Heavy Breathing, need help from community tank experienced.
Hi guys need your help liao loh!
Need opinions from cichlid community tank experienced like Art, Cloud and LSZ.
I noticed my fishes are breathing heavy in my malawi hap tank, you know, mouth open and close constantly. I compared them to the fishes mbuna tank, the mbuna dont open and close their mouths, only like once or twice every minute only or none at all.
So the hap tank fishes does so, especially the smaller fishes. Behavior wise is very normal, swim around and occasional bickering and short chase, and eager to eat food.
I noticed this after a 25% water change, they might be already like this before water change but I never notice maybe.
Its 90 gallon filtered by an Eheim 2026 (Efimech, coral chips, without Ehisubstrat) and a Ototto Fluidized Bed Filter. About 40 fishes sized about 2 inch and 15 fishes sized about 4 inch. Spraybar of cannister is used plus an airpump for extra aeration.
Water test immediately before water change at 7 pm
nitrite 0
nitrate I never bother to really read, I guess 25 mg/litre or so.
gh 10
kh 10
ph 8
Water test 3 hours after water change at 11 pm.
nitrite 0
nitrate 25
gh 10
kh 10
ph 8
So after this test I thought the nitrate number not nice so I did ANOTHER 25% water change, and after that the open and close mouth thingy lessened, the bigger fishes don't do that so often and the smaller fishes not as heavy and some fishes both big and small stop doing that. But some are still doing that and I fear for long term or its signs of something bad to come.
I come to some conclusion, and need your opinions on this because I am very concerned.
I rule out sickness and disease because all fishes are quarantined properly before. Could high nitrates cause the heavy breathing? I know ammonia and nitrite will cause this and more serious stuff but nitrites? Nitrites are usually tolerable if under 50 mg/litre right?
The past 2 days I fed them a lot of bloodworm, to speed their growth about 8 cubes per feeding plus some crushed pellets. Feed 3 times per day, as a result this two days the tank have many shit flying around and the fishes are constantly shitting. I dont have an ammonia test kit, but I dont think its ammonia. By the way its not new tank symdron as the tank is precycled for about 2 weeks and after adding fishes, its already another 1 to 2 weeks liao, so total nearly one month.
Or could it be the rocks I am using is leeching out heavy metals? As some of you know I bought some cheap rocks which I am not exactly sure if they are aquarium safe but they likely are. I know heavy metal in water hurts their gills and may kill them overtime.
I am very worried, please help.
Live and let live, stop using life feeds.
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