Fish in Schools (FinS)

Hi there,

You will start testing the pH and ammonia levels weekly at ~970 ATUs

This is when the waste from the fish start to build up in the tank

FinS Team

Hi there,

The Fish Health Spreadsheet is sent to all FinS participants via email.
We sent it out on January 7, 2023 so be sure to double check your inbox.

FinS Team

Hello,

Something as simple as a fork or spoon works great.
You can also use tweezers if you have them.

FinS Team 

It is always good practice to observe the behaviour of your rainbow trout and to identify any changes.  Newly hatched alevin do not have much mobility, but you will see them wriggly and squirming on the bottom of your incubation basket.  Alevin will typically be upright or on their side, resting on their yolks sac. If you look close you may also see their clear fins and gills moving.    If your alevin are not moving, they may be dead.  It is okay to create a little movement in the water near them to see if they respond and move. 

- FinS Team

It is normal for a few of the eggs you receive to die. Dead eggs turn milky-white from a naturally occurring fungus and begin to decay. Be diligent about removing all dead eggs and fungus from the Incubation Basket.  

You can use a spoon, tweezers, or pipette to remove fungus. If the fungus is sticking to the Incubation Basket you may loosen it with a toothbrush and then use a pipette to suck out floating fragments of fungus. As a last option, you may also gently move the fish into your fish net while you wipe out the Incubation Basket with a clean cloth or paper towel.

Note that the yolk sac can easily become punctured if the alevin are being moved around roughly. Record any mortalities on the Fish Health Spreadsheet.

- FinS Team

Although it never hurts to monitor the water quality of your Aquarium, you do not have to test pH and ammonia routinely while the fish are in their egg and alevin stage of life.  Egg and alevin do not produce waste materials, so they have little effect on the water chemistry. Once your fish begin eating and producing waste in the fry stage of life, you must test pH and ammonia regularly to monitor water quality.  

Hope this helps!

- FinS Team 

Hi there!

White eggs or white substances coming out of your egg should be removed from your tank.
It is either a egg mortality or water fungus which can impact the health of other eggs.

FinS Team 

Good catch!  Although it does not harm the fish eggs to add Nutrafin Cycle to the water, it is not necessary when completing the wet set-up of your Aquarium. Nutrafin Cycle is important at 400 ATUs to build up the biofilter to feed on fish waste and maintain good water quality.

The Nutrafin AquaPlus must be added during wet set-up to remove chlorine and chloramine from the water in your Aquarium.

- FinS Team

Zeolite is not a requirement for the tank.

Zeolite is used as a treatment for fish with obviously red gills in the fry stage of life.  Discolouration of your fish’s gills is indicative of high ammonia levels.  If this happens to your fish:

1. Move to a schedule of increased water changes immediately. 
2. Add zeolite rocks (can be found at your local pet store) in their porous container to the bottom of your tank to help with ammonia absorption.

- FinS Team

Hello, 

Thank you for your question. No, the chiller linked above will not work.  This chiller will not cool the water to the appropriate temperature for the fish. Rainbow trout require 8-10C/46-50F and the chiller linked above has a temperature range of 20-26C/68-78F. Note that the chiller must be capable of chilling a 30 Gal aquarium.

FinS team