how do i start my tropical fishtank off?

Question

i have brought a complete set fish tank and set it up to the intructions that came with it but i got some gunk of the surface so cleaned it out and did it again but still got gunk but not as much. the man at the fish shop told me to put some fish in (neon tetras) but they all died so now its been on with no fish in for 3 months now!!! has anyone got any tips to stop fish from dieing and to stop this gunk appearing. (the gunk looks like car oil floating on water) sorry best way to discribe it

hi, i dont use any air fresheners and i do have some reallty nice plastic plants and rocks from Jolleys (a local big pet store) and i cleaned them with clean water before putting them in and cleaned all the gravel before that was put in to. i dont understand how the pump can leak residue if it is new. do i get a new one?

i do have a air hose and the thing that stops the water going back into the pump (soz i forgot the name of it)

Answer 1

Hi Stacey,

Sorry to hear about the hassles with your new tank. Here's a thought, if it looks like oil, it probably is oil. Only two things cause that coloration on the surface of your water and that's oil and protein. Since you don't have fish in there and your not adding food it's probably not protein and that just leaves oil. Now, where can that be from? The filter is one idea. It's a long shot, but it sure can happen. I would suspect the plastic plants personally. All too often they can leak oil residue into the water for a very long time. Try removing the plants and changing out the water and see if it comes back without the plants in the tank. You can also put the plants in a big glass or mixing bowl over night and see if the gunk is in that container too. That would tell you its coming from the plants.

Also try this. Put a glass of water next to the tank over night. If you see that oil film in the glass the next day then it's something in the air.

Air pumps can be a bad source of this too. Try running the air pump in a bucket of water over night and see if it gets the film.

By trying differenet tests you can find out where it's coming from and stop using that item or figure out some way to stop it, but to stop it first you need to know where it's coming from.

Answer 2

Your filter may be leaking a grease. (Some filters do do this, I lost 22 large Koi when a new filter I bought leaked)

Also, do you spray air freshener in the room where your tank is? Airfresheners and window cleaners should not be used in the room with your tank. This will cause a residue on the water.

Also, is your tank near your kitchen? You would not believe the "air borne Grease" that comes from cooking. (Just look at the walls in the kitchen)

Do you have an air pump running? Do you have a back lock on the hose so no water can enter the pump? Sometimes if the electric flickers water can be forced the opposite way in an air pump but not enough to short it out. Then the power returns and the greases inside the pump is forced into the tank.

Easiest way to correct this is to get cheese cloth (or any 100% non dyed cloth) Gently move it over the surface of the water. You can also tuck it into your net.

What kind of decorations do you have? Perhaps one is leaching into your tank. Plants as well can contain an oily residue.

These could be possiable problems. You can also use a cup an attempt to "trap" this gunk but it sounds to me like there is a problem with either the filter or spraying of room deoderizers.

After you do this see if the water clears. If it does not, you may have to break down the entire tank and start over.
test your water
If this clears up the tank, try getting a black molly

Answer 3

You need to thoughly rinse all the items that need to go iinto the tank, It could be the gravel that is causing the gunk, this needs to be rinsed very well. I am not sure whether you have an internal fillter (goes into the water) or an external filter ( situated outside the tank, very often in the top of lid,) If it is external it may have carbon in it and this can leak into the water, It will clear though, an iinternal filter does not do this, either it is an already used filter which will hold stuff from previous use but will clear) anyway, set the tank up after you have rinsed everything (do not used any household cleaners, just plain tap water) Fill your tank up with clean tap water, This need to be treated with a fish declorinizer, (Nutrafin Aqua + is good but the pet store should be able to advise, Then put a double dose of a bacterial suppliment in the tank, (this is bacteria needed to mature the filter, fish need this bacteria to protect them from disease Nutrafin Cycle is good for this and is quite quick at doing that job) The tube need to be connected to an air pump outside the tank, the tube put in the water with an air stone, This is to help put oxygen into the water) Leave the tank for a good 48 hours running before stocking, This will get the water to the right temp and for the bacteria to start maturing the filter, Then you can get the fish, When you put the fish in leave them floating in the bag for a good 20mins for the fish to climatise to the temp, Then release. You may need to add some more bacteria suppliment but follow instructions for new tank set up for dose advise, You should find that your fish are fine, In a week do a 10% Water change using a syphon to suck the waste off the bottom and add bacteria suppliment every week, You must dechlorinise any water that you add to your tank, Chlorine in our water kills tropical fish, Do not overfeed, I usually feed my tank a pinch in the morning, I may give them a treat of bloodworms once a week, You should find that your fish are ok, Neon Tetras are not the most hardy of fish, they suffer from internal disease but neitherless are very pretty fish, and you can have quite a few as they are tiny, Dont put them in with big fish as they make a wonderful dinner for the larger species, Good Luck and I hope this helps.

Answer 4

by complete setup I'm assuming you mean you have a filter of some sort too? if your tank has been running with no fish, and you have proper filtration, the gunk is suprising, and you should have the pet shop test your water, or buy one of those faucet water filters like the pur ones, and fill the tank using that water, also you'll want some water conditioner, seachem makes a good one that can be used in both fresh and salt water. But it sounds like you have a source of contamination in the tank itself. Did you put any rocks or wood you found or come from sources other than the pet store? Those might be leeching chemicals into the tank causing the sludge and killing your fish. Go to aquariacentral dot com and find out more on how to properly prepare a tank for fish.

Answer 5

Get a new filter. Look on the web for info about fishless cycling. Don't add fish until you have cycled the tank. You will need a test kit for ammonia, nitrites, and nitrates. If you get fish before the tank is cycled, chances are they will die. The pet store guy knows this, he wants you to spend more money. He also recommended a very fragile species. If anything were going to survive a cycle it would not be neons. Don't worry about ph, different fish species can survive from 5-9. So long as you can drink the water you are putting in the tank--you can bet its between that range.

Answer 6

Hey I have a tropical fishtank too. I have 2 fish. But anyways, when you first get your fishtank, let the pump settle and don't but any fish in for 2 days. Also, when you get the fishtank, clean it out with water because it could have bacteria on it. Usually, what I like to is put little rocks (available at pet stores) on the bottom of the tank. The guy at the fish shop was wrong to tell you that fish will help! It may be algae that is at the bottom of the tank (which is unlikely since you don't have an algae feder) or it may just be your pump or the water. See if your pump is dirty and check the PH level of the water (get the strips at a pet store). If nothing seems to be wrong, cover it up with rocks. I'm not saying it will cure the problem, but it will cover it up!!
Good luck

Answer 7

It sounds like you need an aglae remover and some ph test strips (all of which you can find at a pet supply store). You may have a lot of algae, or your ph may be way off, causing the tetras to die.

Once you've checked and adjusted the pH levels, I'd suggest trying to start again with heartier fish, like platys. I also brought neon tetras home when starting off my tank, and they all died within a week.

Answer 8

You need to test the waters Ph levels and also for any infections. Make sure that your filter is clean and in good wokring order.

Also a good way to keep algae levels down its to introduce a pleck to the tank once you know that it is safe to do so. The live on the algae and go round eating it up for you.

I would go to a large aqautic store, tell them your problem and they should be able to point you in the right direction of the equipment and solutions your need.

Answer 9

allow to settle for 48hrs with pump on clean pump out and put a cleaning stuff in water purifier

Answer 10

take sample of water to aquarium shop to be tested,