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If you have a fish pond, fish tank or are seeking advice about keeping tropical fish, you can find advice on our Fish forum.

Original poster

Is Mr Plec poorly?

19 replies

Marne · 13/04/2013 18:05

Went to do a water change this afternoon and spotted Mr Plec in his cave upside down Sad (mouth not attached to the cave like it usually is, he was just led with his back on the graval), i grabbed the testing kit and tested the water and all seemed fine (no high readings, probably the best the water has ever tested). I have had a couple fish vanish (a danio and a guppy) and i suspect they died and got eaten by the others.

So is Mr Plec poory? and if so could it be some kind of parisite? should i treat the water or wait and see what happens?

Seems very odd as my plec is quite tough, has survived 3 tank moves and has out lived many fish.

OP posts:
Original poster
Marne · 13/04/2013 18:58

And i forgot to say: he is now acting normal and has been moving around the tank. Seems odd, never seen him do that before.

OP posts:
EauRouge · 13/04/2013 19:13

Never heard of a plec laying on its back before. What are the water params? Don't treat if you don't know what's wrong. If you've had a couple of fish 'vanish' then yes, they were probably eaten by other fish. This is a surefire way of transferring any diseases that the dead fish may have been suffering from, which is one of the reasons why you need to keep a close eye on your livestock and get the dead ones out sharpish.

Have any of the other fish got any symptoms?

Original poster
Marne · 13/04/2013 19:40

All the other fish seem ok, one of my mollies looks skinny but she has been like that sine i got her 2 months ago, i found one of my fry (well 1 month old guppy) dead in the tank but there wasn't a mark on it.

Water readings:
PH 8.0 (whih is a lot lower than it was a few weeks ago)
Ammonia 0.25
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 10ppm

These reading were taken before a water change.

Water readings seem better than they have been for a lon time (nitrate is usually high in my tap water as well as PH).

The only thing i have noticed thats different in the tank is black furry angee on the plants (but not a huge amount).

OP posts:
Original poster
Marne · 13/04/2013 19:48

'algee'

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EauRouge · 13/04/2013 20:45

pH changes are weird and not good. What was the pH before? 8 is already pretty high. The rest of the readings seem OK, what have they been previously? Once a tank is established and is stocked properly then there really shouldn't be much fluctuation in water quality unless something has gone wrong.

Original poster
Marne · 14/04/2013 11:52

PH was near 8.8 (very high), it has come down gradualy over the past 3 weeks (so no sudden change and is still quite high), it seems to be a problem with our water Sad, i dont want to treat it with chemicals/treatments as i have heard they cause more damage. Are there any plants that can lower ph? I try and keep fish that are ok with high ph and the shop where i buy them from also have high ph water (so they tell me).

Mr Plec seems ok this morning (is still with us) and i havn't lost anymore fish.

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Original poster
Marne · 14/04/2013 12:38

Just seen him doing it again, its as though he cant suck and has fallen off Sad. Can they get swim bladder problems? He's quite a lazy plec and rarely swims around the tank so spends most of his tim upside down under the cave.

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EauRouge · 14/04/2013 15:35

No, plants won't really help. What's your tap water pH? If you leave a glass of it for 24 hrs and then test it will give you an accurate idea. Your tap water pH should be pretty steady. Fluctuations in pH are bad for fish and 8.8 is really high- too high for a plec.

Plecs are nocturnal so you won't see him move around much. Any fish can get swim bladder problems but it's usually a symptom of something else like a bacterial or viral infection.

I really think your water might be the root of all the problems you've had.

monkeyfacegrace · 14/04/2013 15:42

Mine do this all the time.

I have bred all manor of fish, and currently have exactly one gazbillion fish.

Including an 18" plec. Mine have always lay down sucking on nothing, and are perfectly healthy Smile

Original poster
Marne · 14/04/2013 20:51

Eau, last time i tested the tap water it was 8.0 (ph). Is there any safe way of lowering it?

Coul the plec just be falling of the cave as he's getting quite big (probably fully grown for a bn)?

My guppies have always seemed much better in the high ph water than the mollies are, i have problems keeping molly fry alive but guppy fry seem ok, i thought mollies were ok with higher ph water or is mine just too high Sad ?

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Original poster
Marne · 14/04/2013 20:52

My other plec (the female) is fine, she's a lot more active than the male plec too and will swin around the tank.

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EauRouge · 15/04/2013 07:26

If the tap water pH is 8 and the pH in the tank is 8.8 then something in the tank is pushing it up- what sort of rocks and gravel do you have in there?

The best way to adjust the pH is to start out with RO water. It's expensive but the safest way to do it. pH8 should be OK but I'm concerned that it keeps changing.

Original poster
Marne · 15/04/2013 14:09

I only have one rock in there, i can try taking it out?

I have platnum sand and some gravel in there (both bought from a aquatic shop).

I picked up some bog wood today (was in a empty tank at the tip), can i put it straight in the tank or do i need to treat/ clean it first? i will try taking the rock out and replace with the bog wood?

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EauRouge · 15/04/2013 14:17

Never heard of platnum sand, what is it? It's not coral sand is it?

Personally I wouldn't use bogwood if you found it at the tip, it can soak up all kinds of stuff and you don't know where it's been.

You could try taking out the rock you have, do you know what it is? When it's dry you could try dropping a bit of vinegar on it- if it fizzes then it could be the pH culprit.

Original poster
Marne · 15/04/2013 16:14

Platnum sand is very fine grey(ish) sand).

The bog wood was in a large fish tank that had just been droped off at the tip (so wasnt mixed up with the other rubbish).

The rock came with my fish tank, looks like a huge pebel but not sure what it is, the people that had the tank before me had been using it with no problems. My other tank with the even higher ph has no rock (just 1 plant and a tiny amount of gravel) as its my fry tank, i try and keep it simple.

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EauRouge · 15/04/2013 16:24

I still wouldn't touch the bogwood, up to you though.

When you tested your tapwater pH, did you leave it 24 hours? Do you test it regularly?

Original poster
Marne · 18/04/2013 21:28

Mr Plec seems to be ok, he still keeps falling off the cave and lying on his back but is still swimming around the outside of the tank in the evenings (sucking on to the glass), all my other fish seem ok other than the platy's i bought from the new fish shop which are in my hospital/fry tank being treated for fin rot Sad (wont be buying from their again).

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Original poster
Marne · 20/04/2013 17:06

He's still alive, still keeps falling off and lying on his back but other than that seems fine. Also woke to baby's this morning, i think they are guppies Smile.

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GoSuckEggs · 29/04/2013 14:03

mine does this sometimes too. i thought he was dead!! but nope, just chilling!

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