# Flashing and twitching... Getting worse.



## Jina (Dec 5, 2011)

I have a 120g cichlid tank. A month or so ago I researched reasons my cichlids were flashing, and came to the conclusion they were just marking territories. However, they are all flashing now, and twitching. Its almost like an itch they cannot shake. My females that are holding are doing it too. One kept bashing her face on anything and everything, including another fish. I use tetra water conditioner, and I do add cichlid salt at water changes.

Test results:
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate .5
Ph 8

I do weekly water changes of about 25%, and every 4th week we do a 50% WC.

my tank temp is 79Ã‚Â° F.
No white spots, eyes all clear, no noticeable wounds, injuries, or discoloration. I have not been able to find any worm spoking out of, gills or anywhere else...

Any ideas?


----------



## 13razorbackfan (Sep 28, 2011)

It could be from the salt you are adding. Do you know your kH/pH? Is your water extremely soft out of the tap?


----------



## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

Yes, and why is your nitrate so low? I have trouble (not flashing...other things) when the nitrate is below 10ppm.


----------



## Jina (Dec 5, 2011)

Well, the cichlid salt I added is the seachem Cichlid Lake Salt, and it's supposed to replicate the natural environment of african cichlids. Out of the tap, my pH is a little under 7.5, in the tank it's sitting at 8. Since adding the salt, my cichlids have started breeding, and I have 4 females holding right now... So I figured it was doing what it was supposed to?

I retested my Nitrates this morning, and they are closer to 10ppm, but I haven't done a WC this week either, I'll have to do a poop sweep at least today though.


----------



## Jina (Dec 5, 2011)

The only other change they have had recently is food - from the overpriced Omni Pellets at my LFS to some I bought from Ken'sFish.com. Other than that, nothing has changed.


----------



## Smeagol (Jan 23, 2021)

DJRansome said:


> Yes, and why is your nitrate so low? I have trouble (not flashing...other things) when the nitrate is below 10ppm.


*WHAT?! *I've never heard of nitrates being too _low_. What "other things" happen when your nitrates are below 10ppm? The more I hang around this forum, the more surprising things I hear. So, what is the optimum nitrate level now? I always thought when it comes nitrates: the lower, the better.


----------



## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

When you have plants they need fertilizer. Nitrates and phosphates are fertilizer. When I had problems (cyanobacteria) it was related to the plants consuming all the nitrates and doing poorly without nutrients.

When nitrates are 0.5 it triggers the question about whether the tank is fully cycled. Remember the beneficial organisms produce nitrates.


----------



## Smeagol (Jan 23, 2021)

DJRansome said:


> When you have plants they need fertilizer. Nitrates and phosphates are fertilizer. When I had problems (cyanobacteria) it was related to the plants consuming all the nitrates and doing poorly without nutrients.
> 
> When nitrates are 0.5 it triggers the question about whether the tank is fully cycled. Remember the beneficial organisms produce nitrates.


Oh, yeah... plants... I thought you were talking about _fish _problems. I'm familiar with plant fertz. I kept a heavily planted 55g going for 8 years; the remnants of that tank are now in a 20g (see my sig).


----------

