Dying Fish One By One

[melissasfish]

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Tank size:29 gallon
pH:
ammonia:
nitrite:
nitrate:
kH:
gH:
tank temp:80 degrees

Fish Symptoms (include full description including lesion, color, location, fish behavior): Our fish all look normal to us but then one by one they start to die. The fish starts by sitting at the bottom of the tank not eating much and then after a few days it will die. I have not noticed any color change or leasions of any kind.

Volume and Frequency of water changes:Change 5 gallons every couple weeks

Chemical Additives or Media in your tank: we were told to use aquarium salt, water conditioner and a bacteria suppliment.

Tank inhabitants: we have 3 live plants, a turtle shell and a tree stump

Recent additions to your tank (living or decoration): after the first 2 fish died we did a good cleaning and removed a lot of the other things we had in the tank. there has also been 2 batches of babies

Exposure to chemicals:none that i know of

 

[fluttermoth]

How long has your tank been set up, Melissa?

Do you know if it's 'cycled'?

Exactly what fish do you have (numbers and species)?

Oh, forgot to say, to the forum!

 

[melissasfish]

we have had this tank for about 4-5 months now. I am not sure what 'cycled' means. before we added any fish we had water in the tank for about 2-3 weeks. we started out with 5 platys and a sucker and we have since then had 2 seperate batched of babies 5 babies in each and 3 of the original fish have died.

 

[fluttermoth]

How do you clean out your filter? And how often do you do water changes?

I'm sorry for all the questions, but it can be difficult to pin down what's going on in tanks.

I would, as a precautionary measure, do a very large water change. Drain the water right down, leaving just enough water for the fish to swim upright before refilling, making sure the new water is warmed and dechlorinated.

Stop adding salt (although do that gradually, over a few days with some extra water changes, and you don't need to be adding the bacterial supplement. Just use a dechlorinator, nothing else.

 

[melissasfish]

We change our filters not clean then and we change about 5 gallons every 2-3 weeks. We usually get our water ready and let it sit for a few days so that the temp can get to room temp. I have been told by friend that have tanks that i should not be changing the water at all just the filters. I am not really sure how to take care of a tank but I am trying to learn because my 4 year old just loves fish and so I would like to stop them from dying. Does it tramatize the fish when you change the water? Also should I get rid of my rocks?

 

[melissasfish]

Ok so I went and got some test strips. Here are the results.

Ammonia 2.5 ppm
Nitrate 40
nitrite safe
alkalinity 300
PH 7.8
Hardness 150

Please if someone can tell me what to do. I just had another fish die and it was one of the babies. My fish are dying faster and faster. Fluttermoth: You recommended that I do a major water change. When I do this should I remove my fish? Should I let the water sit to come to room temp? How do I do this properly?

If anyone else has any suggestions please give them.

Thank you all.

 

[Essjay]

I have been told by friend that have tanks that i should not be changing the water at all just the filters.

The first thing to do is ignore this friend. They are telling you opposite of what you should be doing.


Strip testers are notoriously inaccurate but I would be worried about that reading of ammonia. 2.5 is way too high.
I think the problem is that you change your filters, not clean them.

I need to explain what cycling means. Fish excrete ammonia into the water, but it is toxic to them. The filter holds bacteria that use this ammonia as food and turn it into nitrite. Nitrite is also toxic. Another species of bacteria grows in the filter and it turns the nitrite into nitrate. Nitrate is only toxic at high levels and we remove it by doing water changes.
This ammonia -> nitrite -> nitrate is called the nitrogen cycle, and the process of growing the bacteria is called cycling. Unfortunately it takes several weeks to grow enough bacteria to cope with the ammonia from a tankful of fish. But you have been changing the filter - I assume you mean you change the media, that's pads, sponges or whatever is inside your filter - and you've been throwing away these bacteria so you are constantly cycling new media, that is you are constantly having to grow more bacteria.

So what to do. The first thing is the huge water change that flutttermoth told you. You must get that ammonia reading down below 0.25, though with the strip testers being inaccurate it might be tricky knowing when it is that low. We've had several people of the forum saying their strips said the ammonia was zero but it was quite high when they used a liquid tester. So the next thing to do is get a liquid tester for ammonia and nitrite at the minimum, though a master set with nitrate and pH as well works out cheaper in the long term.


Next you need to read this carefully http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?/topic/224306-fish-in-cycling/ Because you are changing the pads, you are constantly in a fish-in cycle.

Can you tell us exactly what is inside your filter? Is it cartridges, sponges or what? You only need to change it when it falls apart. Until then you only need to wash it. But not in tap water as the chlorine the water company adds will kill those bacteria. Clean filters only in the water you take out of the tank during a water change.

And don't listen to your friend.



You are going to have to do lots of water changes until both your ammonia and nitrite readings stay at zero. Once you get there, you need to change 5 to 10galls a week, depending on exactly what kind and how many fish you have.

 

[fluttermoth]

Don't take the fish out when you change the water, that would be stressful. Hopefully you have some or of syphon that you can use; if not you'll have to jug it out and back in.

Water changes aren't that stressful for fish, they soon get used to it, but whatever, it has to be done as that high ammonia will be what's killing your fish.

 

[melissasfish]

I have been told by friend that have tanks that i should not be changing the water at all just the filters.

The first thing to do is ignore this friend. They are telling you opposite of what you should be doing.


Strip testers are notoriously inaccurate but I would be worried about that reading of ammonia. 2.5 is way too high.
I think the problem is that you change your filters, not clean them.

I need to explain what cycling means. Fish excrete ammonia into the water, but it is toxic to them. The filter holds bacteria that use this ammonia as food and turn it into nitrite. Nitrite is also toxic. Another species of bacteria grows in the filter and it turns the nitrite into nitrate. Nitrate is only toxic at high levels and we remove it by doing water changes.
This ammonia -> nitrite -> nitrate is called the nitrogen cycle, and the process of growing the bacteria is called cycling. Unfortunately it takes several weeks to grow enough bacteria to cope with the ammonia from a tankful of fish. But you have been changing the filter - I assume you mean you change the media, that's pads, sponges or whatever is inside your filter - and you've been throwing away these bacteria so you are constantly cycling new media, that is you are constantly having to grow more bacteria.

So what to do. The first thing is the huge water change that flutttermoth told you. You must get that ammonia reading down below 0.25, though with the strip testers being inaccurate it might be tricky knowing when it is that low. We've had several people of the forum saying their strips said the ammonia was zero but it was quite high when they used a liquid tester. So the next thing to do is get a liquid tester for ammonia and nitrite at the minimum, though a master set with nitrate and pH as well works out cheaper in the long term.


Next you need to read this carefully http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?/topic/224306-fish-in-cycling/ Because you are changing the pads, you are constantly in a fish-in cycle.

Can you tell us exactly what is inside your filter? Is it cartridges, sponges or what? You only need to change it when it falls apart. Until then you only need to wash it. But not in tap water as the chlorine the water company adds will kill those bacteria. Clean filters only in the water you take out of the tank during a water change.

And don't listen to your friend.



You are going to have to do lots of water changes until both your ammonia and nitrite readings stay at zero. Once you get there, you need to change 5 to 10galls a week, depending on exactly what kind and how many fish you have.

 

[melissasfish]

essjay,

Sorry for the confusion. The ammonia level is only at 0.25. I had a typo. We did a major water change last night. I have been buying the filters from walmart which have a mesh outside and you have to poor a bag of carbon into it and then place it on a holder. I also have the sealed ones that are just like that. How do I wash my filters? Do I just rinse the big debris off the filter and then put it back in?

 

[phoenixgsd]

. How do I wash my filters? Do I just rinse the big debris off the filter and then put it back in?

just rinse the sponge or whatevers inside filter, in tank water, never tap water as the chlorine in tap water kills the bacteria needed to keep the ammonia ect under control, do this as your normal maintence until it falls apart, a filter should last years