water hardness(please read)

Question

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Followup To

Question -
Hi karen,
I have a black moore goldfish he's about 2 years old ...I have a question about hardwater and water
with alkalinity...
my fish tank is testing very high in alkalinty and hard water.an from what i know goldfish like hard water because of all the minearals ...
ok here's the story, i went to the pet store today and i told them i need some stuff for high alkalinity and he told me that high alkalinty comes from hard
water.and he gave me some water softener he said that would bring the alkalinty down is that true? the stuff that he gave me is called a pillow and it's rechargeable for 4 uses i rater have drop for the alkalinty do they sell drops for that? ....and also i notice that every 2 mouths my fish is sick with white patchs like fungus and right now he has a bilster bump behind his eye.i always seem to get him well but then after 2 mouths he always gets sick this time he lost part of his tail and i think thats why he is sick now,...
heres a list of things i use for him
20% water change everyweek the vet told 20% because i was doing 10% i let it sit for 24hr then i put the water in the tank
i use
stress coat
aqua safe
prime (for nirite n nitrate)
accu clear
carbon fillter change every 2-3weeks
what am i doing wrong? he is the olny fish in the 10 gallon tank....

Answer -
Dear Mya,
Thank you for the thorough explanation about your problem I always appreciate all the details possible as this helps to figure out exactly what could wrong. I will do my best to help!

Perhaps the first issue I should address is about the Alkalinity and hardness issue. Although many books and other resources claim that certain species (say neon tetras) should only be kept in a pH range of 6.0 and so on. But it's a real fact and the truth that the vast majority of all fish found at your local petstore have been captive raised and bred on the fish farms for generations upon generations and those fish have fortunately adapted and can now thrive in water chemistry that is completely out of the range they would live in back in nature. This is completely true for goldfish as well. Goldfish are probably one of the most adaptable fish. Being in captivity for hundreds of years and they can thrive in many different types of water chemistry. So what this all boils down to is your Black moore would more than likely be fine and thriving in the current chemistry you have with no changing it. I too also have very hard water with high alkalinity and know other aquarists who have it also. But their fish thrive and spawn. The reason aquarists dont mess with the water chemistry is because doing so can really stress fish. It is very difficult to sufficiently lower high alkalinity and hardness consistantly. And the resulting pH jumps due to your natural high alkalinity just raising the pH back up even with adding pH lowering chemicals cause some very sick fish. This may or may not be happening in your aquarium. But all in all, it's much better for fish to live in a -stable- not -specific- water chemistry. As long as the aquarium is kept at a proper temperature and water quality maintained through frequent water changes, that is all most fish will ever need. And it is not at all unethical.

I would also try to limit your water conditioners down to just one single product you consistantly use. Such as Prime. Too many chemicals (even though they are safe) can always have a bad affect on a fishes system. I would also try not to use the Accu clear for reasons as stated above. It's much better for fish to have simply clean water with as few chemicals as possible.

Larger and more frequent water changes are also extremely important for the well-being of goldfish. Since they are quite messy fish with a high bioload they must have large water changes. I prefer to do 30-50% at least twice a week on my aquariums. This is much better and more effective then doing smaller water changes once or twice a week.
Remember as you probably already know, to always make the replacement water equal in temperature to that of your aquarium and insure it is properly dechlorinated with a good water conditioner.
It's great that you are letting the water sit or "age" before using. You could use a 5gal bucket and fill it up with conditioned water the night before doing a water change so you'd have it all nice and ready the next morning.

So if the little Black moore was mine, I'd do these things for him-
*Discontinue use of water softening pillows or any pH or hardness reducing chemicals of any sort
*Larger water changes (a must)
*Stick to one type of water conditioner--eliminate other chemicals
* If he seems truly sick with an illness, research for fish illnesses (or ask me ;-) for a proper diagnosis and their proper treatment.
But otherwise remember not to treat for something you aren't sure he truly has.

*Goldfish really enjoy bigger tanks and are healthier and thrive much better if kept in a large aquarium with a few companions. I know you may not be able to get him a larger aquarium right away. But it would be a most excellent thing to do for him if you could eventually upgrade to a 30gal aquarium and give him the company of another goldfish or two.

*The last but not least thing is it would be great if you could get an aquarium test kit for ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate. There are simple "5 in one" test stripes sold at most all petstores and they are very easy to use. Knowing your aquarium's ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate level is very important as these levels affect the health of your fish. As a general rule, healthy aquariums should have the following readings-
Ammonia-0 Nitrite-0 Nitrate- less than 20

I don't believe you have been doing anything wrong but maybe you are trying to do too much for your Black moore. I'm glad you came here to ask and feel free to write with anymore concerns!

Best wishes,
Karen~
ok karen
sorry if you found my typing hard to read..
back to the fish so if i stop using so many products do you think my fish will stop getting sick  so offten? and do 30% water change... right now he is sick with white patchs and a blister bump behind his eye what should i use for that? mela fix has worked in the past but it don't seem to help anymore he lost a part of his' tail about 3 weeks ago thats why i think he got sick.  and also right now i'am using maracyn it's not helping it helped a little it stop him from jumping . and i'm kinda shaky about using tetracycline because last time i used it his eye srunk it came back out but it's not the same size it was.... one more thing after using maracyn how long should i wait to use the tetracycline?. should i do a water change and let a fillter run for a few days then use the tetracycline? ..and the reason my fish is alone is because i bought him a friend last year and he was hurting it biting  it i think he was trying to eat the other fish so i brought it back to the store...so what would you do for his sickness now? thank you

Answer
Mya,
If your Black moore was mine,I'd start doing daily 30-50% (larger is better!) water changes everyday especially since he is sick. This alone may cure the white patches and blister bump but if it still seems to be getting worse than medication may be neccesay. But for now definately do daily large water changes. Actually, 50-60% would be even better for him to recover. I do believe that if you stop using all those chemicals you were using it would limit some of the stress he is under.

I think I would hold off all medications for now as were not sure what we're treating for currently. The only thing I would do for him now is water changes.

The reason I say this is because I feel he is already under too much stress and wear from having many chemicals in his water as it is. And I feel water changes are the best treatment at least for now, especially to give him a break. As for the white patches, it could be fungus starting as fungus infections often start as white patches that eventually appear fuzzy like food molds. You can try treating this with Pimafix and Melafix combination medications. These are relatively very safe medications to use as they are natural. You can also try adding some aquarium salt to your Moore's water. Only add half the dose of the recommended salt in the morning time and watch for any odd reactions. If your fish seems normal then add the other dose to equal the amount that is needed for his ten-galllon aquarium. Remember that salt does not evaporate. And remember that when doing water changes, to only add the proper amount of salt for the amount of water you took out.

I really hope this helps and feel free to let me know how your Black moore is doing if you don't mind.

Best wishes,
Karen~