It almost happened to me!

Hello all, first post in Simply Discus here!

So I'm new to keeping Discus, but not new to keeping fish in a planted tank. My discus have all been doing well and are thriving.

I did a water change prior to leaving for work (I'm doing 50% twice a week right now as the tank is still new, but cycled). I come home after my 12 hour shift at the hospital to find almost all my fish gasping at the surface 4 discus, 3 Philippine Blue Angels, Cories popping up for air more than usual. Discus looked really darked, respiratory rate elevated.

Water Parameters - ammonia 0, nitrite 0, nitrates less than 5. ph 7.4

I then realize that it's been raining here in Southern Ca for the last few days, so something's gotta be in the water. 50% water change immediately. I usually condition with API stress coat plus, but I remember reading that Prime also detoxifies heavy metals.....I have a bottle and dose with that instead. Within 5 minutes after dosing with the Prime, the fish start to settle down and respiratory rates lower. Their color has returned and they're swimming about the tank.

Holy crap that was scary, any recommendations moving forward? I have my water level a little low so that the output for the canister is a little higher than the water level creating greater surface agitation.

Everything so often, your water quality will change. In the Midwest, for example, the water company will double the dose of chloramine in the Fall because fallen foliage produces algal explosions in the sewage system. Your best bet in the long run is to condition your water. Aeration for 24 hours addresses many, many issues. If you don't have water storage capabilities, I would suggest

1. do not do water changes then run off to work. Observe your fish for 5 minutes to see if they're stressed.
2. when you see stress, add another 2 - 3X dosage of your water conditioner. There's no toxicity and it often helps.

Having said that, I want to reemphasize that a long term approach is to precondition your water.

Good luck, Willie

There's no way(not if your on water company water) that rain or anything else on the surface will affect your water. Municipal water is closely watched.

Thanks. I actually did the water change like an hour or so before I left for work, and I did get a chance to take a look at them before I left. I usually make a cup of coffee and sit in front of my tank before actually leaving.

I get what you're saying about the pre-conditioning though. Now that I've had some time to sleep, I think I might have overfilled the tank with too much water. I don't remember there being too much surface agitation prior to doing the water change. I didn't feel like ripping the air pump from my other tank, so I just went and grabbed a new air-pump and a large air stone from Petco. Fed the fish some bloodworms just now and they all ate, even the skiddish little 3" yellow turqouise.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Willie

Your best bet in the long run is to condition your water. Aeration for 24 hours addresses many, many issues.

Good luck, Willie

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He is absolutely correct. I used to direct fill my 75 gallon straight from the shower and had all kinds of problems. Then I started filling a trash can and adding aeration and proper tank matching temp for 24 hours which made a huge difference. Also, pH can be a problem with direct fills. Mine comes out of the tap at 7.4 and then goes up to 8.4 (the "real" pH) after 24 hours. The fish hate water changes where the pH changes so dramatically, and it can kill them.

I'm 99% sure that my tank wasn't aerated enough. The whole tank was doing really well 30 minutes after I added the air pump. I was wrong in assuming having my canister output would cause enough surface agitation. Add to that the extra water minimizing whatever agitation I had left. Regardless, I've left the pump on with a decent sized airstone and the tank has been thriving since.