Loaches Online Forum

ok ive added all sand. changed all water and added all freshwater.

i ran some 6 in 1 test strips and the strips show the exact same reading on the main tank as all separater 5 gallon buckets. i have not added any water to each bucket the fish are in. i was waiting for the water to clear up a bit. it was a little mirky after i added the sand but not bad at all.

ive managed to keep the temps for the new tank water at 81 degrees which is exactly what i had it at to begin with.

all tests are perfect. in optimal range for hardness, ph, nitrate, nitrite, ammonia, chlorine.

i think i left about 40 percent of the water in there. i have not put the fish back in the tank yet. the water is now clear but not perfectly clear. im waiting a few more hours for it to clear. the temps in the gallons and all fish are fine.

good to go. when you put the fish in (if you haven't already) don't pour the water from the buckets into the tank. just net them out.

watch them closely the next day as much as possible. any signs of worsening fin rot and I'd treat with the furan.

thanks shari.


well the fish love the sand so far. it doesn't get all over them and stick to them like the fine sand. but, they can't dig as much either. so they are definitely upset about that. they love tunneling under the pvc and sleeping on their sides.

i treated with furan this morning due to seeing two glo light tetras with fin rot and what appears to be gill disease.

the two larger cory's still have it so im treating.

will this furan crash my filter like the maracyn did? i have nitrifying bacteria read y to go if so.

oh and i did as you said. i acclimated them in the 5 gallons with one gallon of fresh water to 4 gallons. then netted them in and let them be. i left the old water out and dumped it.

API says not.

Furan-2™ Powder


Medications

Contains two furan compounds to combat a wide variety of gram-positive & gram-negative bacterial diseases, including bacterial gill disease, open red sores (Aeromonas spp.), body slime & eye cloud, black molly disease (Flavobacterium columnaris) and fin & tail rot. For use in both freshwater and saltwater aquariums. This medication will not harm the biological filter. Note: This medication will cause a slight discoloration of water which can be removed with activated carbon.

http://aquariumpharm.com/Products/Produ ... oductID=61

is this what you have?

LoachOrgy- Bacterial problems like this usually only infect fish that have been weakened by either old age, poor water quality, stress, or osmotic shock.

You really need to determine what the cause is. Since you started posting here a few years ago I've suspected that your tap water sometimes has seriously TDS issues. A TDS meter would help figure out if the tap water has been problematic.

In some water treatment plants when they switch wells, the TDS can jump or drop by as much as 600 ppm. In Florida, seawater can get through the aquifer and into the wells also. This can make the TDS change even more drastic. Easily enough to weaken the fish and make it prone to bacterial infections. Osmotic shock could even be severe enough to where the fish may shed it's tail fin or just die unexpectedly.

how much do tds meters run or do you have a link for a good one?

im seeing blood spots on cory's still and 2 rasboras. im going to order the kanamycin tonight.

The meters usually cost about $15 to 20 on ebay.

Here's a Hanna TDS3 meter for 18.99 with free shipping-

Hanna TDS3 Meter on Ebay

thanks chefkeith! just ordered it. also ordered the kanaplex 5 gram 2 bottles.

Congrats. The TDS meter should help you see any potential water chemistry changes before they happen.

I ordered 1 too, my first ebay purchase! Thanks Keith.

well all fish look super happy.

what do you guys think?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qYsEwTmVn_E

no fin rot that I could see. they look very relaxed.
how's the sand?

Lookin' good

the sand is great. it also keeps the plants intact better. minus the digging from loaches.

i took tds meter readings today.

i have to lookup more on tds as no info came with the packet.

tank water reading after a feeding earlier and medication treatment of ruan 2. the furan 2 was removed by carbon filter and is completely clear today.

reading in tank. 408ppm

read in tap water straight out of the tap is 107.

reading after conditioner is added to the tapwater is 183.

ill look this up and figure out what it means. thanks guys!

well i see a bit of fin rot still on a few fish but its minimal. the cory's are starting to grow back their feelers and fins.

all other fish that seemed lethargic before are very energetic. they all seem to be swimming around eogether getting along actively.

the clowns and striatas are coming up to me more. and even not swimming away as fast and they seem to love the loach lounge in the middle with all the plants. i see all loaches going to the top of the tank more often than normal. meaning they are not jus swimming at hte bottom, they are moving around everywhere. the taller plants seem to invite them to the top area of the water. and even the striates will start loachy dancing. they have been mia a for a while bc the tank was previously broken up a bit more by tank ornament.

what i found so far.

http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-04/r ... /index.php

http://www.ozelink.com/tds_meters/purchase.htm

http://www.tdsmeter.co.uk/abouttds.html

so it appears the tank water has a rather high tds reading compared to the tapwater.

what procedures can be folowed to change this besides changing the water?

does this reading mean i need new filters in the rena fillstar?

ok tested the tank tds again. 407

tap water right out of tap was 108 after water conditioner 127

qtank water at 123