# Death Tank



## knadams (Mar 1, 2015)

I have had a tank set up on and off for the past ~five years, the first three being a ten gallon, the previous two have been with a 29 gallon. The ten ran well and held the same fish for about a year before we decided they could use a bigger home in the family room. The 29 gallon was set up and infish cycled properly for about 6 weeks before the rest of the fish where moved from the smaller tank to there new home. 
Heres where everything went astray, the fish new to the tank having been moved from the ten all managed to die in two weeks, for some untold reasons despite zero ammonia zero nitrites and about 20 nitrates. Left in the tank is one single tetra who has managed to survive even till today. We have tried introducing new fish for the past maybe 6 months? first again trying to add more tetras or community fish with no avail. all dying within a week of being introduced to the tank. Some seemed to breath heavily and other not so much. Some ate some didn't, but they all would go belly up within a week of coming home.
First we figured it was the acclimation process to the tank. We changed over to a drip method or the time rigid water adding method over say 45 minutes with the same temperature between the two. Again with no avail and plenty of loss of life.
The tank seems to kill anything that goes in it within a week. We recently changed the filter to an aqua clear 70 and changed the heater for good measure. We kept the bio media from the pervious filter and added it to the aqua clear and when parameters said it was safe to do so we decided to introduce two yellow lab cichlids :fish: one lasted a day the other six. Neither ate and mostly hide. Ph reads a light purple on API's high pH range test. Using both API pH buffer for 8.2, tap water conditioner, aquarium salt, cichlid salt with water changes. 
A week after the yellow labs we introduced two peacocks, these from a LFS about 45 minutes away, as we began to doubt any fish health from the nearby two large chains Petco and Pet Depot. Mind you our PetCo is in a rural area and seems to have a almost always pristine aquatics area, and with their deadfish policy, the death tank as we have began to call it may just put them outta business.  :lol: 
Our tap water comes from a well and goes through a softener before it hits the faucet we use to fill the 5 gallon pail for water changes. We have noticed it must be very hard as there is the white build up on the tanks lid/top/lights from the water. 
Any help is appreciated, the tank currently sits at 78 degrees, 0 ammonia, o nitrites, and haven't checked the nitrates yet. With again a pH near about 8.4. KH and GH test refills come in tomorrow so we can get those parameter to you guys aswell. HELP?! :-?


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## joescaper1 (Feb 14, 2013)

A suggestion: get your water before it goes through the softener. The build-up is probably salt.


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## knadams (Mar 1, 2015)

The well is purposed to have a high sulfur content giving it a uncanny smell before the softener and sometimes after its gone through it as well. May that be the issue?


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

What is the pH of the water your fish vendors use? I just test the water in the bag. If theirs very low and yours is very high it could be pH shock. Although if you drip acclimate them that should handle any shock problem. But worth testing.


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## knadams (Mar 1, 2015)

theres tested out at around a 7.8, and that what i thought too that the drip acclimation must be sufficient, although I'm still waiting on the new KH and GH test kit to come tomorrow to test those parameters and see if i have a unseen issue with pH buffers


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## knadams (Mar 1, 2015)

okay pH before the softener actually looks great, like a 7.8-8.2 right where it should be for a peacock tank
say i did a 100% water change or nearly that with water treated before the softener, would that have any effect on my HOTB filter thats established and gravel? current pH of the tank is relatively high near 8.6 not where id like it. could the salinity of the softener have caused my tanks salinity to be too high?


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## joescaper1 (Feb 14, 2013)

Since you have a high sulfur content, you may be exposing them to sulfur hydroxide.


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## joescaper1 (Feb 14, 2013)

Sorry about that.
Sulfur dioxide.


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## knadams (Mar 1, 2015)

That's what I'm beginning to think, any cures to this? Any negatives of hydrogen sulfide?


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## cbsmith (Feb 17, 2015)

It might be worthwhile to spend a few dollars and have a water test done on your water, before and after the softener. That will tell you what is in the water. Most companies that sell softeners and water systems will do the tests, around here I think they are about $20 each.

Then once you know what you have in the water you can do some googling to find out what type of filter you need to remove it.

Most likely a RODI unit will remove everything that is bad. You will need to buffer the water up after that though as the PH will be about 6.5 and GH and KH of 1.


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## knadams (Mar 1, 2015)

Can anyone point me toward an of course both in-exspensive and effective reverse osmosis unit? Will only be treating water for the aquarium, say 10 gallons a week on sundays


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## cbsmith (Feb 17, 2015)

I use this system. It is about the cheapest and works well. They are located in Canada but have free shipping to the U.S. I have used it for about 3 years now, first for the marine reef tank and now for my new Cichlid tank.

With the exchange rate it would be about $120 USD

http://www.aquasafecanada.com/products/ ... ystem.html


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## knadams (Mar 1, 2015)

Looks like pre softener water has a KH near 14-16 and a GH between 5-7, a nice unchanging pH of about 7.8-8.0 but has nearly 2 ppm ammonia straight out of the pipe?


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## cbsmith (Feb 17, 2015)

knadams said:


> Looks like pre softener water has a KH near 14-16 and a GH between 5-7, a nice unchanging pH of about 7.8-8.0 but has nearly 2 ppm ammonia straight out of the pipe?


Is your water treated with chlorine or chloramine? If it is chloramine then ammonia is part of it and will show up on a test kit. A water conditioner like Prime will take care of the chloramine and ammonia. 2ppm of ammonia wouldn't give you a smell though, so there must be something else in the water to give the smell and our test kits aren't going to pick that up. You would need a professional water sample test done.


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## knadams (Mar 1, 2015)

The smell comes from sulfar, as I asked earlier does anyone know this is harmful for fish? I took water out of the system before any filtration units


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## knadams (Mar 1, 2015)

To anyone that finds this thread, and is lost without its closure to hopefully fix their own problem.
AVOID POST WATER SOFTENER WATER!


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