Starter 10gal Tank...Why Did All the Fish Die?

Question

A while back, I bought one of those starter 10gal tank kits (not tropical, no heater necessary) at PetSmart.

I read all the instructions that came with the tank and followed them meticulously, including using tap water (I did put in all the solutions that came with the tank). I started up the filter, then waited a week before putting in the fish (4 fish, just the common varieties you find at PetSmart).

One of the fish had those bubbly eyes, and one of his eyes was damaged when I put him in. Within a week, he died. Then I bought an aquatic plant at PetSmart, and put that in. Within another week, all 3 of the other fish died as well. They would stop eating first, then stop having the ability to swim (so they would just float around), then die. I cleaned out the tank (no soap).

Someone told me it was the tap water, so I bought 10 gallons of purified water and put that in. Bought 4 more fish at PetSmart. Within two weeks, they were dead too. I gave up. What happened?

Answer 1

You can't follow the instructions you get at the petstore. Unfortunately, they are sorely lacking in accuracy. Your fish died because you didn't cycle your tank. Just letting the water run for a week doesn't do anything. 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)

I'm guessing that the fish you buy are goldfish, yes? If not, can you be more specific? There are 100s of fish for sale at Petsmart that are "common".
If they are goldfish, stop getting goldfish. They will outgrow you 10 gallon tank.
Also, do not add too many fish at once.
Once your tank is cycled, get one or 2 fish per week. You could start with 2-3 guppies or neon tetras. Then the next week get 2 or 3 more. And then get a nice centrepiece fish like a male betta or a dwarf gourami.

Answer 2

Basically, your tank was cycling. When you buy a new tank and add fish, it experiences a spike in ammonia (which is poisonous to fish), due to the fish waste. What happens next is the ammonia goes down and you have a spike in nitrites (which is poisonous to fish). Finally the nitrites go down and you get a rise in nitrates (which are not poisonous to fish at low levels.) This is called the nitrogen cycle. If you add too many fish, the spikes in ammonia and nitrites go way too high and the fish are basically poisoned. It is recommended that you either buy just 1 or 2 hardy fish to start with, or "seed" your tank filter with the filter media from an established tank. This will have enough beneficial bacteria on it from the get-go that your tank shouldn't have to go through a true cycle. However, you should always add fish slowly--one at a time--to avoid overloading your tank with your fish's ammonia production.
Also, 4 goldfish is too much for a 10 gallon tank. 1 goldfish alone needs at least 20 gallons. If you want to start up your tank again, I recommend that you get a heater for your tank--they aren't that expensive--and get some tropical fish such as platys or guppies. You can fit 6 or 7 of these in your tank (eventually) with no problem, as long as you do weekly 50% water changes.

Answer 3

Ammonia poisoning. You didn't cycle the tank and you were overstocked. Those bubble-eyes (as well as other fancy goldfish) need 10 gallons per 3 inches of fish. They produce way too much ammonia for this small tank. You should set up the tank and cycle it (3-6 weeks usually) and use a water test kit to make sure the water is ok. Then add fish. DOn't use any of the horrible chemicals used for cycling. They don't work and they can kill the fish. The only chemicals you should use are dechlorinator.

Answer 4

Definitely not goldfish in a tank that size. I would personally recommend smaller sized fish like male guppies, zebra danios, platies, maybe a dwarf gourami. It is best to get hardy fish when adding for the first time, at least until your tank completes it's nitrogen cycle. There are a wide variety of fish that make good starters; the choice is really up to you. Just remember not to overstock; the inch per gallon rule works fairly well when dealing with the smaller guys. You also don't want to add more than 2-3 fish a week to make sure that your beneficial bacteria is keeping up with the amount of fish waste produced. Don't be afraid to ask questions at your local fish store, if they are reputable they should be able to provide you with solid answers and help you with stocking and fish compatibility.

Answer 5

Your first answer is exactly right. AND 10 gal tanks are crap. Get at least a 30 gal. Goldfish and tropicals do not mix. Wait 3-4 weeks amd add in just two fish. Get rid of the 10 gal...PLEASE PLEASE do not think it is a healthy place to raise fish other than a few guppies. Ammonia build up is a real killer. Petsmart people are not so smart. Go to the links the gentleman above gave. Read book, talk to REAL fish people. I have had fish for 15 years and I started out just like you, learning the hard way, no fun either, just heartbreaking

Answer 6

With a new setup, you need to allow at least 4 weeks for the tank to cycle. Your fish will have died from Ammonia/Nitrite poisoning. Change 50% of the water, add a bacterial supplement & monitor the Nitrite levels. When the Nitrite level is near zero, then add just a couple of small fish. Continue to monitor Nitrite levels & wait until it is stable before adding more stock.

Answer 7

Goldfish are not the easy fish to keep that people are misled to believe they are. Goldfish are very difficult fish to keep. All fish have certain requirements that make their environment safe and healthy. Goldfish are the same, but with extra considerations because of ammonia levels from extreme feces output. You need to know about properly cycling of the water before ever adding fish, learning how to choose the proper size tank for the amount of goldfish you have, knowing what the ratio rule for goldfish to water is, knowing how to choose the right size filter and what filters are the best, knowing how to do proper water changes and tank maintenance, proper feeding, etc. There is a lot to know and I would suggest that you thoroughly read up on keeping goldfish before getting any more. Here are a few quick tips:
No bowls. Goldfish need a minimum of 10 gallons of water per fish up to 4 inches, 20 gallons per fish up to 8 inches and a lot more after that.
For goldfish, you do not choose a filter based on the size of aquarium the box says it's good for. You choose a filter, at least partially, based on the gallons of water per hour (gph) it pumps. For example, if you have a 10 gallon tank, the filter should pump 100 gph. For a 20 gallon tank, 200 gph, etc. Then you need to know about mechanical filtration, chemical filtration and biological filtration and choose a filter(s) that does the best job of these three needs for the size of tank you have.
When cycling your tank, please consider a fishless cycle vs. a cycle with fish. The cycle with fish is less expensive, but takes longer. The fishless cycle is more expensive, but is faster and does not kill fish.
It is better to underfeed a goldfish rather than overfeed. Goldfish only need to be fed once daily and only a small pinch. They can survive several days without food. If you bloat them, they can get swim bladder disease and could die. They also need to be fed veggies and fruits such as dark green lettuces (no iceberg), spinach, boiled chopped eggs, fresh or frozen shelled peas, broccoli flowers, oranges, grapes, kiwis, chopped earthworms, brine shrimp, krill, bloodworms, etc. Their flake or pellet food should be soaked prior to feeding to prevent bloating.
Learn how to identify and treat diseases before getting any goldfish.
Choose fancy goldfish over the slim-bodied goldfish. While the fancies can still grow quite large, they won't get as large as the slim-bodied goldies.
Goldfish are very social and they are much happier when there are two or more, thus, a minimum of a 20 gallon tank is usually the best starter size tank.
Read as many different articles on this site and learn as much as you can before getting more fish. It will tell you all you need to know.

Answer 8

I agree with vor.... Most people buy a tank and their fish in the same day not being told that they should let the tank grow some good bacteria first.

Also there are drops to remove the chlorine and ammonia from the water that you should put in.

Go back to PetsMart and return your fish and tell them to do their jobs this time.

Answer 9

I hope you don't get discouraged by this. I have kept fish for almost 5 years now, and I love them. If you are having problems, here's what I would do. Just get one fish to start off with. Leave it in there by itself for about three weeks. If it lives, get another one. If it dies, you have some other problem. Get someone who has fish to look at your tank and see if anything obvious is being overlooked.

Answer 10

did you have gold g=fish if so they don't neeed a heater it can kill them did you have a heater.. that could have been what did it, also you may need to change 1/3 tank of water every week if thats not it get a kit with the amonia and ph levels they might be too high of too low. amonia 0 os good but ph has to be within certain peramiters. also did you aclimate the fish before realeasing them from bag to water that can kill them
hop i helped