When do you stop being NEW to fishkeeping and just stupid ?

[Maddie]

And from the tank right now

Ammonia 0.50ppm
Nitrite 0ppm
Nitrate 80ppm
PH 6 or less

These readings have declined since this morning

[Gingerlove05]

I’d do a 50% water change (if possible) with dechlorinated/conditioned water. Otherwise do you have any seachem prime conditioner handy? You can overdose that upto 5x recommended dosage to help with a spike in ammonia/nitrite for 24hours~
Fortunately with the ph being low the ammonia should be less toxic than in a high/alkaline ph, although it could mean your beneficial bacteria may have stalled due to a lack of carbonates. Adding potassium bicarbonate may help but I can’t remember the mix ratio off the top of my head. I wouldn’t use sodium bicarbonate as the sodium will just sit in the water unused whereas potassium is used up by plants.

[Maddie]

I have put some Prime and stability in and am going to check tomorrow and not feed the fish. I am a bugger for over feeding but in all honesty I would expect my filtration to handle it because I'm not that bad although I confess to not knowing exactly how much to feed.

Can anyone show me in picture form how much they feed their fish ? And how often ?

Today they have had 2 cubes of frozen brine shrimp 3 cubes of bloodworm in the morning. 2 spinkles of Tetra Pro cracker type things and some other pellett type stuff this afternoon. IS that too much ?

[Gingerlove05]

What fish are they and how many fish are you feeding?
That does sound like a lot. I dont think I’ve ever fed 1 entire cube of frozen food in one feed even when we had hundreds of platy/swordtail fry (in a few different tanks).
As a guide for smaller fish their stomachs are roughly the same size as their eyes. And its much better to underfeed your fish slightly rather than overfeed as uneaten food can cause spikes, and overfed fish can end up with other issues because the stomach starts to press on other organs.
I feed my fish every other day or every couple of days.

[Maddie]

Not the first time I have been told this and apparently I have a distinct ability to put my hands over my ears and sing. I must def be overfeeding these greedy little buggers. I am going to have to learn the hard way then. I would still appreciate anyone showing me how much they feed their fish.

I do have a lot of fish (too many I know) but they are only small (all under 6 months) Hungry growing fish always begging for food. 8 Angels, 4 Severum, 6 Electric Blue Acara, 3 Pictus Catfish.

There is NEVER any uneaten food. They devour the lot in a very short space of time.

[plankton]

Don't panic.
The water is relatively acidic, so the low ammonia won't be as toxic as if it were alkaline.
Wood can lower the ph in acidic water.
I reckon the new boiler disturbed something in the pipes to make it a bit milky.
I had a new combi a couple of years ago and didn't do a water change for a few days after, just to make sure.
P.S You're not stupid.

[Staffylover]

Hope things have settled down today,
I find it difficult to get the feeding right if the tank is understocked, fast fish end up with too much the slower ones with not enough, the snails like it though!
Once it's fully stocked it doesn't seem so hard, at the moment I have a 350 and 125l that are both fully stocked, one day I give them 4 frozen cubes between both tanks, plus a sprinkle of sinking pellets in each tank, veg/ protein alternating, the next day they get bug bites, nothing else as this does sink and they all eat it, the next day nothing, then frozen again, and so on, to help out with the hungry eyes situation, on days they don't get fed I don't turn the lights on, the fish seem to learn the difference quite quickly, I still check the tanks but don't really spend time watching, it's a compromise but this works for me

[Maddie]

Well I striped the filter down and oh my god it is filthy. Never seen anything like it. The sponges had long hair. I’m not kidding.
So question now I am putting new sponges in as these are too coarse and I’m changing to better media. How much if old media should I leave in ?
Honestly thought I would get 4-6 months with an fx6. It’s been 2.
So how much media do I leave in the filter ? I’ve washed the baskets in fresh water so like new again. Will be new sponges. I’ve got prime and stability
Thoughts on the media

[fr499y]

As much of the old as you can! Personally I would keep the course sponges!

[Maddie]

Oh really why ?
I just thought they are letting too much crap through