crazy swimming with filter?

[itsepainen]

I just recently got a juvie GSP a couple of days ago. He was doing absolutely great for these last couple of days, swimming deliberately as puffers do, eating snails, etc. But last night I came home to find him swimming just a tad bit crazy. He was swimming up and down the glass of the tank and crashing into things (tank decor) as he went. He was crashing into things a bit even for the few seconds he would wander back into the middle of his tank. I turned the filter off and after a couple of seconds, he was swimming around normally. I don't understand because the filter has been on ever since I got him and he had been doing just fine with it on.

He is in a 29gal Oceanic BioCube. pH is around 7.6 (how can I raise this?), Ammonia, Nitrates, Nitrites all are at 0. SG is 1.004 (it is slowly being raised since he came from the pet store...)

He has almost completely diminshed the tank's snail population since I got him. (Practically after the first couple of hours..) I have fed him several blood worms one day and several baby shrimp the next.

His tank has not had any water changes since I got him. As for added substances, I use InstantOcean for my marine salt. The tank been untouched since he has arrived. And the aquarium has been set up for a little less than a year with several fish previously living in it (those fish are all well and in a different tank); it is definately cycled.

What could be causing my puffer to go bonkers when the filter is on? He was doing perfectly fine with it on the last couple of days, and he only does fine now when I turn it off. I really want my puffer to do well.

[Nick]

Any way something changed in how the filter was working, and it was putting off a vibration that was disturbing him? has the water level dropped any?

[itsepainen]

Everything has been running quite normally. No water level changes, filter ran as usual.

I have been observing him closely with the filter off. He seems to be doing fine. He might be going up and down the glass a bit more, but maybe I am just imagining that? It's so strange because last night as soon as I turned the filter off he popped back to normal and began looking for snails and trying to eat things again.

[itsepainen]

I adjusted the angle of the spout inside the tank, so now the current is angled to go around the perimeter of the tank. However, now he just seems to insist on swimming next to the glass, even though he's swimming hard against the current, at times twitching drastically, and bumping into things occassionally. Is it possible that he's playing in the current? I put my hand up to the tank which made him return to the center for only a moment, then he right away swam back to the glass and continued swimming spastically in the current...

[Pufferpunk]

That is a sign if nitrite poisoning. What test kits are you using? A nitrate of 0, usually indicates a non-established tank. Did you leave the tank empty for a day or 2 before adding the puffer?

[itsepainen]

The tank has had fish in it everyday for the last year.
The test kit is an API saltwater master test kit. However, the test for nitrites is one for both fresh and saltwater. I've used both saltwater and freshwater test kits for pH and ammonia.
I did add one cup of marine salt the day before I got the puffer. Perhaps that destroyed some of the bacteria? But the tank is a 29gal and I don't believe it should have so much of an effect?

Anyway, I am leaving the filter off for the note and hoping he will be ok. He seems to be doing fine when it's off..

[Pufferpunk]

So the day you added the puffer is the same day you removed the fish that had been inhabiting the tank for a year?

[itsepainen]

Yes indeed. Although now that I recall... I did do a 50% water change on the tank the day before, and then perhaps by adding even only a cup of salt, could that have destroyed too much bacteria? But the tank has lots of surface area in it, including biowheels in the back...

Puffer is still doing ok, though this morning all I saw him do was swim up and down the glass for the few seconds I had to look at him.

[Pufferpunk]

Neither a 50% WC, nor ading only 1 cup of salt to a 29g system should have destroyed your bacteria. You really should be showing some nitrate though, if the biological bed is established. Be sure to use a hydrometer to measure future addition of salt.

[itsepainen]

Puffer still doing ok. No longer frantically swimming up and down the sides of the tank. He still does it some, but slower, but he has mostly returned to the typical puffer style of deliberate swimming. No more crashing into things, but I've left the filter off since last night. I may turn it on for a couple of minutes and see how he does.

Nitrites and nitrates still testing at zero. The nitrate test, however, is a saltwater one. Do you think that because the SG is so low in the tank that it may be affecting the test? Also, if the tank for some reason is not cycled (after a year?!), I would be expecting ammonia spikes and such soon? I really don't see how the tank could not be cycled fully... All other fish in it have been fine. I'm thinking maybe it's the result of using a saltwater test for the nitrates in such low SG.

~*-Turned on the filter, no crashing into anything, still swimming in current, then taking breaks in the middle of the tank. Looking for snails. (I did see him gobble one up last night). I fed him a baby shrimp and a blood worm and he gobbled them up like a monster. His color already looks a lot better than when he was at the pet store, but that could just be my imagination..-*~



Took the picture this afternoon, just after feeding. The water is such because I just turned the filter back on.

[Pufferpunk]

All the different nitrate tests I have are for FW & SW.

[Nick]

Your nitrate test - is it two bottles? If so, you have to SHAKE THE CRAP out of the second bottle for over 30 seconds for it to work. Otherwise, the reagent chemical will stay on the bottom, none will go into the test, and any reasonable level of nitrates won't show up.

[itsepainen]

Thank you so much Nick! You were ever so helpful. lol. I did as you said, and sure enough, voila, around 5ppm for nitrates. Yay! lol.

Update on the puffer: filter turned back on. No longer crashing into walls or decor. Swimming happily, eating like a monster.

Basically, I'm not sure what was going on. But all seems normal now! Thank you!

[Pufferpunk]

Well, at least we now know there's nothing wrong with your tank.

[Nick]

I think we may need a sticky on the two part nitrate test kits. Most people learn how to do the tests from the people doing them at the fish store, and at least at my store, most people don't shake the nitrate #2 bottle, or give it a cursory quick up and down a couple times.