First fish death

tommyc · 10-20-2007, 05:59 PM

I recently finished cycling my daughters 56g tank and have added about 10 platys (5 Red wag and 5 Golden Mickey Mouse) over the course of a few weeks. They all seemed to be doing fine, eating well ,etc.. The water parameters have been pretty steady for the last several weeks. 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite, 10 nitrate and 7.4 ph. For some reason, the ph has fallen down to 6 the last few days after adding the last two fish. I just started testing KH and GH a few days ago which has been around 6 or 7 for both.

This morning, my wife mentioned that one of the Red Wag platys was sitting really still at the bottom of the tank and wouldn't move, even when my daughter tapped the tank. About three hours later, I noticed it laying at the bottom upside down, dead.

I usually watch the fish everyday to make sure they're eating, swimming, and don't have any strange markings or growths. They all seemed fine yesterday. Is there anything I should look for? The other fish still seem fine, but then they all seemed fine yesterday.

Jay · 10-20-2007, 06:55 PM

Hey Tommy,,,

This condition did not necessarily cause the fish deaths, but I'm sure it contributed on the journey of the fish to your tank......

IMO...

You probably need to raise your KH a bit. Live bearers like platies and mollies need a KH rich in mineral salts to thrive. NOT salt like table salt but other mineral salts like magnesium, calcium, etc. Seachem makes a product called "live bearer salt" which really fits the bill. I use it in my guppy tank and have had very few deaths for over two years now.

This will also boost your pH as it acts as a buffer to keep it in the 7 range.

You can also increase your KH by adding crushed coral, calcium chloride, etc. but the best is a mix like suggested above.

Hope that helps a bit..with your research on the topic

Regards,
Jay

tommyc · 10-20-2007, 09:30 PM

Thanks for the info. I still have one question, I've read that salt and live plants don't really mix too well. I have two java ferns and 4 anubias in the tanks now, with plans to add more plants as soon as I upgrade my lighting.

As for salt, I have some Aquarium salt that I added just before adding the first few platys. I think I used the recommended amount when I added it.

Jay · 10-20-2007, 10:06 PM

I'm sorry if I was not more clear on that. I am not talking about NaCl, sodium chloride, (table salt). Aquarium Salt is mostly NaCl (table salt) and yes, plants DO NOT tolerate it well.

We toss around the term salt in this hobby so much that it becomes confusing to new hobbyists.

I was talking about the mineral salts "other than NaCl" which make up GH in a freshwater tank.

Regards,
Jay