Water Parameters

[Helpwithmy_snailpls]

My snail passed away recently and I am not sure if that’s what caused the change in the water and how much of a water change do I do to fix it or what do I need to add and the ph is a really bright yellow 

Also there’s brown spots on top of my fish decor

[Mike Chesmer]

PH really low, add some baking soda to the tank. It will increase the PH. What change in the water are we talking about? If anything, a snail dying in a tank will increase ammonia. Taking it out will correct that. Brown spots sounds like algae too, but at such low PH is not normal I would say. Snails have a life span, so how old was it? Did you have it long? Could have been the low PH. Not an expert, but I think snails need high PH. Like really high PH, around 8 or so. Yellow on PH readings is 6 or so, which is very low. I would water change about 50%, and fix the PH with baking soda (which works really good). Change in water? Did the ammonia level rise? Nitrite rise? Those could have just been the snail in the water when it passed. Taking it out would just fix that. I just recently lost a bunch of nerite snails myself, but my tank was still cycling and I think thats what did them in. 

[Helpwithmy_snailpls]

In the change in the water perm enters went from good and oki to bad out of no where and I also did a 50 percent water change when Yellowstone passed away(the snail)the nirtrite got low I had him for a month only): now I only have my betta in the tank

He died about a week and a half ago and i and not sure if it’s safe to do a other 50% water change

[Chick-In-Of-TheSea]

Here is the other thread showing the history.

 

[Chick-In-Of-TheSea]

@Helpwithmy_snailpls 

To start, the 2 main things to watch are ammonia and nitrite. They should always be zero. If they are not zero, you should change 50% of the water to protect your fish. Test again each day until the readings remain at zero without changing water. Here is a helpful video.

I would do these things first before you worry about the pH.

@jwcarlson

@JJenna

@nabokovfan87

Edited April 4, 2023 by Chick-In-Of-TheSea

[Helpwithmy_snailpls]

I have watched that video

 

The ph went back up

 

[Helpwithmy_snailpls]

I have to go on a trip to see my sister for four days and all I have to do for merman is set up the auto feeder and have enough food for four days that’s all right?and do I leave the heater on and the lights off while I am on the trip?

[jwcarlson]

I currently have three (and a fourth on the way) type of test for pH and so far I don't really trust any of them.  Especially the strips.  I wouldn't worry much about pH at this point.  pH can fluctuate between what comes out of your faucet and 

The bigger concern is that your tank looks uncycled, I think?  0 ammonia is good.  0 nitrite is good, but 0 nitrate is usually not good unless you have a lot of plants who are just eating it all or that you're doing so much water changes that it keeps it very low, which is possible.

In regards to your trip, I wouldn't set up an auto feeder as that's kind of asking to have an issue with your water while you're gone.  Your fish will be fine without food for four days.  If the light isn't on a timer, I would just leave it off.  Your heater should be on every hour of every day unless your house is warm enough that you don't need one or you are draining enough water out that it would expose it.

[Helpwithmy_snailpls]

Well for me it’s going to be summer soon so the house is usually really warm and I had the tank for almost 4-5 months and I been wondering why hasn’t algae been growing and also I only have one ph strip left so I have to go to the store and I am going to get a master kit instead 

[Chick-In-Of-TheSea]

On 4/4/2023 at 12:00 PM, jwcarlson said:

I wouldn't set up an auto feeder as that's kind of asking to have an issue with your water while you're gone

I agree. Just feed your fish a small amount before you leave, not too much. The heater should be left on. Don’t worry about it getting too hot. The heater shuts itself off when the water gets to the temperature you set it for. Are you able to set the temperature on the heater you have or is it automatic? For your betta, I recommend setting it at 80.

On 3/27/2023 at 5:28 PM, Helpwithmy_snailpls said:

brown spots on top of my fish decor

This is algae. It’s a good thing! It is called brown diatoms.

Edited April 4, 2023 by Chick-In-Of-TheSea

[Helpwithmy_snailpls]

Oki and yes I can set up but and 1 day before I leave do I clean it I cleaned it last weekend

[nabokovfan87]

On 4/4/2023 at 8:44 AM, Helpwithmy_snailpls said:

I have to go on a trip to see my sister for four days and all I have to do for merman is set up the auto feeder and have enough food for four days that’s all right?and do I leave the heater on and the lights off while I am on the trip?

you don't need to feed a fish every day.  Having some days off is actually healthy and helps the fish to expel any waste that might be causing discomfort.  For a short trip 2-3 days, not really that big of an issue.  Feed the fish when you go, when you get back home.

You would always want to run the equipment (heater, filter, air pump, lights) as normal.  The light is for the plants and for the fish behavior.  The filter and heat is your life support to keep the fish alive and reduce stress.

On 4/4/2023 at 9:00 AM, jwcarlson said:

If the light isn't on a timer, I would just leave it off.

Correct! If you don't have a timer to control the on/off on the light, highly recommended to purchase one, but do leave the lights off in that case.

[nabokovfan87]

On 3/27/2023 at 2:28 PM, Helpwithmy_snailpls said:

My snail passed away recently and I am not sure if that’s what caused the change in the water and how much of a water change do I do to fix it or what do I need to add and the ph is a really bright yellow 

What you need is called crushed coral.

Your KH is 0. Which affects / causes the PH to be lower.  This is bad for shrimp / snails when it gets too low.  It leads to erosion because there's not enough calcium in the water for them.

https://www.aquariumcoop.com/blogs/aquarium/ph-gh-kh

Quote

KH (or Carbonate Hardness)

KH measures the amount of carbonates and bicarbonates in water, which affects the buffering capacity of the water. This means that KH helps neutralize acids and prevents your pH from changing too rapidly, which is useful because sudden pH crashes can cause health issues in your fish. Low KH means your water has less buffering capacity and the pH swings easily. High KH means your water has more buffering capacity and the pH level is hard to change.

Think of KH like a trash can. The higher the KH, the larger the trash can. If we overflow that trash can, then a pH crash occurs. Therefore, people with low KH in their tap water often use crushed coral to gradually raise the KH (or increase the size of their trash can) and prevent pH crashes.