The Majority Of My Fishes Have Died Out.. Tips On How To Save The Rest

[Flaire]

Hello everyone.
 
This Christmas I've been given approx. 8.5 gal (around 32 l) aquarium , with all set and two bags of with ten mollies in total.
 
I've never had an aquarium before and didn't know almost anything about it, and apparently, people who gave it to me didn't know much either. The aquarium was set up the next day (while fishes waiting in the bucket with filtration). Little did we know about cycling or anything like that. Since I live with an old lady, after few days I found out she has been feeding the fish aswell, even if asked not to - which, at least I think, has contributed a lot to a massive fish death the first week after the tank was set. At the end, I had left two zebra mollies, one orange one, and a baby who was born. After that and some reading, I was trying to do everything to help the tank to cycle better.
 
Last week, the orange molly died, and today, the little one with eyes popped out.
 
The petshop where the aquarium was sold and couple of others I found neither have testing kits(???) nor can test my water, and this weekend I have no opportunity to find it somewhere else.
 
I change around 50 percent of water every ten days, the shop suggested 40 percent every two to three weeks but that seems to little for me. Also, I have a sand bed, which is not being cleaned really - it is possible the waste is contaminating the water? I don't have the package of the filter, but I was thinking I had filtration more than needed since it's big and creates flow which is even a bit to strong for this small tank.
 
The two fish I have left are male and female zebra mollies, with  female being pregnant  - she's huge, her belly is getting squared and the male is chasing her more than normally. 
 
What would you suggest me to do? Maybe I should transfer the fishes to the bucket with same aquarium water, take the sand out and put them back again? wouldn't it be to risky? I'm a bit lost what to do, because dying fish with no solution is very depressing..
 
Thank you a lot in advance.

 

[fluttermoth]

Your probably right that your tank isn't cycled.
 
Until you can do test kits, do a really big water change, every day. Drain the tank right down, leaving just enough water for the fish to swim upright (don't forget to switch your heater and filter off first!) before refilling with temperature matched, dechlorinated water. If you can use a syphon tube and/or gravel cleaner for removing the water, that's the best way to get the dirt off the bottom.
 
You really do need to cut back on feeding; if your old lady friend likes to feed the fish, then measure out a small amount for her, and hide the rest

 

[Flaire]

Thank you for the response! I will change the water asap. By the way, I don't use water heater since live in a zone where it's always hot, and the room water temperature is suitable for mollies. However, I think my filter is heating the water a bit, because the one I have of room temperature is always much colder than aquarium's. I don't know how could I get them to be the same temperature  
 
The old lady is not feeding fishes since long time ago, I hid it as soon as I found out
 
But how it is possible to clean a sand bed? The tube just sucks the whole sand out..

 

[fluttermoth]

With practice you'll suck up less sand (you need to move the end of the gravel cleaner round in little circles, a couple of cms above the sand); until you've got the hang of it, just wash the sand through in your bucket, and put it back in.
 
They'll be fine without a heater, as long as temperature never goes below 25°C.

 

[Flaire]

thanks a lot

 

[CoryLover95]

The problems are most probably due to overfeeding, un-cycled tank, etc.  Here is a link to the API Master Test Kit, sold online: http/www.amazon.com/API-Freshwater-Master-Test-Kit/dp/B000255NCI/ref=sr_1_1?s=pet-supplies&ie=UTF8&qid=1359927363&sr=1-1&keywords=master+test+kit  (hope this worked...)
I have a sand bottom tank too.  The way to vacuum it is to hold the vacuum about a centimeter above the sand.  The muck will fly up into the vacuum while the sand will stay undisturbed.  (You might suck out about a teaspoon of sand by mistake, but this is no big deal.)
Good luck!  Sounds like you're really trying to educate yourself about your fish.  thumbs-up!

 

[Flaire]

Thanks for all the info.
 
However, I'm coming back with bad news again.
 
My female molly was pregnant, and today when came home I found all the fry dead on the floor, with pooped up bellies, i guess just killed by her and the male I have. She was gasping for air on the bottom, and in couple of hours died. 
 
Couple of days ago I treated the aquarium with bacteria to help to it to cycle. I had overfeeding problem for sure, with some pylatia worms (very little, however) of like 3 mm being a proof of it.
 
Now I have lots of dead fry on the bottom, and a poor quality water( as strange as it is, in this place I live now I wasn't succesfull on finding water testing kits :O that is why waiting internet shipment to come, thank you, fish fanatic!)
 
I don't know what to do better -  to do big water chandes and add some more bacteria into the water hoping the aquarium would get cycled at the end, of clean everything, fill it up again, adding the bacteria, and start the cycling process again with one fish I have left.
 
I'm trying to read what  a lot of what is the best to do, but everything is going on a little bit reversed sequence.
 
I'll be very grateful for your advises! 

 

[CoryLover95]

Thanks for all the info.
 
However, I'm coming back with bad news again.
 
My female molly was pregnant, and today when came home I found all the fry dead on the floor, with pooped up bellies, i guess just killed by her and the male I have. She was gasping for air on the bottom, and in couple of hours died. 
 
Couple of days ago I treated the aquarium with bacteria to help to it to cycle. I had overfeeding problem for sure, with some pylatia worms (very little, however) of like 3 mm being a proof of it.
 
Now I have lots of dead fry on the bottom, and a poor quality water( as strange as it is, in this place I live now I wasn't succesfull on finding water testing kits

that is why waiting internet shipment to come, thank you, fish fanatic!)
 
I don't know what to do better -  to do big water chandes and add some more bacteria into the water hoping the aquarium would get cycled at the end, of clean everything, fill it up again, adding the bacteria, and start the cycling process again with one fish I have left.
 
I'm trying to read what  a lot of what is the best to do, but everything is going on a little bit reversed sequence.
 
I'll be very grateful for your advises! 

I'm so sorry to hear about your fry's deaths...what bacterial additive are you using?  I used SafeStart for my tank and it seemed to have worked.  Here's a link: http/www.amazon.com/Tetra-77962-SafeStart-70-Gallon-8-45-Ounce/dp/B002DZNP3E/ref=sr_1_1?s=pet-supplies&ie=UTF8&qid=1360371080&sr=1-1&keywords=tetra+safestart
 
Good luck!
-CL95