No beginners luck!

[billythefish]

Bought a 24*12*14 inch (14 galls) tank 2 weeks ago for the first time ever.

Read a couple of books and gathered info of the web.

Filled the tank, gravel, heater e.t.c left for 1 week. (I added 2 capfuls of bacteria starter and 1 tablespoon of aquarium salt/5 gallons water). Added a mixture of plastic and real plants.

After a week I purchased 6 Neon tetras & 6 Guppies(2 male & 4 female). After 2 days 3 Neons died, after 3 days another neon died, after 4 days (this morning) a female guppy died.

One of the guppies had babies after 2 days.

All the fish have been stuck to the filter inlet once dead.

Filter 8 Watt
Temperature 24 degrees
PH 6.5
Hardness - Very Soft
Food - Dried Flakes
Ammonia Level Almost zero
Nitrite Level Almost zero

Finally, just noticed 1 of the female guppies has changed from bright yellow to a pale silver.

Any help would be much appreciated. I'm really excited about my new hobby but have no idea what to do next.

 

[Tatya]

Do you have readings for your pH, ammonia, nitrites and nitrate over the period since the tank has been set up? Especially the last four days?

The almost zero readings? Is that as in barely looking above the zero in the colour guides or is it a point something reading?

You say your filter is 8 watts, how many gallons per hr does it cycle?

Sorry for the twenty questions, it just helps to be sure what we are looking at.

PS Welcome to the list.

 

[Davy Reynolds]

Firstly hello and welcome to the hobby.

Fisrt mistake is. Neons can handle any salt. If you want a brackish tank with guppies etc. then you can have neons.

Secondly the tank is still to young. Introducing this amount of fish this eairly will most likely lead to death. Leave the tank to run for another two weeks with the remaining fish. This will allow your tank to fully cycle. Then slowly start to add a few fish at a time.

When a fish die's take it out straight away, the decomposing fish can cause havoic with bio-setup

 

[billythefish]

Tatya,

The readings are from yesterday. This is the first readings I have taken. I still need to buy a Nitate tester.

When I say almost zero, I mean barely looking above zero in the colour guides.

I've no idea about the gallons per hour. It doesn't tell me on the instruction leaflet. How could this be calculated?

Dave,

Do you mean neons can't handle any salt?

Does brackish mean salt free?

Thanks

 

[Tatya]

Brackish is with salt.

 

[billythefish]

Any ideas what is meant by

'First mistake. Neons can handle any salt....'?

 

[gadazobe]

Hi and welcome to the group. I'm sure he means can't handle salt. Neons are strictly fresh water fish (non-salt water)

 

[billythefish]

So can I only have Neons and Guppies if I have a completely salt free tank?

Mind you now that a guppy has died I don't think salt is the only problem.

 

[Great Lakes]

Bill, Brackish is a "salty" fresh water, as is usually found in tributaries and deltas entering the oceans. It is far saltier than the small amount you have added. I am assuming you added the salt for medicinal purposes, which is accepted practice. You may want to consider tayloring the types of fish you want to keep to what your water parameters are in your area. There are certain types of fish that thrive in the acidic ph range you have. If the water you have available in your area wants to naturally be in that range, it is easier to go with it than to try and adjust it constantly.

Oh, on the salwater note, this is for anyone that doesn't realize how salty salt water is, I frewaked myself when I set up my reef tank. IT took 50 lbs of salt to make 100 gallons of sea water! That's a lot of salt.

 

[adeyc]

G.L. whats your S.G. reading?

 

[Dragonslair]

Aww you guys beat me to it this time welcoming billythefish.
Must be quicker. Anyway billy, welcome to the site. Your problem is not new and although you may think when am I going to learn and when will my fises not die. i can tell you, one day all of a sudden you will find that things fall into place. I was in the same position as you just over a month ago. My friends here and we are all friends, told me that I suffered from new tank syndrome. I now have 65 various fishes, 26 of them Neons. Davy is correct when he says that Neons cannot tolerate salt in the water. You can however keep Neons with guppies quite well. I have 12 guppies, and after an initial disaster where they all died but for one.( she's still alive and still heavily gravid) I started again. Basically in my personal opinion you have overloaded your tank. The tap water is still raw, and although you have introduced friendly bacteria into the system, the whole eco system has not had time to settle.
Imagine you're God, and you place a few specimens in a hostile world and then expected them to survive. Yes, you've provided basics in the form of food,warmth and water,yes even fish do drink water and then said get on with it. Ask yourself, would the specimens struggle to survive or would they flourish? Would you survive if someone took you out of your homeground and placed you in a totally strange place and said get on with it. Your first reaction would be, stress and shock! Remember the smaller the animal the greater the fear factor...unless you're a scorpion!! :laugh: :laugh:

 

[billythefish]

Okay I'll let the fish settle in and see how it goes.

The best looking female guppy is however looking decidedly shaky....

 

[Rose]

Billy read this article Cycling Safely.  It will help with your fishy woes.

One of these days guys I'm going to make a count on all the typos miss spelled words in one thread.  If I did I could retire rich from you.  Rose

 

[Micheal Deason]

Mixing guppies and tetras is a fatal mistake. I will excuse your ignorance as you claim to be new to the hobby. Next time you may wish to research your fish purchases.

 

[Great Lakes]

Adeyc, it's 1.025 to 1.026. Evap been driving me a little crazy since summer has begun.