swords3711

I've gotten many baby swords: black swords and red wag swords.
But I've only gotten one to make it back to the tank with the larger fish.
The tank is normally stable sometimes the nitrite levels raise but it clears up quickly. They are in a seperate tank away from the adults.
How do I keep them from dying of?

COBettaCouple

what are you testing with?
do you test ammonia, nitrites and nitrates?
what is the water temp at?
what do you treat the tap water with?
how big is the tank?
what kind of filtration and aeration do you have?
how often and what do you feed them?

swords3711

i test for nitrite and ammonia both check near perfect.
a stable 76F for temp
I use a chemical called Start Right found at walmart. It works very well
I use an isolated 10 gallon tank.
I have a Whisper Power Filter.
I feed them First Bites a very crushed form of flakes Near a powder
at 1 or 2 times a day
Thanks for your comment though. It is appreciated. If you do have any other advice, just let me know

COBettaCouple

are you testing with liquid or strips? the strips are infamous for inaccuracy and with those fry ammonia or nitrites above 0 or nitrates above 10 would be a problem.

i use the api master freshwater kit for testing. it's very accurate and cheaper per test done. i'd recommend prime for treating the water. the best way to measure out prime is with one of the little shampoo dispenser bottles they have in the travel section. just clean it with hot water and dry it completely, then you can measure a drop to a gallon. Prime will get rid of the chlorine, chloramines and heavy metals but it also neutralizes ammonia, nitrites and nitrates and enhances the fishes slime coating.

we've used first bites and it's good. although you could get food specifically for livebearers, combine it with freeze-dried brine shrimp and crush it to powder in a sandwich bag with a rolling pin.. or hatch live baby brine shrimp for them if they're 4-6 weeks or less. I also think they need fed about 4 times a day for the first 4 weeks. then 3 times a day the next 4 and 2 times a day after. same amount each time, just less as they get past that early stage of growth.

for fry, i'd also bump the temp up to 78-80. they like it a little warmer than the adult livebearers.

swords3711

I do use the liquid strips.
I don't need to use primer because I take the already seasoned water from the large tank.
I haven't thought of using brine shrimp for babies.
I do use shrimp pellets for my larger fish. Do you think they would like that?

COBettaCouple

they probably would nibble at them, but i'm not sure how much they'd eat of the shrimp pellets before they disintegrated.

armadillo

Hi Sword

I think what Dave meant was either liquid test or paper strip test. Do you use the paper kind, or the liquid kind?

Also, he's talking about Seachem Prime (a water conditionner), not a primer. I use Prime in my established tanks too. What conditionner do you use?

It's easy to misread, I understand, so I thought I'd clarify.

swords3711

i use liquid tubes
i use what is called start right
it is a water conditioner to get rid of chlorine and other harmful metals
i also use aquarium salt and cycle

COBettaCouple

the salt and cycle may be part of the problem. unless a fish needs brackish water, we don't put salt in as it can accumulate and build up. the cycle product often creates mini-cycles that can create tremendous fluctuations in water chemistry and that is often deadly to fish and especially fry.

swords3711

oh
we use the salt and cycle to help protect against illness

COBettaCouple

yea, it can be used for that purpose.