PH Problem in Freshwater

[oatyfruitybar]

Just some quick questions in case anyone can answer me -

I just lost one of my neon tetras for no apparent reason. No visible disease. Stocking 3 Golden Barbs, 5 (now 4) Neon Tetras, 1 Common Pleco, 1 Assassin Snail, 3 live plants (one is a new marimo ball), and a small infestation of snails (possibly pond snails). Specs for filter, lighting, and heater are all in the signature.

Ammonia: 0.0ppm
Nitrites: 0.0ppm
Nitrates: 0.0ppm
PH: 6.6

I'm unsure if the PH drop (usually around 7.1-7.3) is the cause of the dead fish or if it's the other way around, and if there is any way to get the PH back up again (I know about the chemicals PHup and all that, is there any other way or is that the best one?)

So the questions are: How can I bring my PH back up again? Any thoughts on why the tetra died?

 

[nadking]

I wouldn't put anything in there to raise the ph, planted tanks usually like it low anyways. As for the fish, unless the other ones are showing visible signs of disease I would not really worry about it. Even when my freshwater tank was thriving I would still lose 1 every once in a while for no apparent reason.

 

[oatyfruitybar]

Yeah, I looked over the body and everything looked normal, fins were good and no strange markings, it was just dead. All the other fish look healthy, so I'm going to chalk this one up to a fluke. Now I just wonder if I should replace it to bring the tetra school back up to five or if I should just let it be. Hmm.

 

[Dracx]

The specific pH level of 6.5 to 7.5 is fine, but fluxuations in pH is not ok. How often do you do water changes? When was the last water change? What water treatments do you do for fresh water? What are your Nitrate levels? Do you have a KH test kit? If not, check your pH four times tomorrow, early morning before lights come on, midday, evening and night about an hour after lights go off. See if there's a change in pH during that time.

My reasoning for possible pH issue: Live plants will remove minerals from the water, "softening" the water over time. Very soft water loses the ability to stabilize your pH. Minerals can be replaced by water changes with non-RO/DI water or other additives. Also, the day/night synthesis cycle of plants will change the oxygen levels in your tank over the course of a 24-hour period. This change will affect the pH level if there is insufficient mineral content in the water to stabilize the pH.

Hope that helps.

 

[oatyfruitybar]

I do water changes once a week, a 10% change. The last water change was the 26th of November. I use tap water and dechlorinate it with TetraAqua AquaSafe Water Conditioner. As stated above, my Nitrate levels are 0.0ppm and have been for some time. I do not have a KH test kit, and usually check my pH at around the same time every time.

I'll try your suggestion, testing pH 4 times. I already do use non RO/DI water, so if it is them and the mineral content of my tap water isn't enough to stabilize my pH, what kind of additive would you recommend?

 

[Dracx]

10% a week with tap should be fine here in Colorado, where the water tends to be on the hard side. That is, unless you have a whole-house water softener. And, three plants aren't going to make a dent in your mineral content in that time.

With freshwater, I've had luck with API's Proper pH, available in 6.5 (tetras, angels, gouramis, discus, South American cichlids), 7.0 (most tropical fish) and 8.2 (African Cichlids, brackish setups). It's got a self-balancing set of chemicals to change your pH to the indicated level and buffer the water to stabilize it there.

However, it may not be a pH fluxuation issue, based on your procedures. Check the pH at the timeframes I specifed, but it may just be something else that may not be detectable that caused the fish loss. Sorry I couldn't be more help.

 

[oatyfruitybar]

I might try the API proper pH, but I was just staring at my tank and thinking and I realized something else - I don't have much surface agitation going on, and hence not much gas exchange. This shouldn't be that much of a problem for oxygen and carbon dioxide balance since I have live plants, but is surface agitation important for any other reason?

 

[Dracx]

Your whisper filter should provide enough surface agitation and plants will help with oxygen as well. If you have a very heavy film at the surface you might check for any dead plant material that needs to be cleaned up. Much like overfeeding, you don't want dead plant material floating around either.

 

[oatyfruitybar]

The thing about the filter is that there isn't much of a drop into the water (actually none at all) because I fill my tank pretty full. But no, I don't have dead plant material floating around. I'm pretty picky about keeping the water clean. No film either. I did for a bit right after I took out one of my plants but I added the marimo ball and it was fine in a few days. I'll try testing the pH four times tomorrow, may go to the pet store to pick up some of that API stuff. Thanks for the advice.

 

[Dracx]

If pH fluxuation is not your problem then the API product will be unnecessary since you're so good about your water changes. If there is a fluxuation, then that product will be perfect.

 

[oatyfruitybar]

I figured out the problem. The short answer is that I apparently can't read. The long answer is that I misread the instructions on the nitrates test and was getting a false reading of zero. I need to do water changes more frequently.

At least I only lost one fish, but I'm amazed at the tenacity of the other ones to keep carrying on as usual.