Over the years I've tried many different fish in my aquarium. There are some, such as Neons, that I just have no luck with. The Neons last from a week to maybe 4 or 5 weeks and then they are gone. Is there something I should be doing? I would like to try them again.

DLH

They are pretty sensitive fish.... I've heard that if you can keep them past 10 days you're good to go, lol. I know they like softer water.... maybe that's the issue..... but if you acclimate them slowly (drip acclimation) they should still be fine in your tank.

What are your Nitrates at? I couldn't keep Neons and Cardinals for longer than 2 weeks and then I realized our Nitrates are 80ppm out of our tap and that's the water that we use in the tank. I ended up getting some Nitrazorb (a different water source wasn't an option) for the secondary filters in the tanks and now the tanks Nitrates stay around 25ppm - 30ppm (not ideal, but waaaaay better than 80ppm!!!) I'm able to keep healthy Cardinal Tetras now (haven't tried with Neons again, since I like the all red bellies of the Cards better) and also Oto Cats which are another very very sensitive species. (Have you thought of trying Cardinals instead of Neons? I've heard they are slightly more hearty... don't know if this is true or not. I find the only difference is the Cards are a hair bigger and have a full red belly instead of half like the Neons.)

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I haven't had any real issue with the ones I have that are over 2yrs old until recently. Seems some are starting to get NTD. How that got started, not sure. IME, they do seem a little sensitive to high nitrates. A high ph can be an issue.

Sorry about not getting back to this post right away. Been busy with my yard.

I just did a test on the water in my tank and everything looks fine. Nitrates are around 20. Of course, that does not mean it was fine the last time I tried Neons. This time I'll pay real close attention to how I acclimate them to the tank.

The one thing I don't understand about drip acclimation, as I've seen it described here, is the temperature of the container containing the new fish. By the time the acclimation cycle is over won't the water in that container be too cold for many fish. I know you could, after the acclimation cycle, place the container into the destination tank to bring it up to the correct temp but won't some species of fish be harmed by that time.

DLH

It is funny you mention that, because I had never had a problem with that until this past weekend when it was pretty cool in my house and I had to acclimate some Cories I bought. Also funny the how-to thread is Cories also.

Anyway, I increased the drip rate to about double of what I normally do. The temp did drop about 5-6 degrees. It actually felt cold to my hands. I keep that tank at 77F. I took a ziploc and filled it with the water in the bucket and then floated it for 10-15 minutes - all it took. It is sort of like a double acclimation, but only needed if the room is pretty cool.

I too, have had no luck with neons. I have always lived in an area with very hard water and thus, high pH. I worked in a pet store for years and they had a high loss rate for those too... I have had better luck with cardinals though.

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