HI, Ive set up a new tank a month ago , ive kept Chocolates before with some success and some fails
Tank has been set up using old mud/dirt/planting medium with a sand capping
Also kept old filter going and put in new tank
Water is clean rain water which ive used for years
So its a no fish cycle of new tank , now all scaped and ready but water not ready !
25% water changes every 4 days
LFS tested water for me today
Ammonia 0.25
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 40
PH 6.4
GH 3
KH 0
LFS suggestions before adding fish
Continue with water changes and re-test in a week to see if Nitrates and ammonis dropped
Add buffering to increase KH
I'm not sure about the buffering chemical ....ive kept Discus using the same water and they were fine for years
Ive kept the \chocolates for over 12 months until I added another 3 fish ....they all died. So I tried a fresh batch and they all died
Hence complete revamp, change of tank to a better size 60x45x30
Can anyone advise as my Chemistry is complete rubbish and I'm just not sure what to do that will be best for the fish ...its a nicely planted scape but low-tech
Jan x
Tank has been set up using old mud/dirt/planting medium with a sand capping
Also kept old filter going and put in new tank
Water is clean rain water which ive used for years
So its a no fish cycle of new tank , now all scaped and ready but water not ready !
25% water changes every 4 days
LFS tested water for me today
Ammonia 0.25
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 40
PH 6.4
GH 3
KH 0
LFS suggestions before adding fish
Continue with water changes and re-test in a week to see if Nitrates and ammonis dropped
Add buffering to increase KH
I'm not sure about the buffering chemical ....ive kept Discus using the same water and they were fine for years
Ive kept the \chocolates for over 12 months until I added another 3 fish ....they all died. So I tried a fresh batch and they all died
Hence complete revamp, change of tank to a better size 60x45x30
Can anyone advise as my Chemistry is complete rubbish and I'm just not sure what to do that will be best for the fish ...its a nicely planted scape but low-tech
Jan x