Need Help Fixing School Tanks

[Mikaila31]

Sorry in advance for the large post

Yesterday i asked my bio teacher if i could take care of all the sciene fish tanks. She said yes and i got permission to do what ever i want to them. All the fish were brought in for extra credit at the begining on the school year. Below is a list of the tanks, fish, & main problems.

Tank #1 - guessing to be about 180gal.
- wide range of community tropical fish & lots of feeder goldfish
- UGF with only 2 powerheads(no where near enough)
- No heater
Tank #2 - also guessing to be about 180 gal.
- About 7 perch and a small pleco
- Today teacher added about 50 bait minnows poor perch
- A major alge problem can't see through alot of the glass
- UGF with 2 powerheads + a wisper hang on the back filter( don't know size)
Tank #3 - looks like a 40 gal.
- lots of platies, barbs, tetras, & 1 common goldfish.
- Also no heater
- has a whisper hang on back filter
Tank #4 - plastic 10gal
- 3 african clawed frogs
- teacher added about 10 bait minnows today
- no heater

Under tank #1 i found tons of stuff (and now a list): 1 whisper 50-60gal filter, 1 whisper 20-40gal filter, 2 smaller whisper filters, at least 5 nets, 2 air pumps, at least 3 powerheads, siphons, food, plastic plants, filter cartages, and lots more stuff. I have not looked under tank #2 yet.

Now in 2 days it's winter break and we don't have school for a week. My teacher is leaving so i will not be able to do anything with the tanks over spring break. Now my ?'s.

How badly is tank #2 going to cycle?
Should i remove the minnows from tank #3 and put them in #2 so only one tank cycles?
could a tank be heated with multiple heaters?
what should i feed the perch(know nothing about them)?
once i get tank #2 under contol could i mix goldfish and perch?
any help and idea is extremely appriciated.

sorry for the long post

 

[TammyLiz]

Just some random thoughts here.

The most important thing you can do for any tank is a water change, but be careful if it has been neglected. Unfortunately things can get bad enough that the pH crashes and doing a large water change/gravel vac can shock the fish to death. This is good reading when it comes to that subject. Basically, you'll need to do lots of very small water changes. This may not be feasible being at school, but do keep it in mind of you want to avert disaster.
http/www.bestfish.com/oldtank.html

It does sound like a mess. Since you didn't say any numbers or specific species of fish its hard to say what you should do. Ideally you should have a warm water tank and a cold water tank. Regarding Tank #1 and Tank #3, see if you can move all the goldfish into one and all the tropical fish into the other. I know there is plenty of room for problems with this plan but without more details its hard to know if I'm giving good advice or not. Without knowing numbers its impossible for me to know if the 40 gallon would be too small to take all of one kind. Also, without knowing exactly what species, its hard to predict if they will kill each other! If you do it, try to convince whoever is in charge of the tanks to buy a heater for the tropical tank. Tell them that the stress of always being cold will make them more likely to get infections and die. Say that a heater will help them live a healthier, longer life, saving the money of having to replace them. It is possible to use more than one heater if you already have smaller heaters. Put one on each end of the tank. Some people prefer this.

As far as the cycle, it depends on the size of the minnows. Those frogs will probably eat the ones in the 10 gallon, I hear those guys are quite the predators. How big are the perch? Are they going to be eating the ones in tank #2? If it really is 180 gallons thats quite a lot of water and 50 tiny fish wouldn't cause a problem in a healthy tank, but if these tanks are in bad shape, who can say? You'd just have to test to know.

Hopefully my comments have helped you feel a little more focused. Let us know how it goes.

 

[Mikaila31]

Thanks for the help TammyLiz i will try to do a water change but don't know if i can in the amount of time i have in the morning.
[/quote]Since you didn't say any numbers or specific species of fish its hard to say what you should do.

i didn't say species cuz i don't really know them all but none of the tanks are overstocked.

Regarding Tank #1 and Tank #3, see if you can move all the goldfish into one and all the tropical fish into the other.

That won't work , that why i was wondering if common goldfish and perch could go together. Tank #1 has a 4" tinfoil barb in it and a 6" alustralian rainbow fish. Tank #3 has neons and guppys that would get eaten.

How big are the perch? Are they going to be eating the ones in tank #2?

Largest is about 5" smallest is 3", minnows are about 1". They are for the perch to eat but most just end up dieing.

 

[Mikaila31]

Just another quick question. Once i get all the fish in the right tanks and get heaters for the tanks how should i acclumate them to warm water?

 

[Tolak]

Set the heater for the temperature the tank is currently at. Increase it by 1 degree daily until you are at an acceptable temperature for the fish.

 

[steelhealr]

Maybe the class would be willing to chip in a few bucks..or..even see if other classes would chip in and you could purchase the heaters you need. It would be nice to get rid of the undergravel filters...they are dinosauric if you aske me....and change to other type of filters. It would probably make maintenance easier...at least with respect to changing any media or filter material. WTG. SH

 

[TammyLiz]

Removing the dead minnows before they decompose will do a lot for the tank. I wonder why they all die...do you think rosy reds would fare better next time? I dont use feeder fish but I think those guys are pretty hardy little things. Someone let me know if I'm wrong. I'm assuming she (he?) is going to a tackle shop to pick up what you're calling "bait minnows". Those things aren't usually in the best of health. I remember being a kid and going fishing with my dad. We'd pick up some minnows ahead of time and I would want to take some home with me.

 

[Mikaila31]

Well some good news . I did find a heater that works in a box in the room, but i don't know if it's big enough. It says aquaculture on the top it's a hang on the back kind and about 10" long. I'll go look it up on google. Yesterday i cleaned all the hang on the back filters . Which where so choked up with alge and slime they where barely pumping any water. I also added a whisper 50-60 gal. filter to one of the 180gal.

Today I gravel vacumed the frog tank and 40 gal. Put all the tanks on timers(they were living in eternal daytime) . I also moved the bait minnows that were in the frog tank to the 180gal with all the other minnows and a friend and i organised all the fish stuff, and she put the 180 tropical tank on a automatic feeder. So they should be good over winter break.

 

[WILDER]

Well done, doing a good job.
Should be proud of your self.

 

[TammyLiz]

Good for you. That had to be a daunting task.
You must have a big heart.