What am I doing wrong?

Question

About four days ago I bought a tank and filled it with 5 angel fish, 5 black phantoms, convicts, carnival neons and 1 algae eater. The day after that my algae eater died. Two days later one of my neons died. Now it looks like two of my angel fish are dying. What can the cause be? I have the tank currently on 28 degrees celcius could that be too hot? Please help.

Answer 1

You have new tank syndrome...you didnt cycle your tank, you put in too many fish, and non compatible ones at that. The convicts will probably kill the angelfish and neons, and depending on what size tank you have, you may have way too many fish in it. When you start a tank, you can't be instant grat. You have to be patient, and cycle it empty, filter on, for one to two weeks, using some type of beneficial bacteria supplement like Cycle. When you start to add fish, you do it 1-2 a week to let the tank catch up. Invest in a freshwater test kit, I'm sure you have toxic ammonia and nitrite levels in your water from too much organic waste. To save your fish, do a 20% water change, add some slime coat, and monitor your ammonia levels. If you want them to live, you will probably have to do this every day until your biological filter establishes, in 2-3 weeks.

Answer 2

The problems are 1) you didn't cycle and 2) your fish aren't compatible. It does NOT take weeks to cycle - you can do it much more quickly. However, it MUST be done properly, or you will kill your fish.

In the wild, and in established tanks, there are nitrifying bacteria that break down toxic ammonia from fish waste and excess food into less toxic nitrates. In a brand new tank, these bacteria don't exist, so any fish in the tank will produce ammonia, which, not being broken down by bacteria, will kill or weaken the fish. So, it is vital to cycle your tank.
There are a few methods. Do you have access to an established tank? These bacteria live in the gravel and in the filter cartridge, so if you can get some from another tank, you can put the bacteria right into your tank (don't let the gravel or filter cartridge dry out). If you do this, in a day or two, your tank will beready for fish.
Another way is to get Bio-Spira. It is the actual live bacteria in a little pouch, and your tank will instantly be ready for fish.http://fishstoretn.com/bio_spira.html

Other methods, which include putting a source of ammonia in the tank and letting the bacteria build up on its own, or putting a fish in and letting the fish produce ammonia (which borders on animal cruelty, because the fish will suffer from the ammonia in the tank), take 2 to 6 weeks before your tank is ready. If you rush that, any fish you buy may die, so try one of the instant methods I mentioned above (bio-spira or gravel from another tank)

As for your fish combinations, the convicts are aggressive cichlids, and can only be kept with other, equally aggressive cichlids. They WILL kill all your other fish. 5 angelfish is a lot - how big is your tank? 5 angelfish need a minimum of 40 gallons (not counting the other fish in the tank).
What do you mean by algae eater - a chinese algae eater? These are aggressive fish and though they eat algae as babies, they grow into mean carnivores. If you mean a plecostomous, please know that these fish grow to 24 inches and need very large tanks. Smaller types like rubber-lips and bristle-noseds, need 30 gallons minimum.

28 degrees is a little warm (26F) would be better, but that probably is not what killed your fish.

Also, did you properly acclimate your fish? In the petstore, they have certain water parameters (pH, temperature, hardness, etc) and if you just dump them into their new tank it can shock them. In the future, float the bag with the fish for 10 minutes, then open the bag, and add a quarter cup of water every 5-10 minutes into the bag, until the bag is almost full. Then net the fish, release into the tank, and dump the bag water down the sink.

Anyway, try to get a source of bacteria to cycle your tank. If you can't be sure to do small, (10-20%) daily water changes to reduce the ammonia and nitrites, for the next few weeks. Once the cycle is complete, do 20-30% water changes every week to keep the water clean.

Also, look into properly stocking your tank. There's nothing wrong with bringing all the fish back to the petstore and starting over once the tank is cycled :) We all have to start somewhere, and the best piece of advice I can give you is to research everything before you buy it. Petstore advice just doesn't cut it - they are there to SELL fish, they don't care if the fish live or not.

Answer 3

The answers so far are good, but it takes weeks to properly cycle a tank,if you have any fish left find some place to take them,if you got them at a real pet store they should take them back and hold them for you,if not it looks bad for all of them. The way to cycle a tank is without any fish at all. Cycling means growing nitrifying bacteria that will digest the ammonia waste generated by the fish and by decaying un-eaten food,. These bacteria are found in the air an will grow naturally in the tank,the kicker is that they need to be attached to something,and have a good oxygen supply to do their work. The first group of bacteria that will grow convert ammonia into Nitrites,unfortunately this is just as toxic as ammonia,but then another wave of bacteria will grow. These will convert Nitrites into Nitrates,not nearly so toxic! Then it's our job to keep the level of Nitrates down to a manageable level by siphoning out the stuff in the gravel and doing a small water change about once a week,no less than every 2 weeks. The bacteria growing process takes at least 5 weeks to complete, but you can start to add a few,actually, no more than 2 small fish after 3 weeks. Wait about 10 days and add 2 more.Bring the population up slowly. You didn't mention the size of the tank,but if it's less than 30 gallons you've got way to many fish. If less than 30 gal. leave the angels and the convicts out. If its less than 55 Gal. leave the convicts or the angels out. Hope this helps. PeeTee

Answer 4

It's already been said but I will repeat it. You can't put fish in a new tank. Set up the tank totally and let it run for a week with just the equipment and any plants you might put in there.
Start with one or two heaty fish and monitor the ammonia and nitrite levels. They will spike while the tank begins to cycle and build up the helpful bacteria. Once the levels come down again to a safe point you can add a couple more fish.
The general rule is "one inch of fish for every gallon"
If you have a 20 gallon tank, 20 inches worth of fish. If your fish are on average 4 inches long, thats 5 fish total in a 20 gallon tank. no more.
28 is probably too warm. Bring it down to 25-26 degrees.

Answer 5

You are doing EVERYTHING WRONG!
You can't just buy a tank and shove a load of fish in it! That isn't how things work. Tanks need to mature before you add fish.
Test your water for nitrite. If it is present then there is too much food going into the tank. Angels will die even if there is a slight trace but it is deadly to all fish.

Answer 6

You are the victim of a crappy fish store that shouldn't have sold you these fish. This is a pet peeve of mine. Here is an article I wrote on cycling a tank.



A Short Brief on the Nitrogen Cycle.


When you start a new aquarium it will go through what is called the nitrogen cycle.

The nitrogen cycle is a process which allows "good" bacteria to establish and multiple in the tank, thus breaking down the fish wastes.

Fish excrete ammonia as a waste product. Ammonia is highly toxic to fish and even small quantities in the water can kill your fish. The first bacteria that establish as part of the nitrogen cycle break down ammonia into a product called nitrites.

Nitrites are also toxic to your fish, but not nearly as toxic as ammonia is. As the nitrites start to rise in the tank the bacteria that feed on nitrites will start to multiply and consume the nitrites breaking them down into nitrates.

Nitrates are also toxic to fish, but only in very high quantities. The nitrates will continue to rise in your tank as long as you have fish and are feeding them. Water changes are used to reduce the nitrate levels.


How long does this process take?

Typically the nitrogen cycle takes between 4-6 weeks to complete. During this time it's recommended that you take samples of your tank water to the local fish store and ask them to test it for ammonia, nitrites and nitrates. The test levels will progress as follows:


Stage 1:

Ammonia zero
Nitrites zero
Nitrates zero

Stage 2:

Ammonia starts to rise
Nitrites zero
Nitrates zero

Stage 3:
Ammonia continues to rise
Nitrites begin to rise
Nitrites zero

Stage 4:
Ammonia levels drop
Nitrites continue to rise
Nitrates begin to rise

Stage 5:
Ammonia: zero
Nitrites levels drop
Nitrates continue to rise

Stage 6:
Ammonia: Zero
Nitrites: Zero
Nitrates continue slow rise



Tips to reduce the time of the nitrogen cycle.

The easiest way to reduce or eliminate the nitrogen cycle is to use a filter from an established tank. This filter already has the bacteria needed to breakdown ammonia and nitrites. By using an established filter you essentially bypass the nitrogen cycle.

Another easy way to shorten the cycle is to use "seed" gravel from an established tank. Simply take a few cups of gravel from an established tank and add it directly into the new tank. This gravel will contain a starter of the bacteria needed. If you don't want to add the gravel to the tank because it is a different color/stone than your gravel you can simply put it into a nylon stocking or cheese cloth "bag" and drop it into the tank. Using this method can cut your cycle time by 50%.

Finally there are live cultures of bacteria such as Bio-Spira (available at http://www.fishstoretn.com ) which will seed your tank with the bacteria needed. This product can virtually eliminate the cycling process.



Stocking your tank during this period.

During the cycling process you want to stock your tank very lightly. This is because if you have too many fish the ammonia will build up faster than the bacteria can break it down and your fish will die. I recommend only 1 or 2 hardy fish such as mollies. You want a fish that can tolerate the fluctuating ammonia and nitrite levels during the cycling process. There are many fish which should be avoided during this process including all catfish and any scaleless fish such as loaches.



Feeding during the cycling process.

I recommend that you feed your fish only once per day, and only as much as they will eat in 5-10 seconds. You should net out any food left over after feeding to prevent it from breaking down into ammonia. Once the cycling process completes you can double the feedings to twice a day.



Water changes during the cycling process.

If done correctly your tank shouldn't need any water changes during the cycling process. However should you find that your ammonia or nitrite levels are dangerously high during the cycling process you should do an immediate 25-50% water change to lower those levels. Water changes during the cycling process can extend the time it takes for your tank to cycle. Once the tank has completed cycling you should start your weekly 10-25% water changes to lower the nitrates in the tank.

Answer 7

You can't put fish in a tank immediately after you set it up. You should let the filter run for a few days before putting fish in there. And instead of putting in a bunch of fish at one time, gradually put fish in there, like one addition every few days. Your fish died because of shock.

Answer 8

THAT is THE PROBLEM!
You bought a new tank then OVER STACKED IT!

people should do their RESEARCH BEFORE buying fish and killing them off.

sorry about your fish, but do your research, and make sure your tank is large enough to handle all those fish!
Angels need TALL tanks.

http://www.geocities.com/asianangeldee/

Answer 9

Did you put some dechlorinator? Fish can't live without it! Your temperature should be fine.If your using a heater try making it a little warmer...The warmer the better!