The Puffer Forum

Sokay

what is your tap water nitrate reading?

Just a thought here but have yoiu checked you tap water to see what the chemistry is like? Other things to look at are whether your filter is still running efficiently. Assuming you tap water is ok then go for the big water changes, you do use water conditioner don't you?

I did a smaller change last night about 30% I didn’t want to stress him I have done another 30% this morning and will do a 50% later tonight. I have also reduced his temperature to 25 as the library says 26 as a max and it was on 27.

As expected nitrates reading has dropped to 20ppm.

However he is still lethargic and rests on the bottom of the tank.

Tap water has no nitrate, I use API Stress Coat, in the 125-litre tank I add 40ml per 50% change, the recommended on the bottle is 5ml/10us gallons, I fill directly from the cold tap.

I drain the water then go around with a powered cleaner to get any rubbish.

The tank is a Jewel Rio 125, standard pump is 600 lph and it also has a Fluval 4 plus filter that is 1000 lph both have bubble nozzles.
The tank was not new it contained a range of community fish when I got it. I cleaned the tank thoroughly with a sponge and tap water.
I left the fish in the tank with the pumps and decoration until I moved them to another tank 12 days later.
The jewel pump was the original and I immediately changed the nitrate filter, dumped the carbon filter and replaced with a normal one; the remaining filters were washed in tank water, one when I got the tank and the other a week later. The Fluval had been running as a spare in another tank for two weeks with one new filter and one old prior to fitting so it had time to seed. I change the white floss filters on both pumps weekly.

The water readings were checked and there was no trace of ammonia or nitrite prior to the fish being removed and the Abei added. I check the readings weekly with an API master test kit and have never seen any ammonia or nitrite. The nitrates do get up to 30 ppm prior to a water change but normally drop after.

Decoration consists of five pieces of slate, two pieces of bogwood and a large fake mangrove root. Plants are dwarf swords and long grasses I cant remember their name, there is six of each.

Substrate is Tetra plant complete as a base with a covering of approximately 25mm with sand on the top ranging from 10 – 30mm.

Lighting is by twin T8 tubes, one is a Jewel Daylight bulb and the other is an Aqua-Glo bulb.

I feed thawed frozen bloodworms, one cube once per week. Thawed frozen uncooked prawn cut in to small pieces to fit the empty holes in the bloodworm tray, so 16mm size approx. once per week. I feed 2-3 live Snails either pond or red ramshorn three times per week. Every two weeks I also buy a shell on uncooked prawn that I dangle in the tank for a minute or so and make him fight for it.

I can’t think of anything else, hopefully there is something I have done that can be corrected.

Just an idea. The fake root, is it one of the hollow ones that fill with water to weigh em down. Something nasty could be festering in there. Might be worth taking it out and seeing if there's anything going on in it.

Be prepared to gag. It stinks to high heaven when you pour the water out, do it outside it'll stink whatever room you're in up.

Hilly wrote:Just an idea. The fake root, is it one of the hollow ones that fill with water to weigh em down. Something nasty could be festering in there. Might be worth taking it out and seeing if there's anything going on in it.

Be prepared to gag. It stinks to high heaven when you pour the water out, do it outside it'll stink whatever room you're in up.

Good shout Hilly I was gonna suggest the same. We had one in our cold water tank and it stank sooooo bad cos a baby fish got stuck in it and died

Another thoguht could be decaying plant matter, do you have any plants that have died back and left the roots festering away? This sghould be sorted by the vacuuming though

Hilly wrote:Just an idea. The fake root, is it one of the hollow ones that fill with water to weigh em down. Something nasty could be festering in there. Might be worth taking it out and seeing if there's anything going on in it.

Be prepared to gag. It stinks to high heaven when you pour the water out, do it outside it'll stink whatever room you're in up.

Will look at next change, root is hollow but I filled it with stones to stop the stink.

I drain the water then go around with a powered cleaner to get any rubbish.

Is that how you clean the substrate? Are you cleaning it thoroughly? I know BM asked about this but I thought you said you were.

Manutius wrote:Good shout Hilly I was gonna suggest the same. We had one in our cold water tank and it stank sooooo bad cos a baby fish got stuck in it and died

Myaj gave me the idea from another post when she said they can turn into a nitrate bomb. I had one in my Abei tank but removed it, I took it out every week and emptied the water out and it stank so bad it nearly made me chuck every time. I decided it was too big for the tank as the top of it was only just under water level so i've put it in the Oscar tank at the moment but i'm thinking of getting rid of it out of there, it still smells bad and there's nothing trapped inside it.

Pufferpunk wrote:

I drain the water then go around with a powered cleaner to get any rubbish.

Is that how you clean the substrate? Are you cleaning it thoroughly? I know BM asked about this but I thought you said you were.

The cleaner is mains powered and is called a "power gravel cleaner", it seems to do a good job!

I have just removed the fake root, changed the tank around and done a 50% water change.
Given a good go with my cleaner and a stir.
I will post the test results for the water in an hour or so when everything has settled.
He did get a bit dark when I did the change, but has lightened since.

Everything is crossed!!!

Did it smell?

Pufferpunk wrote:Did it smell?

A little, not good, but not that bad either.

Water tested at 10ppm nitrate and ph 7.8 after two 30 % changes and a 50%

I have rechecked my tap water and that is giving 10ppm, my last check was two weeks ago and it was zero, any ideas on why the increase.

However he is still sitting on the bottom of the tank.

He is still sitting on the bottom but he appears to be getting lighter