Hyperventilating Stingray, ongoing problem

[mun1984]

Dear all, just to share with you my experiences for the past 3 days. I have this tank since May this year, fully cycled and keeping discus, plecos a ghost knife fish and a ray in them.

Tank size is around 1000L (with sump). 4 days ago, discus have some sort of external skin problem

2 days ago, did a water change; meant to do a 50% water change, but due to a few miscommunication with wife, about 60% was changed instead. Anti-chlorine was used for the new water.

A day after water change, ray went off food and hyperventilating. Still moving about. Tested water, found that I had a huge KH drop. pH 5.0. NO3 was 50mg/L. NO2 was zero. Somehow my bio-filtration in the sump just disappeared. Added SeaChem Purigen, added 2 kg crushed coral, and a KH booster. Dosed the sump with good bacteria from Waterlife

This morning my KH was less than 5 still, pH has risen to 5.5 and NO3 was still 50mg/L. Decided to do another 50% water change today, after 24 hours of hyperventilation. Right after water change, the NO3 fell to 10mg/L. Gave another dose of Waterlife bacteria. However, ray is still hyperventilating, although a little more active than the day before.

Lessons i got from this so far
1) Should have done a water parameter check before changing water the 1st time
2) To give smaller water changes. Should have stuck to the usual 25 -30%

Any thoughts and advice so far? Ray is still not out of the woods yet. Am preparing myself for a dead ray today or tomorrow.

I have a burning question though, how did I manage to kill off my bio-filtration in a few hours? Wondering if the salt or water change did it. Or that it was out of whack even before thus leading to fungal like skin problems on the discus?

Thank you everyone for your time

 

[jim barry]

I don't pretend to know much about water quality and by the sounds of it i don't know half as much as you appear to know. But 2 questions.
How often to you change water as you don't say?
You mention salt. Why do you add salt?
I added salt once to my ray tank to treat some infection and one of my rays started breathing really really hard. I done another water change and the ray was fine again.
Good luck with the ray.

 

[mun1984]

Thank you for your response Jim. Nah, I don't know much about anything either. It just sounds like that because I just follow the instructions and recommendations from the SERA tests kits I have!

I added salt because of the initial problem with the discus. After the 2nd water change I did not add more salt. Prior to these 3 days, I've only changed the water once, a few months ago. Although I have kept the discus and plecos since May, the ray and ghost knife fish has only been in the tank for a month.

Quick update was that a few hours ago, the wife checked the NO3 levels for me, and it risen to 50mg/L again! That's in a matter of hours. My plan now is to just do another 50% water change when I get off work. If only bosses understand this should be classified as time to take emergency leave!

 

[predatorkeeper87]

well...if your nitrates are rising to 50 ppm from 10 in a matter of 1 day. that means not only is your bio filter working perfectly, but you have too many fish and not enough water changes. that's roughly a 265 gallon tank. rays and plecos together are probably one of the best combos I know for a nitrate factory. Up your water changes, you'll need to be doing probably about 50% 2x weekly if your nitrates rise that fast over night.

Did you measure your ammonia levels as well? I didn't see a number for that up above.

 

[mun1984]

Thanks Josh. Just want to double check if NO2 levels are the indication that the biofiler is working? Have it in my head that zero NO2 equates to no biological filtration, presence of NO2 means bacteria doing whatever they are supposed to do.

My 3 plecos are really small though a couple of inches?? The single ray I have is about 14inches. But you may be right....i have 15 discuses running about........

Yeah I think the only way to save my ray is to keep doing these water changes until the NO3 goes back down.

 

[predatorkeeper87]

NO3 are an indication. Your NO2 and (god help me if I'm wrong here, the chemists will kill me) NH3 should always measure ZERO. NO3 are your nitrates, meaning your biofilter is done with the other 2 chemical processes and has reduced your nitrites and ammonia to nitrate.

I'm impressed the discus haven't gone haywire and died yet. But rays are ultra sensitive as well so I can see why he's having an issue with high nitrates. What species of ray is it btw.

 

[mun1984]

ok cool. Yes I'm pretty impressed with the discus too. They are foraging and looking around for food already, although I have stopped feeding them for now. So do my plecos and ghost knife. Maybe because they are all non-wild and home-bred?

My ray is an Itaituba P14. Took me ages to find a female, home-bred. Really want to save her! From the latest report from home, she is not moving much, hyperventilating still.

 

[jim barry]

Mate, i can't believe you have gone months without changing water!!!
There is your problem right there. Seriously? Do some homework bud, i'm amased you have any fish left at all.
Get your water back in check then do water changes twice per week at least.
Good luck.

 

[spotfin]

Mate, i can't believe you have gone months without changing water!!!
There is your problem right there. Seriously? Do some homework bud, i'm amased you have any fish left at all.
Get your water back in check then do water changes twice per week at least.
Good luck.

X2. Going that long without a water change probably caused your KH to drop. What is the KH and pH of your tap water? Too many drastic changes, too quick.

 

[CANAMONSTER]

Mate, i can't believe you have gone months without changing water!!!
There is your problem right there. Seriously? Do some homework bud, i'm amased you have any fish left at all.
Get your water back in check then do water changes twice per week at least.
Good luck.

Like Jim said!

Your problem is right there!!! Water changes over time when you don't change the water, PH TDS, Salinity ect ect. It's not just Nitrates that are rising. Your new water was so far different then the old water that you probally caused a PH shock as well as a multitude of other changes. When you go that long with water changes best and safest way is to do small multiple until you bring the tank water back to your tap water parameters