Fish Dying

[neverenough619]

Hello all, we are fairly new to this and we are having a real hard time with our tank. My first question is; If a tank has had a reptile or rodents in it can you use it for fish if you clean it out well? Also since we have set up this tank our water has been very cloudy, and i'm not sure what is causing it.

We have a 50 gallon tank with a Whisper 40-60 filter, I am using sand instead of rocks this time. We have a large pleco and one African Chicilid (not sure what type). They have been the only 2 that have survived. My Nitrites were very high, but I was able to get them down (still dont think they arae perfect yet).

I have never had these problems when I was doing guppies, but since I upgraded to Chicilids I have had nothing but heartache. Please help

Thanks

 

[Colin_T]

Yes you can use the tank after reptiles and rodents have been kept in it. The main thing is to rinse it out well and if you have used a cleaning product or disinfectant, then rinse that out really well.
If the water is milky cloudy then it is too much food breaking down in the water and a filter that isn't established.
If the water is green cloudy then it is free floating algae caused by too much light and too many nutrients in the water.
For both problems cut back on feeding and do daily 30-50% water changes for a week.
When you need to clean the filter wash the media out in a bucket of tank water. Never wash the filter materials out under tap water because the tap water will wipe out the beneficial bacteria living in it. The bacteria is what keeps the water clean.
You are probably having water quality problems (high nitrites) because you have a big pleco and a cichlid. Both are messy fish that eat a lot and produce a lot of waste. More water changes and less food will help reduce nitrites.

 

[Soaup]

Colin your a machine! Haha. I wouldnt change anything Colin has mentioned. The 50 Gallon should be good enough for about 10-15 africans when ready. Also how large is the pleco im concerned he may be bullied by the Africans when that time comes. What does the cichlid look like?

P.S. Colin i think i got my tank under control, thanks for all your help!

 

[neverenough619]

Thank you very much, it is milky cloudy. So I will try doing the water changes for a week and see how it goes. If anyone has any other helpful hints they would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks again.

 

[rdd1952]

Nothing much to add to what has already been said. The only problem I can see with the fish you are planning on is that Africans prefer a high pH and the pleco won't be very comfortable in it. I would consider rehoming him. You could also try to shoot fr a pH in the mid 7s that might work for both. it souls probably be on the low end for the AFricans and the high end for the pleco but would work.

 

[neverenough619]

Colin your a machine! Haha. I wouldnt change anything Colin has mentioned. The 50 Gallon should be good enough for about 10-15 africans when ready. Also how large is the pleco im concerned he may be bullied by the Africans when that time comes. What does the cichlid look like?

P.S. Colin i think i got my tank under control, thanks for all your help!

The pleco is very large, i think he is actually bullying the other fish. The cichlid is white, yellow and black, and his stripes go horizontal. I'm hoping that things will clear up by leaving it for a week or so. I am keeping my fingers crossed.

Thanks again

 

[rdd1952]

As a general rule, plecos won't bother another fish. They stay mainly on the bottom other that sucking on to the sides of the tank to feed.