water changes, is it needed?

[aquatique]

Hi there,
I am new in the dwarf cichlid hobby, but I wonder if my nitrit and nitrate are low, do I still need to change the water in my tank?

I have been trying to take care German Blue Rams. I bought 5 about 2 months ago... all died within 7-10 days. Mostly after water changes either they looked stress or they got ick.

The last 4 got ick, I give them different treatment (not at the same time), as usually ick will go away within a couple of day. But they didn't go away within 4 days and now all my rams are gone...

Please advice about the water things here.... help

 

[Neil]

aquatique,

WELCOME TO THE FORUM

There are so many factors involved maintaining good water quality. The absolute best thing that you can do for Dwarf Cichlids is change their water regularly. This may not eliminate all of your possible problems, but it is unlikely to ever hurt. The one exception to this is radically changing the environment that the fish are currently in. If, for example, the pH and/or hardness are low and you do a water change with tap water that has a much higher pH and level of hardness, your fish may be adversely affected. Some fish get used to the circumstances of their environment (even if it is bad) and may not benefit from drastic changes. High nitrates are not particularly good for most fish, but they can become acclimated to them over time. Radically reducing those nitrates quickly may be very stressful and lead to a breakdown in the ability of the fish to fight off disease.
So, keep the water clean via water changes, but make sure that you are not changing the water that they are in drastically. Rams are especially sensative to hardness. I bet that is your problem. Check your hardness and report back here. Regular water changes with low-hardness water will likely help keep your rams in the kind of shape that you want.
Good luck,
Neil

 

[Bissot_J]

well
this a good question.
your problem is probably due to your wter change , who i suspect was not
at the same temp (or near ) of your tank.

one thing i can say, water is not like wine , it is not better with years

but i can say , and i test it , you can keep fish in a tank with no water change , and only add water when need.


i am verry interested to see what other wil say

 

[aquatique]

water changes.

I checked my water, after I treated with Seachem Neutral Regulator and Peat Granular (Hagen) for the last few days. The pH was about 6.8, KH was 4dKH and GH was 8dGH (before the treatment my aquarium water had pH 7.4-7.6, KH and GH 11-12dGH).

After the water changes (today), I treated the tap water with Seachem Neutral Regulator and let it sit for a few days, my aquarium water has pH between 6.8-7.0 (can't match the color that good), KH 5dKH and GH 9dGH.

I just wonder how to soften the water.... and frankly I didn't check the temperature that much.... BTW my tank is 29G planted tank with amazon swords, java moss and Java ferns.

Anyone's feedback will be appreciated, especially if anyone can help me to raise Blue Rams.

 

[Randall]

M. ramirezi Husbandry

Dear Aquatique,

Neil and Bissot make very good points here. Yes, you need to perform regular water changes, in quanties that will not shock your fish, and use water that is about the same temperature as that already in your tank. If your Rams developed Ich following a water change, they may have been chilled. If it makes you feel any better, Rams can be difficult to acclimate at first. They are somewhat delicate, hot water fish that do well at about 80 degrees F.

Reading your posts, it may not be a bad idea to forego the Neutral Regulator, due to increased conductivity, and treat your tap water in a separate holding recepticle with peat moss that you can purchase in a large quantity at a garden center. Just make sure that the peat is pure and contains no chemicals or fertilizers.

There is extensive discussion about conditioning water with peat and its benefits here in the Forum. If you do a Forum search, you'll get a lot of information about it.

Good luck!

Randall Kohn

 

[mak]

My own experience, and one I've seen echoed online, is that if Rams are going to succumb they'll do it quickly. Make sure you're getting good-quality stock. Ask your LFS if they're getting their Rams from local hobbyists (good) or from Asian fish farms (bad).

Your water conditions seem OK... a little hard, but if you can get the pH down below 7 they shouldn't die within a week. (If you want to spawn them, that's another story.) My bet is that they're coming to you with some pre-existing disease (which flares up when you stress them) or that you've got that disease in your tank.

I've found that Rams are particularly susceptible to hexamita (as well as ich). If you want to keep trying, raise your tank temp up to 85 deg and add some salt to the water (ich remedy from the Krib). I believe that the salt helps the fish survive the ich by lessening the osmotic shock the fish have from having numerous holes drilled in them :cry: . Heating the water quickens the ich life cycle, is a little less hospitable for ich, and is a good temp for Rams, anyways.

Add your favorite ich medicine in reduced dose to kill the ich. Then, I'd add metronidazole to kill any hexamita (it seems to run rampant here, and can be carried by fish that don't show symptoms).

Read posts on the Krib (http://www.thekrib.com) about ich. It's got a fairly long life cycle, 12-16 days, and is only vulnerable to treatment for about 3 days. You really need to concentrate on wiping it out, not just treating it. Treating for a few days may let it linger, and then it flares up again later. Treat for two weeks. If you've got other tanks in the house, they need to be treated, too, or you'll spread it right back. (Same applies for hexamita.)

Rams are fragile fish to start, but great fish and pretty hardy once you've got them acclimated. As I'm typing this, I'm looking at my planted 55 g with nothing but 2 pair of rams... third generation in my tanks, right now each pair has just spawned and they're entertaining (and colorful) as heck as they mark off their territory. Good luck!

mak