Dear all
I was just after some advice about my tank as i seem to be either loosing fish or they appear to be dying.
I have a 90litre tank with:
3 danios, 2 pink tetras, 1 molly, i swordtail, 1 ghost shrimp, 1 weatherloache, 3 Congo or columbian tetras and a mono.
I've had my tank set up for 3 months now, and since i have lost approx 8 fish. About 3 weeks ago i noticed my mono had developed white patches on its side so i bought some medication and had cleared within a week. However i have just returned home after being out for the day that my fish were EXTREMLY lathargic and looked almost dead apart from the danios. I was extremely worried and just dont know why they were like this - could they have been resting as the house was in total darkness at the time with no lights on? After about 15minutes and even now they appear to be back to their 'normal' selves apart from the mono which has again developed those white patches.
On thursday we done the first major water change and the water was discoloured due to the bog wood - and it looks lots better but yet m
y fish seemed close to death only minutes ago - does any one know why this could be and is it possible that the fish were simply resting?
Another thing i noticed last night was that one of my fish were very pale - it was a colombian tetra which should be blue and pink but it was mainly white - does this signify any problems with my tank? My molly keeps going to the surface of the water too
Thanks for your time
please help if possible
It sounds like there are some basic maintenance problems here.
You say the tank is nearly 3 months old and you've only done one major water change in that time. Have you done any smaller ones? As a basic guide for new fishkeepers and new tanks most experienced fishkeepers recommend 10-25% water change a week. This could be reduced in a lightly stocked or heavily planted tank but to a certain extent you can't over maintain a tank, short of bleaching everything once a month. I would definitely recommend you start a basic schedule of 20% or so a week. New water should be roughly temperature matched to the tank using the back of your hand and you should use a good quality water conditioner that removes chlorine, chloramine and heavy metals. This will keep a steady stream of fresh water going into the tank which keeps the mineral level in the tank balanced and also removes some of the nasties that build up in the tank over time. When doing these water changes you should also clean the gravel with a gravel sipon (essentially a bit of hose with a rigid tube attached to the end). It is usually enough to just hoover over the surface of the gravel but deep cleans are sometimes necessary, such as now as you seem to be having problems.
Not doing these water changes allow certain chemicals (namely nitrate) to build up in the tank. At high concentrations these poison the fish and it may take a while for the symptoms to be noticed but once you can see the fish are sick, it is sometimes too late to reverse the problem. Prevention is always better than cure!
The second problem may be with the cycle of your tank. 'Cycle' is a fancy word for the eco-system of your tank. In very basic terms, fish poo, wee and breathe. This puts a toxin into the water called
ammonia. Ammonia is very toxic. In response to ammonia, bacteria come and live in your filter which eat the ammonia and produce another toxin called
nitrite (note the difference between nitrite and nitrate). In response to the nitrite, you get more bacteria and they produce nitrate. Nitrate is generally safe but as I said, poor maintenance leads to high concentrations which may affect the fish. Now, normally a new tank will cycle within about two months but if the tank is unbalanced or has suffered problems, the cycle can take longer. It would not be silly to consider that your cycle might still be active. In a mature tank that has cycled, there are loads of bacteria and so only the nitrate will be present. In younger tanks, the bacteria is still building up (cycling) and so you can see ammonia and/or nitrite.
Ammonia, nitrite and nitrate are usually far more important than pH. Granted, pH is still important and you should definitely know the pH of your water but the first and foremost consideration is - are your fish being poisoned? You
need to get yourself a liquid test kit for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate. Many (such as the API Freshwater Master Test Kit) also come with pH tests. If you can't get a tst kit for a few days, do two things: 1) another very larger water change (about 75%) and 2) get your water tested at a local pet shop
but take their advice with a pinch of salt. A heathy tank has ZERO ammonia and nitrite but many pet shops (in my experience) will not recommend water changes to reduce the levels of these chemicals if they are above zero. Some will allow for a wide 'buffer' between zero and what they consider unsafe, which may well mean you get a result of say 0.25 and they'll tell you the water is fine. Others will recommend very small, infrequent water changes (say 25% every few days) to combat ammonia/nitrite problems and others still will not recommend water changes and will instead try to sell you chemicals and medications. I'll say this once and hopefully, once only
if you have elevatd ammonia or nitrite in your tank the best course of action is a very large water change followed by daily testing and additional water changes every time the ammonia or nitrite get above zero. Cool.
These measures should get your tank under control. They may not cure your fish, however. The reason for this is basically twofold:
1) Ammonia and nitrite cause the fish to be weaker. They both poison the fish and they also make the fish more prone to other diseases. If caught early enough we can probably reverse the effects of the poison but additional treatment may be necessary for any additional diseases and problems they have caught. In the case of your mono, it could be that the fish is producing too much slime (which gives it a hazy, shedding look), may have a fungal infection (unlikely unless it is also wounded) or may have a bacterial infection that looks fungal (such as columnaris). A good photo should help determine what it is. What have you treated with so far?
2) Once fish look sick, they are often VERY sick. In the wild, sick fish get predated upon because they are weak so fish will try their best to look healthy even when they are not. An obviously sick fish is one that just can't hold on much longer. In effect, the damage is often done before the fish shows obvious symptoms. However, still important to treat the problem and the cause.
Before buying medication it is essential that you get a positive ID on the problem in question. Treating for 'possible' problems or when you are not too sure just does not harm. The wrong medication can poison the fish (many medications are actually poisons used at sub-lethal doses) or may just cause other bacteria, virus, parasites etc to become stronger and more resistant to medication.
Think about adding an air-pump and air-stone to the tank. You may find the fish are lacking in oxygen for a variety of reasons. Live plants will also help add oxygen and keep the water free of toxic ammonia. You do have a filter, heater and thermometre on the tank, right? What temperature is the water?
Finally, your stock - it's clear that you've had very little support from the pet shop and may even have had some very bad advice. This is common with new fishkeepers so don't feel too bad about it. However, even if you are very attached to your fish you must sort out the problems with your stock before the fish get harmed or stressed. This may mean giving some fish away or taking them back to the shop if you cannot provide a suitable, cycled tank for them.
The weather loach - this is a cold water fish with high oxygen requirements. It needs a very big tank (at least 4 foot, ideally more) because it gets large and active.
The mono - a large, brackish (i.e. low level salt water) fish. Will be stressed in your tank without a doubt and being denied a brackish environment is the fastest way to kill it off. If you want to set up a brackish tank for it, do lots of research on here. Many new fishkeepers think they just need to add a few teaspoons of aquarium salt to make 'brackish' water and this couldn't be further from the truth. it doesn't help that many pet shops advise this as well. Some good news is that if you can provide a brackish tank, your molly might well appreciate that as well.
The molly - only suited to brackish or hard water. Not suited to your run of the mill community due to their sensitivity to softer water. If you do have hard water, then the molly is fine to stay. If you don't, rehome it. You can find the hardness by getting a KH/GH test kit. I recommend Nutrafin. The molly may reach 3-4 inches depending on type.
Danios - fine in your tank, as long as it is on the cool side. They don't like temperatures above 26C. Should be in a shoal of at least 6, ideally more if you have space. They'll be miserable and more prone to stress and illness if they don't have enough companions.
Pink tetras - I have no idea what this is so I can't say how big it gets, what tank it needs and what water it needs. I can say that
all tetras should be in a shoal of 6 or more.
Swordtail - pretty hardy, prefer harder water like the molly but not quite as fussy. Get to about 3 inches.
Ghost shrimp - great little tank cleaners and a lot of fun. Prefer to be in groups.
Congo or columbian tetras - which are they? Columbians should be fine in your tank but again, they need a bigger group (6+). Congos will outgrow your tank. Not physically - they'll still fit - but 6 congos will be stressed and prone to disease in a tank that is just too small for their active nature and size.
So your ideal stock would be: 6 danios, 6 'pink' tetras, 6 columbians, a molly, a swordtail and a group of shrimp. That's heavily stocked for 90 litres but do-able. Try to get an ID on these pink tetras and congo/columbians.
Remember - the size fish are in the shop is NOT how big they are as adults as many fish are sold as youngsters with a lot of growing to do! Always find the fish you want and then
research them online and in books before buying. Do not impulse buy and don't go on store recommendations.
another thing i noticed with my previous fish which are now dead - especially my baby angelfish- was that some fins looked ragged or plucked - i just put this down to my ghost shrimp - which i have recently found out does not attack fish - could this have anything to do with my water quality?
Yes. Bad water will burn fins and cause them to be fragile. Bad water also weakens fish and makes them easier targets for bullies. Finally, many fish will pick at or eat dead fish so ragged fins on dead fish is to be expected.
How new is the tank? How much water did you change on Thursday? Did you try to clean the sponges in the filter on Thursday too? If you did and cleaned it under tap water instead of the tank water you could have killed off bacteria. Also, if you took too much water out, anything over 20% is too much this will have also upset the fish.
It is not true that large water changes will upset fish, if the water change is carried out correctly.
