Jaxsco's 75 Gallon Aquarium Setup

[Jaxsco]

I'm in the middle of a water change so I'm not sure if I can accurately test them.

 

[Bithimala]

Well, that would make it awkward, and I definitely don't want to be responsible for you flooding the bathroom again, lol.

Can you keep a little bit of the water that you're pulling out of the tank and run a test on that?

 

[Jaxsco]

I'll save some and test it after the water change.

Tank is filling up. Do you think I should go through my canister filter and clean everything in dechlorinated water tomorrow?

 

[Bithimala]

I think that will depend on what the numbers in the tank are. If the numbers on the water are normal, then I would say definitely. If the numbers in the tank are off, then I would think it may be more of an issue with a mini-cycle being started with not having all of the old media.

 

[Jaxsco]

My nitrites already went up to .5 earlier today so I did a 50% change and added prime. I'll test again to be certain it's gone.

Ok, water is testing and I finished a 70% water change. Odd thing is they all seemed to perk up and their breathing slew down while I was doing it.

 

[Bithimala]

That actually seems pretty normal to me. If there's an issue with something in the water, the clean water will make them feel better. The question is if it's water parameters or something else.

 

[Jaxsco]

Ok, parameters are as follows:
0ppm Ammonia
0-.25 Nitrites (I did a water change earlier today to bring them down.)
0 Nitrates
I've done a total of 120% water changes today which is why I assume there are no nitrates.

 

[Bithimala]

Has the tank temp increased?

If the answer to that is no, then I'm going to guess it's something with the new filter setup, and would definitely recommend giving everything a good cleaning.

 

[I3uckethead]

.25 nitrites is right now? Or prior to the water change? If it's at .25 after the water change, that was probably your problem.

 

[Bithimala]

That should be before the change. I asked him to keep some of the water he was pulling out

But I agree, I think it's probably the parameters in the tank stressing the fish, since they've been used to a cycled tank. I'd do a full dose of Prime for the tank to keep them safe overnight, and see how things are looking in the morning. I'd also redose the Stability for the day since you've done another big water change.

I'm beginning to think I'm too sleepy, since I completely just contradicted myself within a few minutes there...

nitrites are a concern, but iirc you've been dosing the tank with prime for the full tank, so they should be alright with the .25, even though it's not ideal.

Edit: So, here is what I would suggest. Add your Prime and Stability, check your numbers in the water when you get up tomorrow, if ammonia and nitrites are still 0-.25 and numbers look like they are under what Prime covers and the fish are still acting off, pull apart the filter and clean it all...

 

[Jaxsco]

It may be 0ppm but I'm so tired it's hard for me to tell the difference. I put 0 - 0.25 to be on the safe side. I did forget to plug in my heater after my first water change and the temp went down to about 76F then I plugged it back in and it's back up to 78F.
And yes, I tested the water that I pulled out. I haven't tested the new water yet.
My pleco is out eating. I hope that's a good sign!

 

[Bithimala]

How are they doing today? The temp going down to 76 wouldn't be causing the gasping. Higher temps mean less O2 in the water, so I was thinking that if the heat had somehow gone up, that may have been causing it, but 78 is what you've had it at basically the whole time, so I wouldn't think that would be a concern.

 

[Jaxsco]

They're doing it again...

 

[I3uckethead]

Water test Ph, NH and NO2. It's 11:30 have they been doing it all morning or it just started again from last night?

 

[Jaxsco]

It's 10:30 here and I didn't fall asleep until 2am so I've only been awake for 30ish minutes and they've been doing for as long as I've been awake.

@I3uckethead @Bithimala
Here are the results:
7.6 High Range pH (About to test from regular range test)
0 Nitrite
About to test ammonia

Both pH test kits show my water as 7.6. My mom says the fish were acting fine earlier this morning. Ammonia is testing.

Is it safe to put the new filter in yet? Could it be stress? Is low oxygen even a remote possibility?

The water also looks hazy and thick...

Anyone??

 

[Bithimala]

I doubt it's low O2 since the temp is reasonable.

Are you still running the old filter on it currently? I thought you had the new one in there already, did you end up pulling it out?

 

[Jaxsco]

Yeah, I pulled out the new one but my old filter doesn't work. Is it safe to hook it back up? I would assume we've eliminated anything coming from the canister.

 

[Bithimala]

Ooh, so you're running the tank with no filter right now? Um yes, if you've had it out during all of the water changes you were doing yesterday, I'd get it back up and running. I'd give everything in there a good wash with declorinated water just to be safe and then get it going.

In there being all of the filter.

 

[Jaxsco]

Ok. I'll get on that.

 

[Jaxsco]

Filtration is back on. I'm dumbfounded as to what could be causing this....

 

[PaulieWoz]

For how long was the filtration off?

If you had it off for a few hours that might be the reason why the fish were at the top again.

Did you have anything going while the filter was off? Like an air stone?

 

[Bithimala]

See if it improves with the filter back on. It may be that there was extra packing material or something with the filter that got into the tank, and then not having the filter resulted in a lack of any way for the cycle to continue, causing the nitrites to go up.

 

[Jaxsco]

The filter was off for about 6hrs. Do you think it could be the carbon that came with the filter?

 

[Bithimala]

Did you have AC in the previous filter?

 

[Jaxsco]

No I didn't. All it does is clarify the water and remove meds right?

 

[PaulieWoz]

I think the first time they were acting weird because your nitrites were a bit high.

And today maybe they were doing it because you had no filter running for 6 hours so the oxygen level was getting low.

But that's just my theory. I'm still fairly new at this whole aquarium thing, so if I ever give bad advice I'm sure someone more experienced will correct me.

 

[Jaxsco]

That could be it. I hope it is. I can't think of anything else to do. If it continues I'll add an air stone that I got used with the tank just on the slight chance it might help.
You sound really educated about this and far from a newbie. I'd gladly consider advice from you.

 

[Jaxsco]

There's no change as of yet. What are the odds of them being OK after a bit because I have NO idea what to do next. Could the hazy water be caused a bacterial bloom from the stability?

 

[Bithimala]

Try pulling out the AC in the new filter. It pulls out a collection of things from the water, so maybe there were some trace elements that they need that are now getting sucked out.

 

[Jaxsco]

Ok. I'm not home right now but I'll do that when I get home.

 

[Jaxsco]

AC is out. Is there anything more I can do or do I gave to hope for the best from this point?

 

[Jaredmaz]

Did you rinse the ac really good before you threw it in?

 

[Jaxsco]

Yep. I rinsed everything. I took everything out today and cleaned it again.

 

[Bithimala]

Unless we can pinpoint the issue, it's a bit up to hope at this point. You've recleaned everything, done 20 million water changes, checked temp, checked parameters...

You or your parents didn't recently do anything like spray Lysol or something near the tank, right? Or add any type of air freshener nearby to maybe help with the cat box?

Are they doing any better?

 

[Jaxsco]

There is an air freshener about 4 feet from the tank but I've never had problems with it. And whenever we spray a can of air freshener we are sure to aI'm it towards the ground about 2' about ground.
They don't seem to be doing any better...

 

[Bithimala]

I almost wonder if something maybe didn't get into/on the filter while you were unpacking and getting it set up.

Maybe try another water change, since those seemed to be helping yesterday?

 

[I3uckethead]

I'm also puzzled. Jaxsco start a new thread with all of the information and everything we have tried condensed into one post in the beginner section. We can tag in some of the more experienced members without them having to sort through this behemoth of a thread. A lot of people have tuned out on this novel due to length.

 

[Jaxsco]

Ok, I just did it. I tagged you and Bithimala in it.

 

[I3uckethead]

You didnt tag me, and I don't see it in the beginner section.

 

[Bithimala]

He did, or rather, tried, but he added a space after the @ sign.

 

[Jaxsco]

Thank you guys! Sorry buckethead my phone insisted!

 

[Jaxsco]

Ok, that problem is solved. Do you guys think I should make a new thread about this so it isn't so cluttered?

 

[Lucy]

Ok, that problem is solved. Do you guys think I should make a new thread about this so it isn't so cluttered?

If you are having a new issues than yes, start a new thread.
This one has close to 1300 posts. Not many are going to take the time to read them all before replying to a new question. Even if they do some things will undoubtedly be missed.

 

[Jaxsco]

Ok, I'll call the new thread "Jaxsco's 75G Aquarium"