I have a 40 gallon freshwater tank with fake plants (and shaded areas of the tank for fish to hide in) along with lots of places for my clown loaches to hide in. I currently have 5 clown loaches (all doing well for many years (my oldest I have had for 9 years and my youngest I have had for 1 year)), 1 red eye tetra, 1 neon tetra, and 3 golden pristella tetras. I do weekly water changes of ~10-20% and a bigger 50% water change once a month when I clean the tank and the Fluval 305 filter system. I have never had a problem with my clown loaches (1 of them I have had for 9 years). Over the past 6 months, I have lost 5 of the neons and 2 of the red eyes. I did not see any visible signs of infection or problems. My tank parameters have remained relatively steady (I check once a week before I do the water changes and the cleanings).
I just checked my tank:
Temp = 80 F
pH = 6.5
GH = 8
KH = 0 (I add one drop of the API solution and it goes from clear to yellow immediately)
Nitrate = 0-2.5
Nitrite = 0
Ammonia = 0
Phos = 0
I make R/O water since I find a lot of fluctuations in my well water. The R/O water has a pH of 6.2 or less (the pH test kit only shows down to 6.2).
Yesterday, I made 32 gallons of R/O water and added in some Seachem Replenish. The GH is now 4, the pH is 6.4, and the KH is 0.
Is there any benefit of adding in the Seachem acid and alkaline buffers I have to generate some KH in the R/O water while still looking to keep a slightly acid pH for the fish I have?
Is the GH in my tank affecting the tetras?
Are cardinal tetras any hardier than neon tetras?
My clown loaches do well and I don't want to disturb them by changing this too much in the tank. My focus of the tank is the clown loaches (the big ones will eat food out of my hands). However, my son likes the different tetras and they get along with the loaches.
Thanks for the help!
I just checked my tank:
Temp = 80 F
pH = 6.5
GH = 8
KH = 0 (I add one drop of the API solution and it goes from clear to yellow immediately)
Nitrate = 0-2.5
Nitrite = 0
Ammonia = 0
Phos = 0
I make R/O water since I find a lot of fluctuations in my well water. The R/O water has a pH of 6.2 or less (the pH test kit only shows down to 6.2).
Yesterday, I made 32 gallons of R/O water and added in some Seachem Replenish. The GH is now 4, the pH is 6.4, and the KH is 0.
Is there any benefit of adding in the Seachem acid and alkaline buffers I have to generate some KH in the R/O water while still looking to keep a slightly acid pH for the fish I have?
Is the GH in my tank affecting the tetras?
Are cardinal tetras any hardier than neon tetras?
My clown loaches do well and I don't want to disturb them by changing this too much in the tank. My focus of the tank is the clown loaches (the big ones will eat food out of my hands). However, my son likes the different tetras and they get along with the loaches.
Thanks for the help!