Well, I figured out the issue with the flashing so I think. Right now from where I am at we are having some really bad flooding. I have a feeling that the water company has added a lot of chemicals to try and keep the water clean from the flooding. I checked the PH and it has definitely dropped to the lower 7's and chlorine levels seem much higher. When I am filling up my buckets where I heat water I can smell a lot of chlorine just coming out of the tap. My issue is I am not sure exactly what I should go about doing. Should I hold off on water changes for a couple weeks and let this water issue clear up and hope it returns back to normal. I really started watching all of my tanks and they have been flashing a lot after water changes. As the week goes on it becomes less and less and as of right now I don't really notice any. Do you think that maybe the fish are reacting to the PH and not liking it, but as the week goes on the PH stabilizes and the fish aren't bothered. The PH where my apartment is where one of my tanks is at is about 8.6. The water is extremely hard and the fish seem to love it. Of course my hair doesn't though!
Seth
Update to flashing
Moderator: Pam Chin
Re: Update to flashing
Hi Seth,
Thanks for the update. I hate to tell you cut back on water changes, but that may be an option for now. The other thing I would offer, is that you may want to add extra dechlor, and definitely a good dose of stress coat or like conditioner when you change, or maybe you want to let your water sit for 24 - 36 hours? One thing for sure you can't have your pH too high or your water too hard for these Rift Lake Cichlids. So if you think your tank pH is dropping too far, then its time to use some substrate, filter media or household products to bump that pH!
Cichlid Power!
Pam
Thanks for the update. I hate to tell you cut back on water changes, but that may be an option for now. The other thing I would offer, is that you may want to add extra dechlor, and definitely a good dose of stress coat or like conditioner when you change, or maybe you want to let your water sit for 24 - 36 hours? One thing for sure you can't have your pH too high or your water too hard for these Rift Lake Cichlids. So if you think your tank pH is dropping too far, then its time to use some substrate, filter media or household products to bump that pH!
Cichlid Power!
Pam