My First Tank Ever (Gifted to me)

[Jenniferag29]

Hello!

I am a brand new fish tank owner! I have a 40 gallon tank with freshwater.  I'm trying to figure everything out as I go which isn't the best but I'm trying to make due with allllll the information that is out there!

I have about 13 fish.  Currently 2 (friendly) angelfish with some guppies and 2 black and white spotted fish (I don't know what kind!) I had a yoyo loach but it sadly died. I have been told that they are all pretty friendly fish that work well together.

I have some decorations and 1 driftwood log (that has already turned the water brown) due to the tannins. 

I did a water test and my gh and kh are at like 180! and My ph is reading about 8.5 which I know is high!

I'm hearing that spraghnum moss is great for lowering ph naturally but the only kind I can find says "for terrarium" on it and only talks about frogs/lizards..... is this still the correct one to use? 

I have an aqarium place coming to my house tomorrow to help me! I hope the fishies survive! 

 

I have some PH down chemicals but have been told not to use those due to them potentially being harmful. I also have some water "nutralizer" that I'm not sure if I should be using. 

I know the tank was jump started with the healthy bacteria and water conditioner. 

It currently has a Topfin filter system with heater. 

 

Thanks for any advice you might have for me 🙂 

[GameCzar]

The white and black spotted fish might be Mollies.

Have you tested your other parameters, ammonia, nitrates, nitrites, etc?  What is the PH of your tap water if I may ask?

I'm sure if you have pros on the way, they will be able to see what steps you need to take, but most likely the first step will be to get your PH down a bit and get your tank properly cycled. 

I can't speak of spraghnum moss, but a planted tank will make your life a lot easier and make the fish happy!

 

Edited September 30, 2021 by GameCzar

[Guppysnail]

Welcome to the hobby. Aquarium coop has straight forward easy to follow videos on everything and anything you need to know about getting started. They are valuable tools. They also sell two types of test strips. These will be priceless in maintaining a healthy environment for your fish. Plants also improve water quality and provide shelter and environmental enrichment for fish. Coop sells beautiful plants I have loved every single one I’ve purchased from them. I sound like a coop broken record but they are the information and supply one stop reliable place and my preferred go to. 😁

[quikv6]

Welcome to the hobby! It is very enjoyable. It can also be a bit stressful (especially at the beginning), but don't let that discourage you. The more you learn, the more confidence you gain, and the easier and more rewarding it gets.

It is great that you tested GH, KH, and PH. Being it sounds like it is a brand new, uncycled tank with multiple fish, I think ammonia and nitrite would be #1 and 2 on things to test. They can both be toxic and deadly to fish.

Feed very lightly, if at all, if you don't yet have an ammonia test. You can also buy a bottle of seachem prime, or fritz complete. These 2 declorinators also do more than just dechlorinate. (Speaking of which...chlorine/chloramine is toxic as well...make sure to dechlorinate)

Prime and Complete also detox ammonia for 24-48 hours, thus "neutralizing" it's harmful effects. If you don't have an ammonia test, you can just add a double dose of the above to help detox any ammonia.

Most importantly, good luck, and enjoy the process!

[Jenniferag29]

So I tested my tap water and it's about 120 for gh, kh, ph is about 7 and nitrite/nitrate are either 0 or .5 ....hard to tell.

I've lost 2 more guppies.... after buying several products at the store like more healthy bacteria, water "nutralizer" and ph-down....nothing has worked..... my gh and kh are still at least 180 if not higher and my ph is still over 8..... nitrite and nitrate and still about 0-0.5..... 

 

I'm not sure what else to do.  I added an API water softener pillow to the filter last night and another guppy died this afternoon.  

I don't want to even try adding plants in yet cause that's a whole other thing to worry about and they'll probably just die anyway.

Do any fish stores take fish back?? I don't want them all just to suffer and die in there

[Hobbit]

Some fish stores will take the fish back if that’s what you want to do. But don’t give up hope just yet. Growing pains are very normal in this hobby.

A few questions:

1. Do you have any way to test ammonia? That’s the most likely problem in a new tank.
2. Does your water conditioner detoxify chlorine AND chloramine?
3. What kind of gravel are you using?

Guppies and mollies like hard water, so your high GH and KH aren’t necessarily a bad thing.

Since your tap water has a pH of 7, I recommend doing a water change to get your pH back down. My only concern is whether or not you have ammonia in your tap water. (Some people do, and it’s an annoying problem that makes everything more complicated.)

Using pH up and down aren’t good long term solutions. And the exact pH isn’t too important, as long as it’s close to what the fish are used to and isn’t swinging up and down too fast.

[Jenniferag29]

I'll have to go back to the store and get something for ammonia cause the test kit I have doesn't test for that.

I know this water nutralizer stuff I bought does detoxify chlorine...not sure about the other so I'll check

Oh...the gravel are just different colors of pebbles? I know certain things like crushed corals and stuff mess with the levels but I think it's just pebbles

I really appreciate all of the help! My heart goes out to these poor little fish 

[CT_]

On 10/2/2021 at 2:13 PM, Jenniferag29 said:

I know this water nutralizer stuff I bought does detoxify chlorine...not sure about the other so I'll check

Beyond chlorine/chloramine they make a lot of claims depending on the brand.  use it for fresh tap water but don't rely on it to do anything else.  They're fairly benign though so in an emergency you can use it too since it can't hurt (if used within reason and you have good air exchange).  You can search here for multiple discussions about what they are (might be, the formulations are technically proprietary) and what they really do beyond dechlorinate.  It's a controversial topic though, mostly because its hard to find anything beyond anecdotal information, even from the companies.

 

Edit:  Also, welcome!  number 1 tip is don't stress too much.

Edited October 2, 2021 by CT_

[Intuos]

Would agree with hobbit that doing a water change would be beneficial. Another thing you can try is using peat filter media to help bring your PH down, it will also help with softening your water if that's what you want to do.

Whatever you do don't give up this hobby is really rewarding, we are all still learning all the time and have made the odd mistake along the way (have accidentally killed my fair share of fish over the years). 

[Hobbit]

Yes, @CT_ brings up a good point! Having an air stone or other sort of bubbling thing is good insurance in case the oxygen in the water gets too low.

The reason I ask about the gravel is that I have some Petco brand gravel (just their standard black stuff) that has raised my pH up to 8.4. I’m not sure what it’s made of, but it can raise the pH quite a bit.