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Thread: Changing of Killifish water

  1. #1
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    Changing of Killifish water

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    I got my first batch of killifish and its is about a month old. I noticed that the water in the tray is very dirty and decided to change water. I used aged water and put them in a new tray.

    Next i slowly used the net to transfer the fries over to the new tray one by one. I find that this way is harzardous to use this method.

    Can some kind soul kindly coach me and give me advice the correct techniques on changing water for the killifish fries?

  2. #2
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    Re: Changing of Killifish water

    If your fish are about a month old, you should transfer them into a tank or else you will find that the fish won't grow. The size of the container which they are kept in is an important factor. It's okay to keep newly-hatched fry in a tray but one month old fry should be given a bigger environment.

    I rarely transfer fry from one tray to another but on the few occasions when I changed the water in their trays, all I did was simply pour away some of the old water and leave the tray under a dripping tap. But that may not work for you because the water from your tap could be different from mine. I live on the 8th storey of a HDB flat and the water comes from the tank above the block. This water is pumped up the night before and whatever chlorine there is would be completely evaporated by the time the water reaches my tap. If you live in a private house or on a level lower than the 6th storey of a HDB flat, your water could have a much higher chlorine content than mine.

    In any case, what you did should be fine for the fry so long as the water in the new tray is aged water. I would define aged water as water that has been left to stand in a bucket for at least 2 days. It would be a good idea to put the new tray beside the old one for a few hours before transferring the fry over. This is to ensure that the temperature of the water in the 2 trays would be about the same.

    Fry can be very sensitive to water changes so the best thing to do really is not to change water. Ronnie for one, likes to have dirty water because he thinks dirty water contains a lot more food (infusoria) than clean water. I don't know about that really. Too much food may not be such a good thing sometimes.

    Loh K L

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    Thanks timebomb for your advice. Now i have a better understanding of the changing of water for the killiifish. Sometimes i find that the water in the killifish tray is really dirty and thats the reason i wanted to change them. I think i should heed your advice not to change the water if not really necessary.

  4. #4
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    Jiufu,

    Although I advocate "neglect" when raising killifish fry, sometimes it's also important to change the water when it's really too dirty. The water in my kilie trays are usually quite clean because I know exactly how much to feed them. But I was talking to Zulkifli this afternoon and he said he lost about 90% of his rachovii fry through too much neglect. I suspect the water in his killie trays may have become too polluted because of over-feeding.

    Uneaten baby brine shrimp will die in the trays and form into clusters of dirt balls. If you have too much of this in your trays, I would advise you to do some water changes. The best thing to do is not to transfer the fry but to use an airline tubing to siphon out the dirt and top up the water in the old tray slowly. Remember to do it slowly. Fry are sensitive to water changes but they are even more sensitive to sudden water changes.

    Loh K L

  5. #5
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    Re: Changing of Killifish water

    Quote Originally Posted by timebomb
    Fry can be very sensitive to water changes so the best thing to do really is not to change water. Ronnie for one, likes to have dirty water because he thinks dirty water contains a lot more food (infusoria) than clean water. I don't know about that really. Too much food may not be such a good thing sometimes.
    Eh Kwek Leong, before other gets the wrong idea that it's ok to raise frys in foul smelling 'dirty' water... I'd better set the record straight.

    My definition of 'dirty' is that there's lotsa mulm, some decaying plant material, lotsa snails and probably algae too! Often, this 'dirty' water is dosed with Liquidfry No 1, to further encourage infusoria boom. IMHE, frys that don't take straight to BBS, or have small mouths, often do better in 'dirty' tanks :wink:

    Also, I don't usually feed alot to frys and it's mostly a 2-meal-daily affair. What's not consumed is 'cleaned up' by the snails. Of course, YMMV!

    Oh... I should also mention that I'm game for benign but not total neglect, and it's ok if my tanks don't look like 'display tanks' ... so long as the fishes are comfortable, growing and breeding!

    For those species that I suspect are particularly sensitive to water changes...
    Drain off half the tray's water (I keep the mulm)
    Fill a bbs hatchery with similar amount of aged water (no BS eggs or salt please).
    Drip at slow rate into tray.
    I'm back & keeping 'em fingers wet,
    Ronnie Lee

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