Dead Otocinclus. Ph to low?

4133 Views 6 Replies 5 Participants Last post by longgonedaddy, Nov 19, 2016

JohnsTank

Discussion Starter · Nov 18, 2016

I found a dead Otocinclus in my tank this morning. I had bought it from Petsmart about seven days ago. I took it back to the store today along with my water sample. When they tested it, they told me that my water was too acidic. It tested at 6.4. Typically at night my water is about 7.4 but during the day it will get as low as 6.4 because I run pressurized CO2. Is a Ph of 6.4 too low?

Save

1 - 7 of 7 Posts

Veritas

· #2 · Nov 18, 2016

No, Mine is consistently around the 6.5 range - and i've had Otos for ages.

Otos can be tricky. one minute they are fine, and sometimes they die randomly.

lots of talk/research into this. Google will yield a ton of reading into it.

Save

nel

· #3 · Nov 18, 2016

Is your tank cycled? Otos are really fragile and 7 days isn't so long. It might even be a shock from changing parameters (different from the store water). I would say every death in the first month can be related to changing environment.

Save

JohnsTank

Discussion Starter · #4 · Nov 18, 2016

nel said:
Is your tank cycled? Otos are really fragile and 7 days isn't so long. It might even be a shock from changing parameters (different from the store water). I would say every death in the first month can be related to changing environment.

My tank has been cycled for about 3 months. The reason I got the Oto was because I'm struggling with algae at the moment. I bought two at the same time. They seem fairly active. Idk. They are only $3 so not a huge loss or anything. I was just taken aback by the acidic water statement.

Save

nel

· #5 · Nov 18, 2016

Low pH is good for Otos, so if it wasn't to drastic change it should be great for them.

Save

Nlewis

· #6 · Nov 18, 2016 (Edited)

Ph is not the issue, my tank dips down into the 5's daily. Otos are hit or miss when it comes to survival, if they make it in your tank for a few weeks then they'll live for quite some time. Most of these fish are wild caught and just don't do well in transition to our tanks.

Save

longgonedaddy

· #7 · Nov 19, 2016

nel said:
Low pH is good for Otos, so if it wasn't to drastic change it should be great for them.

This.

I would have told the shop maybe they're keeping the ottos in too high pH, rather than you keeping it too low. They are Amazonian fish, after all.

Save

1 - 7 of 7 Posts

This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.

Top Contributors this Month