I have had two algea eaters and they both have died, What could be the problem?

Question

I have a 10 gal tank with two goldfish and a cat fish. A little less than a month ago my algea eater died. I clean the tank every three weeks or so and I would really like to get another algea eater. Before I get another one I would like to know what is wrong and why it died.

I had each algea eater at different times and I did give them wafers.Also the fish were only about an inch or two in length, all my fish are. The last one that died was only in a tank with four three other fish and they were all between 1-2.5 inches long, not very big. In a 10 gal. tank.

Answer 1

Chances are either your tank doesn't have a significant amount of algae in the tank or they are not comfortable with the lack of space in a tank. I would think that it is a space issue. You are already over crowded with those three fish in such a small tank. Fish need room to move around and their own "space". By algae eatter I am guessing you are talking about plecos in which case they will never survive. They grow very large. Some up to 2 ft or more and you also need to take in mind that if kept the correct way they can live around 20 yrs. I would suggest maybe looking into the chinese algae eatter instead. They don't get as big but in such a small tank only one would be acceptable. Read up on them a little bit.

Answer 2

ammonia poisoning.

2 goldfish need at least a 20gallons if young and 30 if adults. godlfish also need a really good filter. catfish as in corys? or the sucker fish? most sucker fish get waaay to big to even put one in a 10gallon. for your 10gallon with 2 goldfish and a catfish (by the way catfish produce a lot of waste also) you need to be doing 20% water changes like every three days, not every three weeks (assuming there is a good filter in there).

my suggestions would be to get a test kit and test the levels of everything (ammonia, nitrates, nitrites, pH...) and also get a much bigger tank with a good filter for that tank. if you can't do that you really should donate the goldfish to a petstore or someone who can house them properly and then get a heater and few tropicals for your 10gallon.

*edit*
size of the fish isn't all that matters, 1inch per gallon only applies to some fish, goldfish are not one of them. goldfish when young need 10gallons EACH. so two goldfish need 20gallons if they're young. but if you keep them in the 10gallon they are likely to be stunted, which is BAD. they will stop growing on the outside, but their insides still grow until they DIE a painful death. not to mention they need 10gallons to themselves because they are little poop machines, adding another fish that produces a fair amount of ammonia makes it a deathtrap. you NEED a bigger tank. you asked what is wrong, there is the problem, if you didn't want to hear the answer why did you ask?

Answer 3

your top questions suggests that you had more than one in the tank, and your "further info" area sounds like you only had one...so I'm going to go from your title description
if they died it's because you had more than one..esp in a 10 gallon tank, 2 algae eaters is usually too many unless you provide agea wafers...
try only one and see if that works better.
your tank may also not be providing enough food period, so ad some algea wafers anyways, and some floating cucumber, my pleco loves them.
before you get another though, have your water tested just in case.
good luck
btw, every 3 weeks is not enough..try 1x a week ,or 1x every 2 weeks. Also, be sure you are siphoning the gravel for any ickys.

Answer 4

there are dissimilar causes that desire die, using absence of documents you are able to no longer aspect the precise reason, some causes will be: . a million. organic causes. 2. ailment particular to the breed. 3. The organic and organic cycle, the nitrification procedure, new tank syndrome or maybe the starting up-up cycle. all of them are concerning an similar cycle - The Nitrogen Cycle. 4. Being puzzled through different higher fish. 5. Water Chemistry 6. Temperature of the water etc. utilising of cleansing soap, Detergents, chemical compounds to sparkling tanks is Taboo, please do no longer use it again. how you are able to bypass is to position in some Rock salt with water and softly rinse the interior with a sponge to stay away from stratches, eliminate the salt water and rinse again with sparkling water (similar for the gravel, logs, toys and different products positioned contained in the tank). Do a 10% water substitute. solid success>r

Answer 5

YOU are the problem. You need to clean your tank once a week. To avoid over populating your tank, remember this rule, at least 1 gallon needed per inch of fish.

Answer 6

Your tank probably has high ammonia levels because it is overstocked. Some fish can handle the levels for a while, but then they eventually die. Its like breating in toxins from mold in a house, in low doses people can be fine for years before something major goes wrong.

Answer 7

Where they Chinese algae eaters? If so it was probably an assassination from a gold fish.

Answer 8

you might want to try a bigger tank and check your fish ick disease

Answer 9

tHEY MAY HAVE STARVED TO DEATH. tHEY EAT FROM THE BOTTOM AND EAT VERY LITTLE ALGAE. FEED THEM ALGAE WAFERS OR OTHER SINKING PELLETS. tHE GOLDFISH WILL GET MOST oF THE FOOD YOU PUT IN. iF THERE IS TOO MUCH FOOD,IT ROTS AND THEY WON'T EAT ROTTEN BOTTOM FOOD.

Answer 10

That happened to me too. I had 3. They always die. I have no idea why either.