Purchased aquarium week ago. Water levels OK, particular fish keep dying. HELP??

Question

Inside I have all Tropical Community classified fish. 3 black neon tetras, 2 gold male guppies, 1 feather tail guppy, 2 black mollies, 2 dwarf african frogs and 3 miniature algae eaters. Plecostumos (i think that's how it's spelled) but they start with an O. They're only suppose to get to 2 inches. My boyfriend purchased a spotted cory catfish, within 24 hours, it died. Had the water tested, everything was ok. Second spotted cory catfish died within 12 hours. Within 24 hours of the 2nd catfish, I had an algae eater die. Before dying, it kept trying to jump out of the tank. Now I have an algae eater that is floating around on his back, appears to be gasping for air, then goes bezerk and swims on his back when he chooses to not float around the tank. Any idea?? Water levels still testing normal. Filter has been replaced also.

*10 gallon tank
* ran 48 hours before adding fish
*all fish were added with the water they came in, sat in the bags floating in the tank for 30 minutes before being opened
*bought tank new in a kit with the filter and heater
* bought a top fin pump and bubble stone for max 10 gal tank to help circulate air.
* heater stays between 74 and 78 degrees
* all fish bought are those I have had success with in the past
* no insecticides set off (bug bombs)..tank is in my 1 year old's bedroom for her to watch
* tank now been running 11 days
Tests done for alkalinity, pH, nitrite, nitrate, hardness, and ammonia. Also the chlorine and chlorimides. (Dip and read test strips).

Answer 1

What's normal for the water tests? The only thing that is normal is ammonia and nitrites at 0 ppm, and nitrates under 20 ppm. Any level of ammonia or nitrite is toxic to fish, there is no normal or safe level. It sounds to me like there's ammonia or nitrite in the take, especially if they're gasping for air.

Those are otocinclus cats, and they're very sensitive to water quality. Here's a link with information on cycling a fish tank. There's also some articles on there for ammonia and nitrite poisoning.

http://freshaquarium.about.com/od/startupcycle/Step_5_The_Cycle.htm

Start doing small daily water changes to dilute the toxins in the water. Pick up a bottle of Prime by Seachem. It's a dechlorinator and it also detoxifies those toxins above to a safe level, but doesn't remove them so the tank can still cycle.

Answer 2

There are a number of problems here:

1. When you set up a new tank, you need to let it cycle before you add fish. It doesn't sound like you've done that.

2. When you start adding fish to a cycled tank, you should only add one or two at a time to let the tank adjust to the amount of waste, oxygen used, etc.

3. Did you condition the water before adding fish? You need Stress Coat or AquaSafe or some other product that removes chlorine and etc from the water.

4. That's a LOT of fish for a tank smaller than 20 gallons. What size is this tank?

5. When you say "water levels still testing normal" what do you mean? What are you testing? Ammonia? pH? Nitrate? Nitrite? It sounds like a classic ammonia-spike problem...and if your pH is high, the ammonia problems will be even worse.

6. What temp. is your tank at? If it's too hot or too cold, funky things can happen...including death.

7. If the fish are gasping, you probably have an oxygen exchange problem. Does the tank have a pretty good-sized surface area? If this is a "tall" tank, the surface area is smaller, so less oxygen gets into the water. With a tank that fully stocked (I'm assuming it's not a huge tank; beginners usually start with 20 gal or less), you definitely need the maximum surface area possible.

Answer 3

Well, first off, it takes longer than one week for a tank to cycle. And if you cycle with fish, this is what happens. They die. So, regardless of what the store said about the water quality, these are classic symptoms of poor water quality. Probably due to overcrowding. You didn't say what size of tank you have, but based on an average size of fish, using the 1 inch of fish per 1 gallon of water, you have about 28 inches worth of fish, which means you should have a 30 gallon tank. Do you? I hope so, but if not, this is the reason. If an algae eater is trying to jump out of the tank, it means it is trying to escape a toxic situation. Your water quality is not fine. You need to get a bigger tank or take back some of these fish. And you need to get your own master test kit and test the water yourself. It should read 0 ppm ammonia, 0 ppm nitrites and 40 or less nitrates. Also, are you detoxifying your water to take out the chlorine and other bad elements that are in tap water? And don't replace the filter. This prevents the beneficial bacteria from being able to grow and the tank never has a chance to cycle. Just rinse the filter in the old water you remove during your 25% water changes. Filters only need to be replaced 2-4 times a year.

Answer 4

Okay, you are going to have several problems here. First of all you can NEVER put mild detergent in a tank. The detergent hangs out in the silicone and will poison your fish! Even if it was rinsed well. Your fish are most likely doomed! Big NO-NO! You can place bleach in a tank, soak your plants in bleach. You have to rinse them well. But, this WILL NOT harm your fish, If your rinsed them good.... Your second problem is your 10 gallon tank is OVERSTOCKED, big time!! You will have a HUGE problem with the mollies. They are terroritial and will reap havic on your other fish. The fish per gallon is so be for every one inch of fish, they need 2 gallons, those mollies will get about 2 1/2 inches, the guppies and others will remain about 1 - 1 1/2 inches. When you buy fish you have to figure the size the fish will be at full grown status. Not the size of the fish when you get it. If you buy a fish that is a 1/2 inch and will be 2 1/2 inches full grown. You need to figure that fish will need 5 gallons alone.(Thats just one fish) You need a 35 gallon tank for the fish that are still alive. That doesn't include running out and getting 3 more for the three that died!You will need a bigger tank. fast. If you insist on keeping that amount of fish in there your daughter will be heart broken as they begin to die! You can not keep the water clean enough for that many fish either. The waste build up will be ammonia heaven. Just because things are good now does not mean they will be good in a week or a month from now........The fish that died and the replacement fish most likely died from the detergent you used. Some fish are a lot more sensitive to thins than other. Those frogs are another problem. If they are the white african frogs they will catch and eat your fish, while your fish sleep. Those frogs will be awake at night while your fish sleep, They will enjoy an early breakfast! Over crowding those fish is cruel. That is like you living your entire life in your small bathroom. Try having everything you need jammed in the bathroom. And never leave your bathroom. Put your bed, clothes, table, TV, ect in there and see how they feel. Remember you can't leave the bathroom, because they can't leave the tank that you are forcing them to live in. How does it feel to think about it like that. You probably thinking, Who does the B----, Think she is. Well, I am basically an expert on the subject, since I have been raising and breeding fish now for over 20 years!

Answer 5

Ok the levels may be what they are supposed to be however there is a such thing as too clean of water! Fish grow up in aquariums that are well dirty! When you first start an aquarium you must let it run for an absolute minimum of 24 hours, the heater, bubble makers and filters. In addition when you add fish you must add the water they came with.
Another thing could be if you didn't purchase the aquarium brand new someone could have used a dangerous cleaner of which the residue could still be lingering which will definately result is sick and dead fish. Another problem could be different things in the air in your home, if you have set off any bug bombs or any bug killer that could become air borne there is no doubt your fish will die.
Another thing i would recommend is to do some extensive research on each particular breed of fish, find otu what kind of habitats they thrive in, different temps and nitrate levels, etc.... sometimes when you go to a pet store or walmart they say certain fish can live well together and have the same needs, when in reality they do not!

Answer 6

How big is this aquarium? Sounds like too many fish for anything less then a 29 gallon tank after all the fish grow to adult size. I'd really check the water perameters again. Unless you fishless cycled within that first week there will be spikes going on in the ammonia in the tank. Check out sites about the nitrogen cycle. To start a tank I recommend using a fishless cycling method. Did you add a dechlorinator to the water before adding fish? If you choose to use fish to cycle the tank then you only want a few danios or another hardy type fish.

Answer 7

Do you have 'Aqua Safe'? If you don't you should get some. It helps for clear water, healthy fish and it also helps for getting all the bacteria, chemicals and all the bad things in the water.
I had the same thing happen to me... sort of the same thing with the algae eater going bezerk. So I went to the store I bought the fish from and they suggested I get aqua safe. If your catfish has white spots on it then it is sick, which is called ick. After a few days all my fish were fine. Also don't change your filter that often, maybe change it once every other two weeks. Watch your nitrate levels, total alkalinity levels and your pH levels those are usually the most important levels to watch. You can get all the supplies at the store you got the fish from. If you don't know were the stuff is ask one of the fish associatives that usually work at the fish department.

Answer 8

Your tank is cycling. This is what happens to new tanks...basically when the fish poop, they produce ammonia. Ammonia is toxic to fish. In time, your water establishes bacteria that converts the ammonia to nitrites (which are also toxic) and finally to nitrates (which are not toxic as long as they are kept below a certain level). Once your tank is cycled, the water should test out ammonia-0, nitrites-0, nitrates-less than 20. Usually people either cycle without fish using an added ammonia source, or add a very few, very tough fish to their tanks and wait it out. Since you've started out your tank with 13 fish, your ammonia levels are going to be much higher, and therefore more toxic. (The fact that one of your algae eaters was trying to jump out of the tank supports the theory that your water quality is low...if a fish isn't in a healthy environment, it will try to leave that environment.) I recommend taking most of the fish back to the store for now, otherwise you will continue to lose them. You need one or two tough little fish in your tank to cycle it, and do frequent partial water changes (remember to use dechlorinator) to keep them comfortable while the tank cycles. Your algae eaters...you probably have otos? They are extremely delicate and there is very little chance they will survive in a cycling tank. Guppies and cories are also extra-sensitive to water quality. Not sure about mollies, but they prefer a brackish environment (with some salt in the water) to a purely freshwater one, so they aren't really suited to live with the other fish you have. Best bet is to take them all back for now, and come home with one or two zebra danios. They are hardy fish and will survive the cycle. You can probably trade them in for something else once your cycle is done. This will take 3-8 weeks, or once your water tests as listed above. Then you can SLOWLY add the rest of your fish, one or two at a time. Remember to do 50% weekly water changes even after the tank is cycled to keep your fish healthy!

What size is the tank? If it is a 10 gallon or less, you have too many fish anyway for that tank size. It's best to understock rather than overstock.

Answer 9

I think a little more info would help here -

1) Which water tests were done?
2) What size tank?
3) How long has this tank been running?
4) If new, did you cycle the tank before adding the fish?
5) What is the water temperature?

If you can post additional details, I'll check back in a bit and see if I can give you an answer!

"O" fish are Otocinclus catfish.

Answer 10

You could have gotten sick fish in the first place so when you brought them back, they just got more sick from the trauma and started dying.

It is normally advisable for an aquarium to be set up for at least 2 weeks before you slowly begin to introduce fish. This will allow everything to settle and stabilise before the fish come in.

You could also have lead strips attached to the bottom of the plants (to help weigh them down), they can be very toxic to some fish and shrimp (especially algae-eaters)..

There's really a lot of things that could be going wrong. Then again, everything could just be fine and you have unhealthy fish on your hands..

However, your algae eater seems to be acting perfectly normal. Since their mouths are located at the bottom, they sometimes flip upside down to get food that you are feeding the fish. This is a sign that you need to get him special food which sinks so he has something to eat. In planted aquariums, sometimes a film develops on the surface of the water, certain algae eaters and fish (like mollies and platies) love the stuff and frequently skim the surface of the water for it..

Just hang in there and keep observing your fish. It'll all get better soon and you'll be a pro in no time.