New Tank

[Chris.d514]

The deaths happened before substrate change I started a stability cycle and plan to add endlers and shrimp to the tank since it keeps going to a low ph but they can handle the low ph.

[eklikewhoa]

With a substantial change like that could you put a cup of your tap on the counter and cover it. Test that cup 24hrs later.

That will show if the water isn't buffered enough and crashing, could also explain your deaths.

[R_sustaita]

Ipad changed the word lol, it was vacum lol

[LooksLater]

...When over feed has happen just do constant water changes and try to vacuall the food on the bottom.

Vacuall...sounds like an alternative to Python, where do you get those??

[R_sustaita]

What kind of substrate do you have there. What is the ph straight from the tap in your house. Ph of 6.5 is great for some fish. Mainly shrimp, but as why it is dropping with out you adding anything that is a good question.

Yes fish can die from over feeding and from decay food. When over feed has happen just do constant water changes and try to vacuall the food on the bottom.

[Chris.d514]

Ok well in 2 days the ph in my daughters 3.5 has gone from 8.4 to 6.8. No clue how or why but that tank keeps dropping ph.

[Chris.d514]

I have the ammonia and ph suction cup testers. The ph was 6.2 and ammonia below .02. But I already changed everything out and found my wife was feeding after I was and there was an extreme amount of decaying food.

[R_sustaita]

Do you have a test kit? What are the parameters of the water. You dont have to restart it. If the parameters are ok then the fish had other problems.

[Chris.d514]

Gotta restart my daughters tank cause I found 2 out of the 3 zebras dead and the powder blue staying at the top of the tank but alive. I have moved the surviving zebra to my tank to school with mine and moved the powder also so I can watch it.

[Chris.d514]

Ok I'll post to see if anyone might have an extra 5# s since it is a 3.5 g tank that should be plenty I think. I might look at moving the tufa rock in there as well because I want to add a big piece or a few medium pieces of holey rock to my tank with the black sand I think it should really pop and I found waterproof 24 led strips on amazon for $9 and was thinking a blue one for night when I have the main lights off.

[mnemenoi]

Changing gravel/substrate can be a very tough endeavor. In all honesty I'd simply do a complete restart and hopefully save the filter and media. Sand can be cleaner if not kept too deep. There are a variety of options and each has its perks and drawbacks.
PFS - (Pool Filter sand) what most of us use, its cheap and very clean out of the bag, does not alter the Ph and is inert. Its con is the size bag you have to buy (usually 50# bag, which will be more then you'll ever need) Could try and ask someone for some on the box here, you only really need a small bit)
Argonite - ground coral sand, sold in smaller bags, but way more expensive. It buffers the TDS and Ph up to 8.2+ Its used in marine or African Rift lake tanks to help buffer the PH to what is their more natural enviroment.
Play box sand - Home depot has it and its cheap, but way DIRTY. Wash it a million times and when the water runs clear do it 5 more. Once cklean it is basically PFS, just a bit more golden.
Craft Sand - Likely your best option, get it at Micheals or Hobby Lobby. Sold in tiny bags (perfect for you), but can be dirty and any 'colored' sand will likely act up. It might be dyed or who knows what. I'd rinse it good and watch it in a bucket for a few days to see its acting normal before doing a tank swap just to be sure its not going to be an issue.

Use your Stability and just work through your cycles again, these should be smaller and it will take far less time with a seasoned filter.

[Chris.d514]

Ok cool I will just let the tank do its thing. I am looking at changing my daughters tank from rainbow gravel to a white sand is there a best way to do this and a better brand of sand to use?

[mnemenoi]

As your bacteria are building the chemical levels are fluctuating and as a bacteria blooms to consume it you can see it as cloudy water. As they reduce the aforementioned chemical they will reduce in population again and it should return to normal. Sometimes its just easier to let it run its course and in a few weeks everything will be back to normal. If you notice the wafers do prompt this every feeding then it might be the culprit, but most uneaten food takes awhile to breakdown and give you cloudy water and as your bacteria get kickstarted they will eventually handle far more.

[R_sustaita]

i dont think it was because of an uneaten wafer.

[Chris.d514]

It has been off since 10 pm last night except for 30-45 min this morning when my wife woke up. I'll keep it off til sat morning. I also forgot I gave the corys algae wafers yesterday one was eaten and one was not could that be the culprit?