Hey there, got some questions on some of my tank readings, I found a red juvenile Oscar that I am wanting to get, but I want to make sure everything is right before I spend the money and bring him/her home. I did the nitrite test, it came out 0, ammonia was 0, but the High PH test came out about 8.2-8.4. I have an older kit, and was wondering what else I need to do. I don't have a test for nitrates, so would it be beneficial to just go out and buy a complete new test kit? And if so, which would be the best one to get. I am holding off getting the new fish until I get all the right answers and get things right. This red is really unique, it has white patches along it's belly, just like spots on a dog. It's very active, healthy looking, everything, so I don't want to risk losing this one too over water issues. Please advise! Thanks!

this tank is cycled? what I would suggest you do is test your tap water for ph. It's always good to know exactly what is coming out of the tap before it goes into your tank. Remember that a lot of these readings will soon change. At the moment, your pH is about as high as you want it to go. What you could do is get a large piece of bog wood, this will help bring the pH down. Remember that if your tap water has a pH of 8, every time you do a water change, the tank pH is going to alter.

I really like aquarium pharmaceuticals when it comes to test kits. I have got the Master test Kit which comprises of ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and pH.

Yes, this tank should be cycled, I lost my Oscar about 2 weeks ago now, I've done a 50% water change last weekend, and the only thing that is in the tank is a pleco and a pictus cat. I have a piece of driftwood/bogwood in there for the pleco, it's been in there for quite some time, probably 4-5 years. The only other thing that is in there decoration wise is a structure for the pictus to hide in and that's it.

The test kit that I have is by Aquarium Pharmaceuticals, and it's a Master Test Kit. It tests for ph (6.0 to 7.6) High Range ph (7.4 to 8.8) Ammonia, Nitrite, general hardness and carbonate hardness. I used the High Range ph test, should I have just used the regular ph one instead? Again, I don't have a test bottle for nitrates, so that wasn't done. Maybe I used the wrong ph test bottle?


Just went and did the regular ph-WOW!!! It was 7.6 or higher. NOW how do I get this conundrum solved?

I always use the low pH test

Okay-I did the low ph and the reading was 7.6 or higher. ???????????????

check the ph coming straight from your tap. if its high then you might want to look at a ph reducer however i think that it would be better to have a ph a little on the high side and stable than a lower reading that fluctuates.

Hi necromancer4! Found out from a different fish store that my nitrates are very high-took water sample in and had it tested. They did 3 different tests on it, and all three times the nitrates showed high, but that was it. I was reminded about how the water here is always high ph, and that trying to lower it would be an ongoing battle. The guy I talked to at this fish store just happens to have Oscars also, and he said his do just fine with the high ph. We got to talking, and he thinks that I might not have enough filtration also, so I bought another Whisper 60 to hang on the back of my tank. I asked him whether or not me having soft water would make any difference, and he said no, that he has it also. I did find out though when I put my new filter on the back that the bio-foam in my original filter is gone (why I don't know), but I'm thinking that THAT has been the problem also. Anyway, I'm going to see about getting it replaced. Before I get another fish I'm going to make sure everything is as close to being perfect as I can get.
They have some extremely huge Oscars down there that were traded by one of their regular customers, he was downsizing, and needed to re-home them. I've never seen an Oscar this big, and I can get any one of them at a very reasonable price, because even they don't have the room for them. I'll see how my water ends up today or tomorrow.

you should get yourself a water test kit. i find the master kit from Aquarium Pharmaceuticals to be accurate and relativly easy to use. testing your water is important when adding fish to an existing tank to make sure that there is enough beneficial bacteria present to handle the bio load of from the new fish. obviously the bigger the fish you add the greater the risk of an ammonia spike to occur the more reason to test the water. also they are a must to plan your water change regiment based on the nitrates in your tank.

What should the readings on nitrate, nitrite and ph be? I have a 55g tank currently and am testing the water right now

your test results should be ammonia 0 ntrites 0 nitrates under 40 ph anywhere from 6-8 as long as its stable.
now when your nitrates read 40 its time to do a water change. ideally they should be kept under 20 at all times but this can be difficult to do. but never higher than 40 for a healthy oscar tank.

you should never have any ammonia or nitrites ever in your tank.

Wow, I never thought fish would be so time consuming and frustrating. I am anxious to get a handle on this as it is very entertaining to just sit and watch them but I also cant believe how quickly I have come to adore these fish.

Thanks for the info, I think I have alot to work on

if you set yourself up properly caring for oscars or any big cichlid isnt really all that hard. the most common problem many people run into is inadequate tank size or fitration and not doing proper tank maintainace(sp?)

after your properly set up it only takes maybe an hour a week to keep it going smoothly.