dancerhas

Once our 29 gal tank got cycled, our 6 danios, 3 platy's, and 2 algae eaters flourished. up until this week that is. So far we've had 2 of the zebra danios die. One of our platy's and one of the remaining danio's seem sick. They are very still, fins clamped close to the body, the platy has some white spots on its tail, and the danio once spent some time just sitting on the bottom of the tank.

Our tank has no ammonia, nitrite, or nitrate according to the water test, but we did a few extra water changes just in case. We noticed that the alkalinity seems extra high (300ppm) but what I've read online seems to indicate that this will not hurt the fish. pH is around 7.2 and chlorine is 0.

So after testing, I'm pretty sure that our fish are sick. Just need some help diagnosing. I can post a video and pics of the fish if necessary.

We also have live plants, in case you need to know, oh and a mystery snail.

Thanks in advance!

Lucy

I'm really sorry you lost fish and the others aren't feeling well.

Usually in a cycled tank, you'd have some nitrAtes showing, but the fact that you have live plants could explain the 0 reading.

What are you using to test?
Have you added anything new to the tank?
Are the white spots fuzzy or do they look like salt?
What's the water temp?

A video or picture might help.

Sorry for all the questions, the answers should help the members help you figure out what's going on.

Alessa

Lucy meant "nitrates" instead of nitrites. On a cycled tank there is no ammonia or nitrItes, but there are nitrates.

Lucy

Thanks Alessa, I edited my post. Geez, That's not the first time I did that.

dancerhas

Thanks for the replies...they kinda look fuzzy. Water temp is hovering around 78-80 degrees. I'm using strips to test...not the best, I know, but they're cheap. heh.

I added some plant fertilizer, but the first fish died the night BEFORE I put it in. Right now (feeding time) all the fish seem rather perky, so their appetites aren't gone.