 that your tank is extremely overstocked, I'd cut back on the water changes.

 

[ArauraDiscus]

Well only in the first cycle will too many water changes effect the bacteria IMO. The bacteria is mainly grounded in the filtraton system and in the gravel. There is very few beneficial free floating bacteria in an established tank, so if he is having a random ammonia spike, many water changes are the best thing to do at this point and can only help.

 

[greekcardinal]

You are missing a lot of information here that will help others figure out what's going on in your tank.

1. How large is the tank? it is a 10 gallon, but I do have a LOT of air going in to it..(a 20 gallon air pump, and a relly long stone)
2. What is in the tank? Living things, decorations, and equipment. there are 3 fake plants, 2 cave toys things and i think 9 fish
3. How long has the tank been running?only for a month or so....the fish were very unexpected
4. Do you have a thermometer or is your heater set at 82 F? that is the thermometer
5. Nitrite and nitrate levels? I know you can't measure this right now.
6. Fish exhibiting any signs of illness? Fuzziness? Specks? Redness on the gills? Loss of color? not really.....i will notice one of their bellys all bloated up and then in a few hours they are dead! I have tried feeding peas

Just because you are measuring no ammonia, doesn't mean a bioload still doesn't exist in your tank. Doing too many water changes is going to take away the ammonia and prevent the bacteria from becoming established. Unless we find out with questions 1 and 2 that your tank is extremely overstocked, I'd cut back on the water changes.

 

[theotheragentm]

Well only in the first cycle will too many water changes effect the bacteria IMO. The bacteria is mainly grounded in the filtraton system and in the gravel. There is very few beneficial free floating bacteria in an established tank, so if he is having a random ammonia spike, many water changes are the best thing to do at this point and can only help.

The bacteria is not in the water column, but the food source of the bacteria often is found there. Remove the food and you're eventually going to lose some of the bacteria. To cycle a tank, it can take up to six weeks. The tank may not have cycled completely. Testing the nitrites and nitrates will allow us to see if you have a complete cycle. Remember to get a water sample before you change the water.

An air pump will not do that much in a small tank. Oxygen isn't really dissolved much through a pump. It's the breaking of the surface of the water that allows oxygen to dissolve into the water. Even a ripple created by a filter return should allow enough oxygen to be dissolved in a properly stocked tank. Still it doesn't hurt and lots of fish love the bubbles.

 

[theotheragentm]

Any updates? How are the fish doing?

 

[paige]

I'm not sure Iv had problems like this when i first started looking after guppies, I'm probably wrong because im not a fish exspert...but 20% water changes EVERY other day, isnt that OTT?

 

[theotheragentm]

Not sure what OTT is, but keeping up with water changes until a biload spike comes down to a manageable level the bacteria can handle is about all you can do to ensure your fish are not dying because of bioload. It's definitely not a cure all, but it eliminates some things from the guess work in trying to keep healthy fish.

 

[poopsydrew]

Not sure what OTT is, but keeping up with water changes until a biload spike comes down to a manageable level the bacteria can handle is about all you can do to ensure your fish are not dying because of bioload. It's definitely not a cure all, but it eliminates some things from the guess work in trying to keep healthy fish.

I think they were saying over the top?? But no I dont think its over the top at all, probably helpful.

Drew

 

[crazysilverwolf]

OTT - over the top. i've had guppies a while now and 9 small guppies guppies in a 10 gallon is fine and regular water changes nullifies the results from any test as the water is regularly being replaced. you should be asking what the condition of the fish is, what they look like and how they are behaving..