The acclamation process

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Aquanero

Aquanero

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Tomorrow I have 6 small Rio Iridia P. Altum arriving. I have a well aged (running over 2 years) 45 gal tank ready for them. The water paramiters are Temp 86, Ph 5.8, Ammonia 0, Nitrite 0, Nitrate 5ppm. I don't have a test for hardness but my water is relatively soft. I have been filtering the water through peat for the last five days and it has a nice yellow tint. This tank also has a UV sterilizer running. I had trouble getting the ph down below 6.2 so added some white vinegar yesterday to push it down to the 5.5 mark. It's been holding steady all day.

So here's my question. I would like to hear how you guys acclamate your fish, any tips tricks or advice would be greatly appriciated. I usually just float the bad mix in some tank water and after about an hour let'em go. These guys will be going into and empty tank so I don't have to worry about any other fish. So that's the story.
 
I may be alone in this, but I have always used the grab and plop method with all my fish from fry to adults, convicts to discus. My tank water is almost always warmer and higher in hardness/pH than the source water the fish come from, and I've always heard that going from lower to higher pH is fine, but not vice versa. I have never lost a healthy fish this way. The only fish I've lost overnight after receiving them are fish that were somehow injured in shipping (busted boxes, leaking bags, etc.).

Wild altums are extremely touchy fish if they have not been properly acclimated upon import. They are much like panda uaru when it comes to being touchy. Once you get them through their treatments they tend to do well. Are they coming from a source who has acclimated them?
 
I sometimes float depending on how cold the bag water is...as soon as I open the bag though, I get the fish in my tank ASAP...Do Not add ammonia high shipping water into your tank.

Now your tank/parameter is special...5.5 pH Did you ask what the shipper's pH was? If its 6 pH then its perfect, 7 pH should be ok too. Because the bag water is now more acidic than when the shipper packed the box.
 
Yes Ryan, they arrived in the states on July 12th. So what's that 2 weeks? The vendor has treated for parasites (or so he says who ever knows for sure) and has slowly been raising the ph from the high 4's.
 
I just float the bag for twenty or thirty minutes, if at all. I know you said there are no other fish in the tank but I find if you float them in the bag when other fish in the tank they become to investigatory for my liking. Usually gets them beat up a little more. Sounds to me like you're doing way more than most of us do so you should be fine.
 
Calihawk said:
I sometimes float depending on how cold the bag water is...as soon as I open the bag though, I get the fish in my tank ASAP...Do Not add ammonia high shipping water into your tank.

Now your tank/parameter is special...5.5 pH Did you ask what the shipper's pH was? If its 6 pH then its perfect, 7 pH should be ok too. Because the bag water is now more acidic than when the shipper packed the box.
Click to expand...

I thought I should mix some tank water to the bag as it floats but I think your right. Maybe I'll test the water when they arrive if my ph is higher and my tank is warmer maybe I should net them and let them go.
 
I may be alone in this, but I have always used the grab and plop method with all my fish from fry to adults, convicts to discus. My tank water is almost always warmer and higher in hardness/pH than the source water the fish come from, and I've always heard that going from lower to higher pH is fine, but not vice versa. I have never lost a healthy fish this way.
Click to expand...

You are not alone. :)
 
I float bags 10 to 20 minutes, every 3-5 minutes I take out a cup of water from the bag, dump it, and add a cup of tank water, if the bag is big enough.
pH shock can be serious, every tenth in the pH scale is a 10 fold difference in acidity, so 6-7 is 100 times more basic. After 24 hours or more in a shipping bag, the fish don't need another added shock. If it were a sturdy riverine Parachromis that is used to fluctuating conditions I might not treat it so daintily, but something sensitive well........I might err on the side of being careful.
 
I never float fish getting shipped in. I'll throw them in a 5 gallon bucket or the styro they were shipped in and add a bit of Prime to neutralize the ammonia released when the water is exposed to fresh air... Then I do a quick 20-40 minute acclimation.


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