Heavy Breathing

[tunedis95]

One of my bigger Mbuna is laying on the sand and managing to stay upright. He's breathing realy heavy. I did a water change last night. Accidently did about a 45% change. Had the water checked just a few minutes ago and everything was dead on. PH was a little low at 7.2 but im sure that will jump up in the next week or so. Last time it was one of my Johani's that went through this and he ended up dead later that day. I would hate to lose another fish. What could be the problem. All the other fish are ok except for him.

[imagirlgeek]

Pull him out and put him in a bucket with an air stone. Bubble the heck out of the water. He might perk right up.

Do you know what the pH was prior to your water change? Fish can't handle a big swing in pH.

[tunedis95]

I would think it was around 1 point higher.... Should I go pick up some upper for it??? A few are breathing heavy.... But acting normal.... I also have a mom holding eggs right now....I just put her in another tank.

[cichlid1409]

1 point ? as in 7.3 and now 7.2? if so thats not a big deal. i've seen this happen when not enough dechlorinator is added after a water change. that could be the problem...if you think that may be it, just add a little more and an air stone would help.

[tunedis95]

Well... Guess Ima go pick up an air pump.... I have that one fish in the bubble bath.... Back to petsmart I go... I think it use to be around 8 for the ph level....I wish I just did my normal 20% water change now... Argh

[imagirlgeek]

I do pretty large water changes...around 50% to 75%.

Just FYI - fish laying on the bottom and gasping is usually due to either a significant swing in pH OR chlorine in the water. Fish gasping at the surface is usually low oxygen levels OR chlorine in the water. It's odd that it's just this one fish though. Not that it's unheard of...I've seen it in my tanks too. But like I said, just pull him out into a bucket (I usually do 1/2 tank water, 1/2 fresh water) and bubble the hell out of the water in the bucket. 99% of the time, they perk up and can be put back in the tank.

What kind of dechlorinator do you use? Amquel + will lower the O2 for about the first hour or so after you add it to the tank.

[cichlid1409]

sounds like pH .... i typically do a 70-80% water change once a week i do add a buffer (baking soda) 1 tablespoon per 10 gallons keeps the pH no higher than 8.2. IMO your almost wasting your time only doing 20%.

[supadave]

I do pretty large water changes...around 50% to 75%.

Just FYI - fish laying on the bottom and gasping is usually due to either a significant swing in pH OR chlorine in the water. .

+1

I think you may have some chlorine in your water. You stated that you accidentally did a 45% water change instead of your normal 20%. Did you add more dechlorinator to account for the larger water change or did you use the same amount that you normally use?

[supadave]

IMO your almost wasting your time only doing 20%.

+1

I really don't see 20% being enough to reduce your Nitrates significantly.

[tunedis95]

I let that one fish back into the tank and he went to the same spot and laid on the sand gasping again...i had him in a container with the bubbles and he was swimming around in there...so i put him back in the little container with air. As for the buffer. I shook and added a couple teaspoons of AquaSafe water conditioner. That should be good right? Now that i think of it. The last water change i didnt even add any conditioner to the water and they were fine...

Thanx for the help ya!!! I just would hate to see these little guys not survive when they been doing fine this whole time.

[FrontosaurusRex]

WellI wish I just did my normal 20% water change now... Argh

Thats not a water change. What size tank are these fish in? Just out of curiousity, who taught you how to do water changes? (thats not a condiscending question, i really wanna know).

On my 55g Discus tank, I do DAILY 75% water changes and on my 125g Frontosa tank (which also requires a high PH level) I do a 50% water change every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. In my experience, if you arent draining at least 40% of the water, you are just spinning your wheels. Good luck with your fish.

[FrontosaurusRex]

As for the buffer. I shook and added a couple teaspoons of AquaSafe water conditioner. That should be good right? Now that i think of it. The last water change i didnt even add any conditioner to the water and they were fine...
.

I'm sure everybody on this site will have a different opinion about which water conditioner is best, but I think several will agree that AquaSafe is junk. I used to use Walmart products and then I switched to Petco products but nothing has worked as well as Prime. Its just a little more expensive but you barely have to use anything to get the job done. Some water conditioners dont eliminate all the harmful things in our drinking water, but Prime does. Give it shot.

[tunedis95]

My pops use to have a 55 back n the days..... Kinda following what he would do.... He never had any problems....I'm going to look for a better conditioner though... I'm not as hardcore into the hobby like some of u guys are, but I am learning as I go.......tank is a 55 gallon btw...

[imagirlgeek]

There are a lot of factors to consider when working out what water change schedule, and amount of water changed, works for you. I have a couple of large tanks with big, dirty fish that require a lot more attention as far as water changes go. And then I have smaller tanks with smaller fish that don't require the massive water changes.

Something that I found valuable when I got started was to test my tap water and find out what I was starting with. Was there ammonia, nitrites, nitrates, chlorine, or phosphates in my tap water.

My tap water isn't bad, so I just use Stress Coat Plus for my big tanks. And I keep a little bottle of the cheaper Zip Drops for the Betta bowls. I don't think I've ever used AquaSafe, so I can't offer my opinion on that.

[mikeb144]

I agree that a 20% water change is not enough. But there are a lot of things to consider when determining how often you need to do water changes. Population, filtration and of coarse what kind of fish you are tring to raise. With the exception of my Tropheus tanks, which I do a 50% weekly, I have all my Frontosa tanks set up an a 10 day water change @ about 40%. I/MO doing water changes every other day is over kill. I do understand that fish such as Discus require more frequent changes. This is just my opinion. This is a hobby not a job, don't make it one. P.S. I would be interested in knowing if fish that are recieving three water changes a week are breeding. I know that after my changes it take a day for all my fish to settle down.