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Danios: Behaviour and appearance questions
So now we have four danios (never go into a pet shop with three
children and the intention to buy two fish). Two are zebra, two are leopard. They were put into the tank yesterday afternoon. As of this morning, two of them - one zebra, one leopard - appear very yellow in colour. I found a photo on-line which showed zebra danios in both black-and-white and black-and-yellow tones, so presumably the colouring itself is normal, but is it usual for them to change colour? They weren't noticeably yellow yesterday. The other two fish look just the same as yesterday. Two of them - again, one of each, but not the same pair - seem very aggressive towards the others, chasing and seeming to nip at them. Is this normal behaviour? The non-yellow leopard danio looks fat - would it be noticeable if it was pregnant? (This is one of the less agressive two, it also seems to be moving a bit slower than the others, and less interested in shoaling.) PH is between 5.0 and 6.0 (bit closer to 6), ammonia is 0 and nitrite is 0.1. -- FishNoob |
FishNoob wrote:
So now we have four danios (never go into a pet shop with three children and the intention to buy two fish). Two are zebra, two are leopard. They were put into the tank yesterday afternoon. As of this morning, two of them - one zebra, one leopard - appear very yellow in colour. I found a photo on-line which showed zebra danios in both black-and-white and black-and-yellow tones, so presumably the colouring itself is normal, but is it usual for them to change colour? They weren't noticeably yellow yesterday. The other two fish look just the same as yesterday. Two of them - again, one of each, but not the same pair - seem very aggressive towards the others, chasing and seeming to nip at them. Is this normal behaviour? The non-yellow leopard danio looks fat - would it be noticeable if it was pregnant? (This is one of the less agressive two, it also seems to be moving a bit slower than the others, and less interested in shoaling.) PH is between 5.0 and 6.0 (bit closer to 6), ammonia is 0 and nitrite is 0.1. Your pH sounds a little bit low to me. What is it out of the tap? You might need to take some action on this if this is the tap water - others will be better qualified to advise on this. Gill |
Thusly FishNoob Spake Unto All:
As of this morning, two of them - one zebra, one leopard - appear very yellow in colour. I found a photo on-line which showed zebra danios in both black-and-white and black-and-yellow tones, so presumably the colouring itself is normal, but is it usual for them to change colour? They weren't noticeably yellow yesterday. The other two fish look just the same as yesterday. This: http://mikes-machine.mine.nu/specime...o_DSC_0324.jpg is what a zebra danio looks like. Leopard danio is believed (it is not certain) to be a breed of zebra danio, and has much the same base coloration. Neither are ever, AFAIK, white. Two of them - again, one of each, but not the same pair - seem very aggressive towards the others, chasing and seeming to nip at them. Is this normal behaviour? Yes. Males are somewhat territorial. The non-yellow leopard danio looks fat - would it be noticeable if it was pregnant? Yes, females are much plumper than males. PH is between 5.0 and 6.0 (bit closer to 6), ammonia is 0 and nitrite is 0.1. That's a low pH. Unless you are breeding sof****er fish like neons, you'd have greater margin of safety if you put a couple of limestones in the tank (which'll buffer the water and give a pH of 7.5). Now, 5 isn't lethally low, but many fish will have problems reproducing at that pH, and at 4.5 some fish will start to die. You also can not keep snails or shrimp at a pH under 6. |
Mean_Chlorine wrote:
This: http://mikes-machine.mine.nu/specime...o_DSC_0324.jpg is what a zebra danio looks like. That's a great picture! I've never had my long-fin zebras stay still long enough to get a shot like that! |
FishNoob wrote:
So now we have four danios (never go into a pet shop with three children and the intention to buy two fish). Two are zebra, two are leopard. They were put into the tank yesterday afternoon. ROFL! My BF is like that in fish stores. You'll be fine with four danios. As of this morning, two of them - one zebra, one leopard - appear very yellow in colour. I found a photo on-line which showed zebra danios in both black-and-white and black-and-yellow tones, so presumably the colouring itself is normal, but is it usual for them to change colour? They weren't noticeably yellow yesterday. The other two fish look just the same as yesterday. Fish like danios subtly change colors all the time. They tend to go pale when stressed and darken when they're content. Some fish will show or lose stripes as well. If a bunch of fish in your tank suddenly go pale and still, they're "telling" you that something is amiss. Two of them - again, one of each, but not the same pair - seem very aggressive towards the others, chasing and seeming to nip at them. Is this normal behaviour? The non-yellow leopard danio looks fat - would it be noticeable if it was pregnant? (This is one of the less agressive two, it also seems to be moving a bit slower than the others, and less interested in shoaling.) It's either carrying eggs or unwell. In many small, shoaling species, male fish are thinner than females and often have slightly deeper color. If the fat fish's scales start to stick out from its body, it is sick with a disease called "dropsy." Let's hope that's not the case. PH is between 5.0 and 6.0 (bit closer to 6), ammonia is 0 and nitrite is 0.1. Your water must be very soft. There IS an advantage to having a low pH while your tank cycles. Ammonia is much less toxic at low pH. However, bacteria don't grow very well below pH 5.5. If there is not much ammonia yet, I'd try to gently raise the pH to around 7. In the short term, since there's no ammonia, add 1/4 US tsp (there's about 5 ml of volume in a US teaspoon; I don't know how many grams) of predissolved baking soda (sodium bicarbonate, bicarbonate of soda, bicarb) to your tank today. The pH and KH will rise and then fall again over the next 24 hours. Test pH and ammonia again tomorrow. If pH isn't up to 7 or higher and ammonia stays below 0.5 ppm (it should since you have some nitrite but you never know), add another 1/4 tsp of baking soda. This *should* be enough baking soda, but you can repeat this for two more days if necessary. In the long term, you have a couple of options. For a planted tank, use a buffer like Seqchem's Equilibrium when you change water. It's designed to set the pH at 7.0 and supply essential nutrients for plants. Another easy, natural way to control pH is to put a form of calcium carbonate in the tank or filter. It will slowly dissolve and increase both the general hardness and pH (carbonate hardness, to be more precise) with no fiddling on your part. Seashells, crushed coral, or limestone all work. The more you add, the higher the pH will go, up to a maximum of 8.4. Livebearers in particular appreciate water that's been hardened with limestone. Finally, you can keep using baking soda, adding more when you change water. You can do this if you end up choosing a tank full of soft water fish and don't need a buffer like Equilibrium. -- Elaine T __ http://eethomp.com/fish.html '__ rec.aquaria.* FAQ http://faq.thekrib.com |
Thusly Guido Spake Unto All:
This: http://mikes-machine.mine.nu/specime...o_DSC_0324.jpg is what a zebra danio looks like. That's a great picture! I've never had my long-fin zebras stay still long enough to get a shot like that! Glad you like it; zebras are so hyperactive it took me ages to get a decent shot, and it's still not as good as I'd like. It came as a surprise to at least me that zebras have so much blue on them. |
Thusly FishNoob Spake Unto All:
PH is between 5.0 and 6.0 (bit closer to 6), ammonia is 0 and nitrite is 0.1. That's a low pH. Unless you are breeding sof****er fish like neons, you'd have greater margin of safety if you put a couple of limestones in the tank (which'll buffer the water and give a pH of 7.5). So it's okay to put some limestone in? I read some websites that said that rocks were okay to add as long as they *weren't* limestone Yeah, that's because most websites don't know anything at all about water chemistry, and simply quote eachother and/or books by authors who don't know anything about water chemistry either, therby perpetuating a whole range of myths. Limestone in water will neutralize acid, and raise pH. Most of our fishes come from water with a pH of about 6 - 8. This much everyone know. What the websites etc miss is that the dissolution of calcium carbonate has an endpoint at 8.3 (which, incidentally, is a 100% safe pH), and that the process speed decreases the closer you get to 8.3, so the actual pH in an aquarium filled with limestone will stabilize around 7.5. That is, you _can not_ kill your fish by raising pH with limestone. You will never reach dangerously high pH's. Ever. Then there's the issue of "the right pH". The importance of, and the sensitivity of fish to, pH is monstrously exaggerated in aquaristics. Fact of the matter is, pH 7.5 is _perfect_ for every freshwater fish on this earth EXCEPT if you're breeding (and I do mean breeding, not just keeping) blackwater fish like neons or if you're a high-tech plant aquarist who want maximum amount of free CO2 in the water. The reason you may need to lower pH when breeding blackwater fish is because the fish may use low pH as a trigger for spawning, or the egg membranes may become impermeable to the sperm. The adult fish' health is completely unaffected. Every fish on earth, including the marine ones, will also greatly prefer a stable pH over a fluctuating one, and the limestone will make the pH stable. In your case, with your very low pH, a limestone (or shells etc) may actually be a lifesaver for your fish. I also read somewhere (thought it was here, but can't find it here now) that placing some seashells in the tank will increase the ph. I Yes, anything that's made of calcium carbonate: shells, fossils, limestone, chalk, even eggshells, but NOT blackboard chalk (that's calcium SULPHATE, aka gypsum, and will not buffer pH at all). |
FishNoob wrote:
In article , says... PH is between 5.0 and 6.0 (bit closer to 6), ammonia is 0 and nitrite is 0.1. That's a low pH. Unless you are breeding sof****er fish like neons, you'd have greater margin of safety if you put a couple of limestones in the tank (which'll buffer the water and give a pH of 7.5). So it's okay to put some limestone in? I read some websites that said that rocks were okay to add as long as they *weren't* limestone, so we collected some rocks and tested them. We set aside those that contained limestone, but there are a couple of great ones (the kids particularly like the one that looks like a fossil of an alien's head G), so if we *can* use them... I keep a small bag of "crushed coral" - i.e. limestone - in each of my filters. It's to add some alkalinity (carbonate hardness) and buffer pH. That's because my city water is soft, about 35 ppm (total hardness or carbonate hardness - the test kit is not clear which it measures). The crushed coral/ limestone gives me about 80 ppm "hardness" and a pH of 7.1 to 7.3, so I can be confident there will be not pH "crashes" toward acidity. Using carbonate in the filter is recommended by several aquarium books I've read. Using pieces of limestone should be pefectly all right, unless you want low hardness and acid conditions. I think that rocks to be avoided are those containing sulphide or arsenide minerals (pyrite, arsenopyrite...), and perhaps sulphates (gypsum). I hope you keep having fun with the aquarium! Steve |
Mean_Chlorine wrote:
Thusly FishNoob Spake Unto All: PH is between 5.0 and 6.0 (bit closer to 6), ammonia is 0 and nitrite is 0.1. That's a low pH. Unless you are breeding sof****er fish like neons, you'd have greater margin of safety if you put a couple of limestones in the tank (which'll buffer the water and give a pH of 7.5). So it's okay to put some limestone in? I read some websites that said that rocks were okay to add as long as they *weren't* limestone Yeah, that's because most websites don't know anything at all about water chemistry, and simply quote eachother and/or books by authors who don't know anything about water chemistry either, therby perpetuating a whole range of myths. Limestone in water will neutralize acid, and raise pH. Most of our fishes come from water with a pH of about 6 - 8. This much everyone know. What the websites etc miss is that the dissolution of calcium carbonate has an endpoint at 8.3 (which, incidentally, is a 100% safe pH), and that the process speed decreases the closer you get to 8.3, so the actual pH in an aquarium filled with limestone will stabilize around 7.5. That is, you _can not_ kill your fish by raising pH with limestone. You will never reach dangerously high pH's. Ever. You've got me curious because I've not seen pH stabilize around 7.5 when I fill a tank calcium carbonate. I've always had hard, high pH tapwater, though. When I stuff a tank with carbonates, it's usually for marine fish or Tanganyikan cichlids and with hard water to start with, the pH generally ends up above 8.0. If you have time to elaborate on the equilibrium chemistry for soft water or have a link, I'd enjoy taking a look. -- Elaine T __ http://eethomp.com/fish.html '__ rec.aquaria.* FAQ http://faq.thekrib.com |
Thusly Elaine T Spake Unto All:
You've got me curious because I've not seen pH stabilize around 7.5 when I fill a tank calcium carbonate. I've always had hard, high pH tapwater, though. When I stuff a tank with carbonates, it's usually for marine fish or Tanganyikan cichlids and with hard water to start with, the pH generally ends up above 8.0. If you have time to elaborate on the equilibrium chemistry for soft water or have a link, I'd enjoy taking a look. If you start with very hard water, it'll take very long for the acids and CO2 produced by your fish & plants to drive pH down to where the limestone will start reacting; quite possibly it'll never happen if you top up with hard water or do regular water changes - the buffering capacity of the water itself is such that the buffering capacity of the limestone never comes in to play. That is, you start with so hard water that it doesn't matter what rocks you put in. If you start with very soft water, you'll tend to end up around 7.5. Very hard natural water will at equilibrium have a pH of 8.3. This is the highest pH you can get with bicarbonate (the product of limestone dissolution and chief buffering component of natural waters). Natural waters with a pH significantly higher than that (e.g. Tanganyika, with a pH of 9 - 9.2) get that pH either because 'soda' (hydroxide) is leaching into the water from the surrounding sediments, or because there is so heavy plant growth that bicarbonate becomes depleted (the CO2 content of the water is not at equilibrium with the atmosphere). Also, and don't take this the wrong way, but unless you're using a recently calibrated electronic pH meter, ie you use drip-titration-kits or, worse, pH paper or multisticks, you don't actually know your pH with greater accuracy than +/- 0.5 to 1 unit, regardless of what it says on the box. |
Mean_Chlorine wrote:
Thusly Elaine T Spake Unto All: You've got me curious because I've not seen pH stabilize around 7.5 when I fill a tank calcium carbonate. I've always had hard, high pH tapwater, though. When I stuff a tank with carbonates, it's usually for marine fish or Tanganyikan cichlids and with hard water to start with, the pH generally ends up above 8.0. If you have time to elaborate on the equilibrium chemistry for soft water or have a link, I'd enjoy taking a look. If you start with very hard water, it'll take very long for the acids and CO2 produced by your fish & plants to drive pH down to where the limestone will start reacting; quite possibly it'll never happen if you top up with hard water or do regular water changes - the buffering capacity of the water itself is such that the buffering capacity of the limestone never comes in to play. That is, you start with so hard water that it doesn't matter what rocks you put in. If you start with very soft water, you'll tend to end up around 7.5. Very hard natural water will at equilibrium have a pH of 8.3. This is the highest pH you can get with bicarbonate (the product of limestone dissolution and chief buffering component of natural waters). Natural waters with a pH significantly higher than that (e.g. Tanganyika, with a pH of 9 - 9.2) get that pH either because 'soda' (hydroxide) is leaching into the water from the surrounding sediments, or because there is so heavy plant growth that bicarbonate becomes depleted (the CO2 content of the water is not at equilibrium with the atmosphere). Also, and don't take this the wrong way, but unless you're using a recently calibrated electronic pH meter, ie you use drip-titration-kits or, worse, pH paper or multisticks, you don't actually know your pH with greater accuracy than +/- 0.5 to 1 unit, regardless of what it says on the box. Thanks - that makes sense. Basically you're saying that bicarbonate from calcium carbonate only reaches its 8.3 pKa in natural waters where the amount of limestone is huge and the water has years of slow contact, right? I mostly use liquid bromthymol or bromphenol blue for measuring pH around neutral. I'm not sure what the indicator is for my liquid high range kit. However, you reminded me of the classic science lab experiment where you put a drop of BTB in distilled water. Gently blow on it for a bit and it goes yellow. Shake hard for a little while and it goes blue. Similarly, it's wickedly hard to get a reproducible pH measurement on a CO2 injected plant tank with a liquid kit. I actualy don't have too much trouble with my liqid kits getting reproducible measurements within a given day in my hardwater non-CO2 tanks (I've tried this), but you're correct that I don't know the accuracy. -- Elaine T __ http://eethomp.com/fish.html '__ rec.aquaria.* FAQ http://faq.thekrib.com |
On the coloration of your Zebras... the males have a silver tone to
them while females have a golden tone between the black lines. You will notice as they get larger, the females will become increasingly aggressive towards the males and they will become more gold in color and very wide. Sometimes they can be double the size of the males. A larger group will cut down on the aggression. On your leopards, there is a gold variety, a regular variety and a blue variety. There is also a long finned variety, just like in Zebras. If your fish are more gold then silver, you probably have gold leopard danios. Leopards (brachydanio frankei) and Zebras (brachydanio rerio) are two different species, so they will not breed. Although, I am sure there are hybrids; they will be more likely to breed with their own species first. Golden zebra danios, long finned golden zebras, long finned zebras, and short finned zebras, can all breed together since they are the same species... just different fancy strains created from specific breeding. Same goes for the leopard color varieties and tails listed in the second paragraph. |
Thusly Elaine T Spake Unto All:
Thanks - that makes sense. Basically you're saying that bicarbonate from calcium carbonate only reaches its 8.3 pKa in natural waters where the amount of limestone is huge and the water has years of slow contact, right? Pretty much, although in most cases you'll never actually reach 8.3. Even in areas where the bedrock is limestone, natural surface waters usually have a pH of 7.5 - 7.7-ish. I actualy don't have too much trouble with my liqid kits getting reproducible measurements within a given day in my hardwater non-CO2 tanks (I've tried this), but you're correct that I don't know the accuracy. The liquid kits usually aren't bad, and for normal aquarium use you don't need to know the pH with greater accuracy than 0.5 - 1 unit; pH is simply not that critical unless you have a specialty aquarium (e.g. high-tech plant tank or maintain a pH below 6 or above 9). The pH papers and multisticks, however, are atrocious. Maybe they're OK when they're fresh from the factory, but after a year or so on the shelf they're usually so wildly off that one IME is better off without them. |
Thusly " Spake
Unto All: Leopards (brachydanio frankei) and Zebras (brachydanio rerio) are two different species, so they will not breed. AFA is known that is not true. The leopard has never, despite considerable effort, been found in nature, and is now believed to be a captive-bred strain of zebra danio, and /Danio frankei/ is today considered a synonym of /Danio rerio/, with which it will also interbreed. However, the leopard danio has reduced fertility, which *might* indicate that it itself is a hybrid between /D. rerio/ and some other species of /Danio/. The genus /Brachydanio/ is today considered a synonym of /Danio/, comprising most of the small species of danios, whereas the genus /Devario/ comprises most of the big species (e.g. /Devario aequipinnatus/, the common giant danio). Also, FWIW, I do not recall ever having seen a silver or blue strain of leopard danio or zebra danio. I have seen albinos & partial albinos, though. |
"Steve" wrote in message
... FishNoob wrote: In article , says... PH is between 5.0 and 6.0 (bit closer to 6), ammonia is 0 and nitrite is 0.1. That's a low pH. Unless you are breeding sof****er fish like neons, you'd have greater margin of safety if you put a couple of limestones in the tank (which'll buffer the water and give a pH of 7.5). So it's okay to put some limestone in? I read some websites that said that rocks were okay to add as long as they *weren't* limestone, so we collected some rocks and tested them. We set aside those that contained limestone, but there are a couple of great ones (the kids particularly like the one that looks like a fossil of an alien's head G), so if we *can* use them... I keep a small bag of "crushed coral" - i.e. limestone - in each of my filters. It's to add some alkalinity (carbonate hardness) and buffer pH. That's because my city water is soft, about 35 ppm (total hardness or carbonate hardness - the test kit is not clear which it measures). The crushed coral/ limestone gives me about 80 ppm "hardness" and a pH of 7.1 to 7.3, so I can be confident there will be not pH "crashes" toward acidity. Using carbonate in the filter is recommended by several aquarium books I've read. Using pieces of limestone should be pefectly all right, unless you want low hardness and acid conditions. I think that rocks to be avoided are those containing sulphide or arsenide minerals (pyrite, arsenopyrite...), and perhaps sulphates (gypsum). I hope you keep having fun with the aquarium! Steve I don't have any experience using limestone, but I've been told that because of its composition, it leeches very slowly. Depending on application, this can be advantageous, or you might find it ineffective. I usually used crushed coral in medium sized chunks (about 1" pieces). With bigger pieces, the surface area is decreased (slower leeching) and with smaller pieces, the water flow around them decreases (again slower leeching) unless they are in a filter. However, despite often reading the recommendation to use crushed coral in a filter, I've found it to be only mildly effective there. The water flow is great, but the quantity which you can put into a filter is usually too small to really be as effective as I would usually prefer to have. If you take an extra canister filter and fill it entirely, you'll get better results (if you need it). -- www.NetMax.tk |
If you start with very hard water, it'll take very long for the acids and CO2 produced by your fish & plants to drive pH down to where the limestone will start reacting; quite possibly it'll never happen if you top up with hard water or do regular water changes - the buffering capacity of the water itself is such that the buffering capacity of the limestone never comes in to play. That is, you start with so hard water that it doesn't matter what rocks you put in. If you start with very soft water, you'll tend to end up around 7.5. Very hard natural water will at equilibrium have a pH of 8.3. This is the highest pH you can get with bicarbonate (the product of limestone dissolution and chief buffering component of natural waters). Natural waters with a pH significantly higher than that (e.g. Tanganyika, with a pH of 9 - 9.2) get that pH either because 'soda' (hydroxide) is leaching into the water from the surrounding sediments, or because there is so heavy plant growth that bicarbonate becomes depleted (the CO2 content of the water is not at equilibrium with the atmosphere). This is very helpful to me as both my Juwel tanks ( 400ltr and 60ltr) ph drops all the time. Liqiud API test kit says 6.0, but I'm not so sure, as even after a 20% water change it only goes up to 6.4. So assuming I want to use crushed coral or limestone (any online UK sources ? ), how much would I need for each tank ? Also, the 400ltr has a Rena XP3 external with a bio compartment. Would I be better putting the coral inside the filter ? Thanks, Peter |
Thusly "2pods" Spake Unto All:
This is very helpful to me as both my Juwel tanks ( 400ltr and 60ltr) ph drops all the time. That is possible, but unlikely. If you have, say, very large amounts of driftwood or peat, or add CO2 to the tank, or you only use RO/DI water, then you can get very low pH. Otherwise it is almost impossible to get a pH unsuitable for fish in aquaria; pH is really a non-issue in aquaria except for advanced aquarists, and then only because those screw around with water parameters a lot (and usually unnecessarily). Limestone is good because it smoothes out fluctuations and steadies the pH at a nice level, but even without you are unlikely to see dangerously low pH's unless, as I said, you're an advanced aquarist. Liqiud API test kit says 6.0, but I'm not so sure, as even after a 20% water change it only goes up to 6.4. Have you tested your tap-water? What does your waterworks say the pH of your tapwater should be? So assuming I want to use crushed coral or limestone (any online UK sources ? ), how much would I need for each tank ? It's impossible to say, but the beauty of it is that you can't hurt your fish by overdosing. Put some shells or something in, see if it helps, if not, add more. But I suspect your real problem is with your pH test kit - in most cases when people measure really low or really high pH in their tanks, it's really a case of inaccurate or aged test kits. Also, the 400ltr has a Rena XP3 external with a bio compartment. Would I be better putting the coral inside the filter ? You'll get faster/bigger effect the more finely ground the limestone is, and the more water flows past it, but the effect will never really be either fast or big. Limestone simply reacts slowly at pH's around neutral. A quicker way is to directly modify the alkalinity of the water through adding bikarbonate, but when it comes to pH quick changes are not always a good idea, and I normally suggest using limestone instead. |
"Mean_Chlorine" wrote in message ... Thusly "2pods" Spake Unto All: This is very helpful to me as both my Juwel tanks ( 400ltr and 60ltr) ph drops all the time. That is possible, but unlikely. If you have, say, very large amounts of driftwood or peat, or add CO2 to the tank, or you only use RO/DI water, then you can get very low pH. Otherwise it is almost impossible to get a pH unsuitable for fish in aquaria; pH is really a non-issue in aquaria except for advanced aquarists, and then only because those screw around with water parameters a lot (and usually unnecessarily). Limestone is good because it smoothes out fluctuations and steadies the pH at a nice level, but even without you are unlikely to see dangerously low pH's unless, as I said, you're an advanced aquarist Liqiud API test kit says 6.0, but I'm not so sure, as even after a 20% water change it only goes up to 6.4. Have you tested your tap-water? Yes, it's dead on 7.0 What does your waterworks say the pH of your tapwater should be? 7.0 So assuming I want to use crushed coral or limestone (any online UK sources ? ), how much would I need for each tank ? It's impossible to say, but the beauty of it is that you can't hurt your fish by overdosing. Put some shells or something in, see if it helps, if not, add more. But I suspect your real problem is with your pH test kit - in most cases when people measure really low or really high pH in their tanks, it's really a case of inaccurate or aged test kits. All three test kits, of different brands ? The only difference between the affected tanks (400 and 60 ltr) and the unaffected tank (240ltr) is the fact that the plants in the low pH tanks (Cabomba, Watersprite, Hygrophillia) are growing well, while the "normal pH tank (6.8 - 7.0) has less plants and has lots of algae. All three tanks have gravel and use the same dechlor with a weekly water change. Also, the 400ltr has a Rena XP3 external with a bio compartment. Would I be better putting the coral inside the filter ? You'll get faster/bigger effect the more finely ground the limestone is, and the more water flows past it, but the effect will never really be either fast or big. Limestone simply reacts slowly at pH's around neutral. A quicker way is to directly modify the alkalinity of the water through adding bikarbonate, but when it comes to pH quick changes are not always a good idea, and I normally suggest using limestone instead. quick = bad for fish Peter |
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