Testing water

[cleo]

Hi, I have just lost my discus due to I don't know what and am looking to restock eventually. The fish died one by one over a period of 2 weeks I tried many and varied things but no luck with anything. What I need to know is there a good fish shop in the Melbourne area who can give good reliable information on discus and carry necessary products. I have had many different comments from different shops and find them confusing. I would like to stick with one shop if possible. Also is there any really reliable suppliers at reasonable prices. Next question what should i put in the tank to test the water rather than put discus in and have them die. Maybe neons etc. I was thinking of letting the tank run for about 6 weeks before trying discus again. At the moment I have just a few bristlenose and a couple of goldfish that I bought from Oakleigh Discus shop when I bought my discus. The water seems fine and is running at approx. 6.5ph temp. 30-31 It is a 6x2x2 with a dropside filter and also a Fluval 404 cannister filter. I just don't want to have happen again what has just happened so I thought I would like to get everything spot on before I venture into Discus again.

[Merrilyn]

So sorry to hear that you lost your fish Cleo. It's tough watching them die.

First, I think we need to get back to basics here. How old was your tank when you put the discus in, and had it been properly cycled. The cycle process takes around four to six weeks before it's safe to add fish. If you're not familiar with the nitrogen cycle, have a read through the posts on Discus 101 and you'll find lots of information.

Do you have test kits?

You should have at the very least, pH, ammonia and nitrite kits, and if possible a nitrate kit is handy too. The first three kits are absolutely essential if you want to keep discus healthy, and especially if your tank is going through a cycle.

Unfortunately a lot of aquarium shops don't have the time to explain the full workings of a tank and the nitrogen cycle, and they just assume you have a mature tank and everything is fine.

Unfortunately putting discus into an uncycled tank will surely kill them.

Tell us where you are at with your tank experience, and we'll talk you through the right way to add discus.

I'm sorry you've had such a rough introduction to discus. They really are a lovely fish, and not too difficult to keep once you get the water right.

[cleo]

Hi Merrilyn
My son had the tank for about two or so years and then when he lost interst I took it over. The only thing we did was move it from one room to another but I kept half the water to start it up again (same day). I have been running it since March and I do have all the testing stuff (master test kit) Maybe my nitrate reagents are too old because I testing no or very little whereas the lfs was testing high. They gave these tea bag things to put in but I really don't think they helped much. I have since found some sere product that helps with starting up new tanks and also nitrate. I won't give up on the discus because I really think that they are very beautiful fish but I want to make sure this same disaster doesn't happen again so I thought that I might put in some Cardinal Tetras, Rummy nose Tetras and a couple of Rams maybe in a week or two and see how they go. I have just turned the temp down to 28 as well. I am not sure as to whether there maybe something that I could put in the water that we would kill any bugs that are living on the wood or plants or even in the gravel. Any advise would be greatly appreciated.

[cleo]

Hi Merrilyn or anybody else that can help. Just after some advice as to what to do with my tank having lost all my discus. Should it be sterilised in some way, plants wood etc what do I do as I don't want to loose my discus again when I get them.

[DIY]

Hi Cleo,

The shop you mentioned has a good range of discus and I have no problem purchasing from them but I personally have found the advise provided questionable (like don't do a change water for at least 6 weeks?) . You can't go past this forum for excellent advice.

Think back carefully, did anything change or happen just prior to the discus getting sick, perhaps a new addition to the tank like the bristlenose or a new discus? Maybe something foreign accidently fell into the tank?

How often have you been doing a water change from the move in March and about how much have you been changing each time?

Sorry for the questions but It'll help work out if it was possibly a disease or if it is more of a water quality issue.

[Merrilyn]

Cleo, I really think it's time to start again with the tank fully sterilized before adding any new fish.

We don't really know what caused the deaths, so it's better to be on the safe side.

Simplest way to totally clean out a tank, is to add chlorine bleach to the water and run all the filters and sponges on the tank for 24 hours. If you want to be absolutely safe, you can repeat the operation, add more bleach and run it for another 24 hours. Leave in driftwood and gravel, syphon hoses and nets, because they need to be in contact with the bleach too.

After the bleach treatment, you need to rinse everything very will with plain water, and if possible put the driftwood or rocks out into the sun until there is absolutely no smell of bleach at all.

Rinse out your filter washing the noodles well, but toss out any filter wool and replace that with new filter wool. If there are sponges in your filter, they should be replaced too.

Set up your tank again, with all the rinsed substrate and driftwood and fill, but add three times the normal amount of chlorine remover.

You're now ready to begin your cycle. If you can get hold of unscented household ammonia, that's best, but if not, a raw prawn or raw shrimp will do nicely. If you can take some filter media from a clean, mature tank, that will kick start the cycle, otherwise, you can try some of the bio starters, but rely on your test kits to tell you when the tank is cycled. Remember that this can take 6 weeks or so, before your tank is ready for discus.

[cleo]

Hi, Back again after a small trip. Thinking of the bleach in the tank but time becomes an enemy. How much bleach do I use? Will it kill my plants? As you know at the moment there is not a lot of sun in Melbourne for the wood. I have plants on the wood as well. My tank is a 6x2x2 approx 680ltr. I will be goin away again toward the end of August and had hoped that I may have the bleach thing done by then and the tank up and maturing for my return in early Sept. Do I boil the gravel - big job. Throw it away and start again or does the bleach react with it as weel? Sorry for all the questions but I don" want to loose 11 discus again plus I lost a fair few bristlenoses also.

[cleo]

Hoping you can help with amount of bleach etc also I just found out that we will have the power turned off from 8.30am until 3.30pm what do you suggest in this circumstance. :(