My new 4ft tank (approx 200ltrs) has been up and running since mid January now, and so far everything has been going great. I do water changes (approx 25 to 30%) weekly and have an Atman 1200 external filter.

In the last two weeks, I have had one gourami, 2 bolivian rams and my lovely big bristlenose (approx 10-12cm) die. The bristlenose I just can't explain as he was eating well and seemed perfectly healthy. The two rams and gourami, however were not eating and just eventually died. No sign of fungus etc on them. One of the Rams was in a "Specials tank" for $4 at the pet shop, so perhaps not well when I got him? Although my friend got one too and hers is fine. She doesn't do much water changes, fills her tank back up with a hose from outside (so water is cold), doesn't add ager (is on town water), puts new fish into her tank with the water they came in etc and never has any problems. I try to be so careful and do everything "properly" and it's my fish that are dying..... very annoying.

All my other fish seem perfectly happy and are eating well. (Neons, platies, bristlenose, 1 x gourami). I have checked my PH and the test only went up to 7.4 and it was definitely that high, quite possibly higher. Do I need to buy a master test kit for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate? I have rung the pet shops in Dunedin and none of them sell master kits and they tell me I don't need one. I feed my fish everynight (and everything is eaten), but one shop has told me I should only be feeding every 3 days. Another shop said if there was a problem with ammonia etc, All of my neons would be the first to belly up.

I want to add a couple of clown loaches, but am not sure if this is wise at the moment. Any suggestions would be appreciated thanks.

Probably best to hold off on getting the clowns at the moment until you can establish whether there is a problem.

I would always recommend getting a test kit that has at least tests for ammonia, nitrate and nitrite. Whenever something goes wrong in my tank my test kit is the first thing I turn to. If you can rule out water condition problems first then you can look into other problems that aren't so easy to diagnose.

I have a test kit that has all of the above plus a high range pH test. Its made by API (think it might be the same master test kit you are talking about) and retails for around $60. If you can't get one locally why not try online?

There is a master test kit on TM.

Listing #: 277169863

We have one and find it really good.

Im about to list my master test kit and more for $1 tonight

It's probably worth having one. They last a long time. Redwoods sell them on trademe for $60ish. Their username is redwoodaq.

Sorry to hear that you lost some more fish . I'm coming out to my parents tomorrow and I could stop by around 6.30-7 and could test your water with my test kit if you like?

Thanks for your replies. Looks like I should get a kit.

Will PM you Scott - thanks for the offer.

In the mean time, can you go to your local lfs and get a test done by them? A decent one should do it for free. I'm not sure if Dunedin has any though?

Take things slowly, if you are having problems don't add anything else to the tank.

A question for the cichlid keepers out there, are bolivian rams sensitive to conditions like blue rams - Mikrogeophagus ramirezi?

Blue rams require a well matured tank with stable conditions, as do clown loaches.

I have the same test kit that Carlos & Siran have mentioned, used it religiously when I started out fishkeeping, but rarely break it out now.

Well I got my water tested yesterday and Ammonia's, Nitrites & Nitrates were all perfect, however my PH is about 7.4 to 7.6.

I tested our water straight from the tap (we have our own bore supply), on Friday night, and this came out below neutral (about 6.2 to 6.4). Very confusing as this is what I fill my tank with. However, I left the test tube on the bench and when I came out yesterday morning it was reading 7.4 to 7.6 again.

Does water change when sitting? We did approx 30% water change this morning and I tested straight after that the results were low. Have just retested again now, and they are back up at about 7.4 to 7.6.

Can anyone tell me what I should do, and is this sort of fluctuation normal?

Does water change when sitting? We did approx 30% water change this morning and I tested straight after that the results were low. Have just retested again now, and they are back up at about 7.4 to 7.6.

Yes. The pH will change upon sitting. It is probably just 'outgassing' of dissolved CO2 which will increase the alkalinity.

In general, don't panic about pH, fish can tolerate a range of pH - it is the pH fluctuations that are the biggest problem and often in our efforts to create the perfect pH we create endless fluctuations. If your fish seem happy, just leave it.

Thanks JenniferH, your advice is appreciated. All of my fish seem happy, so I will just leave things as they are. Just can't explain the few deaths I had, but perhaps the fish were just unwell.

A question for the cichlid keepers out there, are bolivian rams sensitive to conditions like blue rams - Mikrogeophagus ramirezi?

Not in my experience – they are pretty much one of the hardiest ram species around.