# Cardinal Tetra Help.



## Fozz (Mar 2, 2009)

Just this past weekend I bought 13 Cardinal tetras. It's been about a day and 6 of them are dead!

The water perameters seem to be ok. My Nitrate is the only thing that may be high (20ppm), but it still fine according to my knowledge. The water is very soft and Nitrites are showing 0.

Water tep is about 70 degrees. 

I do have a good amount of real plants, although they arent very tall. There are also lots of other hiding places.

I have a German Ram, 3 blue claw shrimp and a pleco in the tank but they all seem pretty happy.

Any thoughts. Maybe I just just ger hardier fish?


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## Dmaaaaax (Nov 20, 2008)

How did you acclimate them? They prefer the soft water, so that should not be a problem. What is your pH? The temp is a bit low for tropical fish, I would shoot for 76-78, but that should not be the reason that 6 are dead.

Was there any signs like heavy breathing? Are the other 7 doing ok and eating?


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## Fozz (Mar 2, 2009)

There are 4 "healty" fish remaining now. The fish are swimming in a school near my plants. They seem to eat just fine. 

My PH is 8. Higher than I've seen recommended, by my local shop said it would be fine.

The last tetra that died had a section missing from his tail. Is there a chance that my shrimp are eating them? I know if I dont get to the dead ones first, my shrimp eat them. 

I dont think the Ram is doing anything to the tetra's. He just looks at himself in the glass all day.


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## Jasone487 (Oct 28, 2009)

ive had my tank running for 5 months now so fairly new. but i have 19 cards lost 1 (started with 20) my temp is 77-80, kh 2,ph 6.2 from what i read for cardinals those are about the same water params everyone claims are best. i also have 2 german blues, 3 black skirt tetra, otto's, corys and a bushey nose pleco. so pretty close to your settup.


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## Jasone487 (Oct 28, 2009)

wow no way !!! 8 is way too high for cards even for rams -_-


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## Fozz (Mar 2, 2009)

What is the best way to lower the ph?


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## Jasone487 (Oct 28, 2009)

if you wanted to add driftwood ( you can get it cheap online make sure its for an aquarium first. ) that will lower your hardness and lower your ph a bit. takes some time. or you can put a little peat in your filter. in a filter bag. make sure it has no chemicals on it when you buy it . get stright peat.


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## Jasone487 (Oct 28, 2009)

also test the ph stright out of your sink. its good to know what kind of water your putting into your tank. ph and kh.


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## Fozz (Mar 2, 2009)

I did the testing out of the tap. Its pretty much the same as what is in my tank. I did put two chuncks of mopani wood into the tank about a month ago. The water is a nice tea colour!


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## Jasone487 (Oct 28, 2009)

how offten are you doing waterchanges.


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## Fozz (Mar 2, 2009)

I do a small water change 15% or so every two weeks. I usually do a big change once a month and a canister filter cleaning at the same time.


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## Jasone487 (Oct 28, 2009)

im not too sure maybe someone else could help a bit more than i can but, i still think the ph is way high for cardinals and rams and you should try some peat. maybe bring it down to atleast 6.5.


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## Fozz (Mar 2, 2009)

It was my shrimp eating them!

I've since moved on to smaller shrimp and I havent had any deaths to report since


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## James0816 (Jun 19, 2009)

Not the shrimp. They aren't gonna bother them.

Now, you're gonna hear stories about the PH and such as it's fine at 8. Here's the catch. They are blackwater fish and prefer soft water and a low PH. You can add some peat or leaf fodder. I've used oak leaves. Many say Almond leaves are even better.

My bet would be on possibly the tank being cycled and/or acclimation.


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## archer772 (Nov 8, 2008)

I agree that its probably your PH and tail problems as in frayed and or chuncks missing is usually a sign of wild caught fish and that would deffinatly be PH. I bought 24 from a LFS and didnt loose 1 but my PH is 6.8-7.0, KH 4 and GH 8 also the LFS quarentine there fish for 2-4 weeks before they sell them and at that time I was told they lost about 100 out of the 1000 they brought in and then they had them for another month before I got them so they try to take the loss instead of the hobbiest. I love that LFS even though there live stock costs a little more you can be pretty sure there are no problems at all with the fish when you buy them.


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## mle (Aug 17, 2010)

i like cardinal tetra because they are very attrctive ryt? even other tetras glowing.. but i am very disappointed bcoz they are weak types of fish? isnt? you shoud teat them very carefully,, lots of parameters will consider,, now i stop getting tetra becauz its disapponting me and hurts my emotion,money and mental for treating them.. haha.. but i think, small fish like this needs only small aquarium -doesnt fit my 50 gall, slow moving water or semi stagnat water will do. - i have ohf so its doest fit also, and most of all, they are very sensitive,, easy to gst sick.. fusgus appear easily while my other fish is hapi and helty.. that only i can say,, ilove tetra but it doenst fits me..hyuhu


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## robert_jun (Aug 19, 2010)

Hi there !!! I am new also and doing alot of research, I am currently working on lowering my PH at the moment before I add my cardinals. 

I have a piece of Drift wood 
and about to get some Peat moss 

I heard the *Granulated Peat moss produced by Sera *is a good way to go.

and also not to get peat moss from a Plant Nursery, one of my fish stores said to get some from there, but after further research it was a bad idea due to Chemicals being added to the peat.

:betta:

Cheers
Rob


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## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

So where do you get the peat then?


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## Dmaaaaax (Nov 20, 2008)

The blue claw "shimp" he has...are we sure that it's not a crayfish?! If so, those could hunt and eat small fish like tetras at night.

At a pH of 8.0 the tetras and other blackwater fish may not be happy, but they should survive if the pH is fairly constant and the petstore pH is similar. I find it strange that the pH is akaline but the water is soft. Those 2 parameters are usually hand-in-hand...low pH, low hardness.


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## Dmaaaaax (Nov 20, 2008)

I adjust my pH prior to adding it to a tank. Otherwise you are constantly fluctuating your pH because your tank has driftwood/peat, and is at 6.5 but you do a 25% (or more) water change with pH 8.0 water.

I use an alkaline and acid buffer combination from Seachem. If you use a buffer the pH will not fluctuate much at all. If you only use somethig like pH down, you run the risk of your pH being all over the place. Basically make up your water in a bucket, and your acid buffer and akaline buffer. Test the pH and get it where you want. Remember how much you added of each, then do the same weekly. Your pH will drop to that slowly and then hold at that pH.

Give me a tank size and I could give you amounts to try...since the akaline buffer will also add a little kH and GH to the water.


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## robert_jun (Aug 19, 2010)

jrman83 said:


> So where do you get the peat then?


Sera Super-Activ Peat Granulate, 500gr. - AquaCave

Aquarium store, or online. 

do some research for the location on where you live.

:betta:


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## Brittrugger (May 30, 2010)

You can get peat elsewhere, hardwhere/gardening store as well you just have to make sure it is 100% peat with nothing added.

The pH certainly isnt ideal for cardinals but i am still wondering how you acclimated or if you acclimated them before adding them too the tank. That can make a world of difference, if you slowly add small amounts of tank water to the bag/container the fish come in then most fish have no problem. Cardinals may be a little more sensitive then other species though.


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