To change water or not to change
Forum rules
Read this before posting!!
Since this board has been up, we have found there are several questions that routinely get asked in order to help diagnose problems. If you can have that information to begin with in your post, we'll be able to help right away (if we can!) without having to wait for you to post the info we need.
1) Your water parameters - pH, Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrates and salinity (if appropriate). This is by far the most important information you can provide! Do not answer this with "Fine" "Perfect" "ok", that tells us nothing. We need hard numbers.
2) Tank size and a list of ALL inhabitants. Include algae eaters, plecos, everything. We need to know what you have and how big the tank is.
3) Feeding, water change schedule and a list of all products you are using or have added to the tank (examples: Cycle, Amquel, salt, etc)
4) What changes you've made in the tank in the last week or so. Sometimes its the little things that make all the difference.
5) How long the aquarium has been set up, and how did you cycle it? If you don't know what cycling is read this: Fishless Cycling Article and familiarize yourself with all the information. Yes. All of it.
We want to help, and providing this information will go a LONG way to getting a diagnosis and hopeful cure that much faster.
While you wait for assistance:
One of the easiest and best ways to help your fish feel better is clean water! If you are already on a regular water change schedule (50% weekly is recommended) a good step to making your fish more comfortable while waiting for diagnosis/suggestions is to do a large water change immediately. Feel free to repeat daily or as often as you can, clean water is always a good thing! Use of Amquel or Prime as a dechlor may help with any ammonia or nitrite issues, and is highly recommended.
Note - if you do not normally do large water changes, doing a sudden, large water change could shock your fish by suddenly changing their established water chemistry. Clean water is still your first goal, so in this case, do several smaller (10%) water changes over the next day or two before starting any large ones.
Read this before posting!!
Since this board has been up, we have found there are several questions that routinely get asked in order to help diagnose problems. If you can have that information to begin with in your post, we'll be able to help right away (if we can!) without having to wait for you to post the info we need.
1) Your water parameters - pH, Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrates and salinity (if appropriate). This is by far the most important information you can provide! Do not answer this with "Fine" "Perfect" "ok", that tells us nothing. We need hard numbers.
2) Tank size and a list of ALL inhabitants. Include algae eaters, plecos, everything. We need to know what you have and how big the tank is.
3) Feeding, water change schedule and a list of all products you are using or have added to the tank (examples: Cycle, Amquel, salt, etc)
4) What changes you've made in the tank in the last week or so. Sometimes its the little things that make all the difference.
5) How long the aquarium has been set up, and how did you cycle it? If you don't know what cycling is read this: Fishless Cycling Article and familiarize yourself with all the information. Yes. All of it.
We want to help, and providing this information will go a LONG way to getting a diagnosis and hopeful cure that much faster.
While you wait for assistance:
One of the easiest and best ways to help your fish feel better is clean water! If you are already on a regular water change schedule (50% weekly is recommended) a good step to making your fish more comfortable while waiting for diagnosis/suggestions is to do a large water change immediately. Feel free to repeat daily or as often as you can, clean water is always a good thing! Use of Amquel or Prime as a dechlor may help with any ammonia or nitrite issues, and is highly recommended.
Note - if you do not normally do large water changes, doing a sudden, large water change could shock your fish by suddenly changing their established water chemistry. Clean water is still your first goal, so in this case, do several smaller (10%) water changes over the next day or two before starting any large ones.
-
aotto
- Puffer Fry
- Posts: 29
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- My Puffers: Stimpy - GSP
- Location (country): Texas, USA
Re: To change water or not to change
oh yeah, also, what should I put the two Monos in to return them? Is a big gallon Ziplock bag full of our water ok just to drive them about 15 min away?
Re: To change water or not to change
Yep. I think about 1/2 water and 1/2 air would work.
It is absurd to talk of one animal being higher than another. We consider those, when the cerebral structure/intellectual faculties most developed, as highest. A bee doubtless would when the instincts were.
Charles Darwin
Charles Darwin
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Pufferpunk
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T niphobles - Location (country): USA, Greenville, SC
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Re: To change water or not to change
I just put them in a bucket.
You are getting sleepy... you only hear the sound of my voice... you must do water changes... water changes... water changes... water changes...
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
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aotto
- Puffer Fry
- Posts: 29
- Joined: Fri Jan 21, 2011 12:28 am
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Re: To change water or not to change
OK. Another 50%+ done. The husband came home with a bottle of Bio Spira!!! I poured that in with the new Primed water and we shall wait and see. The Monos are back at the store and they even found us in the system and gave us a livestock credit for their price. Now it's just little Stimpy so I'm hoping he perks up again like he did after the last WC. So far so good.
Now that I have added the Bio Spira should I do another WC tomorrow or will that remove a lot of it and set me back?
Now that I have added the Bio Spira should I do another WC tomorrow or will that remove a lot of it and set me back?
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Pufferpunk
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burrfish
T niphobles - Location (country): USA, Greenville, SC
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Re: To change water or not to change
I wish I had known you'd found Bio-Spira, I would have told you to put it directly into your filter, where the bacteria could colonize the best. Is that B-S for FW or SW? I believe the B-S available now, is only for SW.
You are getting sleepy... you only hear the sound of my voice... you must do water changes... water changes... water changes... water changes...
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
-
aotto
- Puffer Fry
- Posts: 29
- Joined: Fri Jan 21, 2011 12:28 am
- Gender: Female
- My Puffers: Stimpy - GSP
- Location (country): Texas, USA
Re: To change water or not to change
I thought about pouring it into the filter. Should have done that with at least half. It was a bottle that would treat a 30 gallon or they had one for a 70 gallon. She said once you open it it goes bad fast even in the fridge so to get the 30 and use it all in our 37 gallon tank. I think it said marine but since I will be raising his salt once the ammonia is gone will that be ok?
He was making me nervous last night with his surface skimming and swimming into the water flowing out into the tank. This morning he is up and seems happy. He didn't want the shrimp pellets (who would blame him) so I'm going to hit the grocery store in a few for some frozen seafood. I'm going to test the ammonia level first.
MY BIG QUESTION NOW IS: Do I do another water change or let the BS stay in there and work? If he isn't interested in the frozen sea food what do I do about him eating?
He was making me nervous last night with his surface skimming and swimming into the water flowing out into the tank. This morning he is up and seems happy. He didn't want the shrimp pellets (who would blame him) so I'm going to hit the grocery store in a few for some frozen seafood. I'm going to test the ammonia level first.
MY BIG QUESTION NOW IS: Do I do another water change or let the BS stay in there and work? If he isn't interested in the frozen sea food what do I do about him eating?
Re: To change water or not to change
I think you shouldn't do a water change but watch the ammonia over the day. If it hasn't gone down from this morning then it may not be working.
I've read some papers that say that the bacteria can be the same between FW and SW. Not all of the types but some of them. This means that it may still work, it just won't work as well as you won't be making full use of the bacteria available. Watch your ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate over the day. If the ammonia is going down and the nitrates are going up or appearing then it's working. Nitrites may go up too, these are still quite toxic but not as bad as ammonia.
I've read some papers that say that the bacteria can be the same between FW and SW. Not all of the types but some of them. This means that it may still work, it just won't work as well as you won't be making full use of the bacteria available. Watch your ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate over the day. If the ammonia is going down and the nitrates are going up or appearing then it's working. Nitrites may go up too, these are still quite toxic but not as bad as ammonia.
It is absurd to talk of one animal being higher than another. We consider those, when the cerebral structure/intellectual faculties most developed, as highest. A bee doubtless would when the instincts were.
Charles Darwin
Charles Darwin
-
aotto
- Puffer Fry
- Posts: 29
- Joined: Fri Jan 21, 2011 12:28 am
- Gender: Female
- My Puffers: Stimpy - GSP
- Location (country): Texas, USA
Re: To change water or not to change
Thanks. I tested the ammonia (I created another post about it) and it's gone down significantly. It was between 5 and 7 and dark green in the test tube and this morning it was between 0.50 and 1.0 and a pretty light green. That is still higher than I want but way better. He still does some surface swimming and isn't bright white on his tummy yet but he's looking more active. Let's hope the damage isn't too bad and he can hang in there. He seems to be a tough one and has always looked the healthiest out of the three we started with.
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Pufferpunk
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Re: To change water or not to change
Wrong bacteria for SG <1.010.I think it said marine
You are getting sleepy... you only hear the sound of my voice... you must do water changes... water changes... water changes... water changes...
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
-
aotto
- Puffer Fry
- Posts: 29
- Joined: Fri Jan 21, 2011 12:28 am
- Gender: Female
- My Puffers: Stimpy - GSP
- Location (country): Texas, USA
Re: To change water or not to change
It says it contains Nitrospira, Nitrosomonas, NItrosospira and NItrococcus.
I have a piece of shrimp shell on and tail in his tank and he picked at it for a while but it's attacking it like I had hoped. The ammonia is steady at around 1.0 like this morning.
I have a piece of shrimp shell on and tail in his tank and he picked at it for a while but it's attacking it like I had hoped. The ammonia is steady at around 1.0 like this morning.
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Pufferpunk
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- Posts: 32975
- Joined: Tue May 31, 2005 11:06 am
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T miurus
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C valentini
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C lorteti
DPs
suvattii
burrfish
T niphobles - Location (country): USA, Greenville, SC
- Location: Greenville, SC
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Re: To change water or not to change
Bio-Spira is made for SG >1.010. Keep doing WC, until ammonia is 0.
You are getting sleepy... you only hear the sound of my voice... you must do water changes... water changes... water changes... water changes...
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
-
aotto
- Puffer Fry
- Posts: 29
- Joined: Fri Jan 21, 2011 12:28 am
- Gender: Female
- My Puffers: Stimpy - GSP
- Location (country): Texas, USA
Re: To change water or not to change
Ok. I will start another one now. Maybe it will keep from eating the rest of this King Cake I bought when I went to get his shrimp. 
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Pufferpunk
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T miurus
A modestus
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C valentini
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burrfish
T niphobles - Location (country): USA, Greenville, SC
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Re: To change water or not to change
King Cake?
You are getting sleepy... you only hear the sound of my voice... you must do water changes... water changes... water changes... water changes...
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
-
aotto
- Puffer Fry
- Posts: 29
- Joined: Fri Jan 21, 2011 12:28 am
- Gender: Female
- My Puffers: Stimpy - GSP
- Location (country): Texas, USA
Re: To change water or not to change
It's a Louisiana Mardi Gras tradition. We are in Houston Tx but my family is from Louisiana. It's awesome cake in the shape of a ring with icing and purple, yellow and green sugar all over the top. I bought a cinnamon one but was hoping for a cream cheese or blueberry! It's sneaky stuff that will call your name from it's box all day until you realize you've eaten the whole thing! 
So I just finished another 50% water change and I'm almost out of Prime! I will check the ammonia again later today. He isn't surface swimming as much today but he's still not so excited about food. He picked at the shrimp so I will try that again tomorrow. I miss seeing him with a giant fat belly from all his eating.
So I just finished another 50% water change and I'm almost out of Prime! I will check the ammonia again later today. He isn't surface swimming as much today but he's still not so excited about food. He picked at the shrimp so I will try that again tomorrow. I miss seeing him with a giant fat belly from all his eating.
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Mac Myers
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Re: To change water or not to change
So? What happened?