My fish are acting funny!?

Question

Just two days ago i bought two swordtails one male and one female( who is pregnant) and two male fancy guppies. Last night and this morning they were all at the bottom of my aquarium. and the female was moving up and down the aquarium. and the water is clody already i dont know why. I have a Three step filter sytem Please help me i dont want them to die!!!!

Answer 1

How old is the tank only two days as well? Have you tested your water for ammonia, nitrates and PH?

Cloudy water can be a form of bacterial bloom or algae bloom.

All too often too many new fish owners make the same common mistakes. Did you wash your tank out properly prior to installing? Did you wash your gravel thru a strainer (and I don't mean just rinse it off)? These are the two leading cause for cloudy water.

Your tank is not cycled properly. See web page.
http://freshaquarium.about.com/cs/biologicalcycle/a/nitrogencycle.htm


Your biggest issue now isn't the cloudy water; it's the ammonia spike that will soon occur (if it hasn't already), followed by elevated nitrites. Both could result in the loss of some or all of your fish. I'd strongly recommend that you become familiar with the Nitrogen cycle, so you are aware of what will be happening in the upcoming weeks.
You should begin testing your water right away for ammonia and take appropriate steps to keep it below lethal levels. Hang in there; once you get your tank through the initial cycle the cloudy water problem will clear up
Do you or are you using a gravel siphon to clean the bottom when doing water changes? (Sorry forgot it is only 7 days old) Did you rinse out your filter and pads prior to installing them?

If you did not rinse the gravel well enough you can do one of two things, stir up the gravel in the tank really well. This will cause all the "dirt" particles to float in your tank. Keep the filter running and do a 20% water change. As long as your water "quality" is fine, do this every other day until the water is clear. Each time, be sure to rinse your filter out as well.
Adding an air your bubble want does nothing for the fish or the water. Dissolved O2 comes from the water itself moving. Bubblers move very little water there for add very little to no Dissolved O2 to your tank.



Good Luck

.

Answer 2

you're overstocked. each time a fish acts abnormally skill there is a few thing incorrect with the water, its the two extreme ammonia because goldfish are grimy, or extreme nitrites, or extreme nitrates. infant/juvenile fancy goldfish choose 10 gallons in step with fish and infant/juvenile long bodied goldfish choose 20 gallons in step with fish. An grownup will choose atleast 50-60 gallons in step with fish. Goldfish have lifespans of 30 years an replace into 12-14 inches in length.

Answer 3

I've read this, that Swordtail fish are livebearers, so it is fairly easy for them to breed. Be sure to give a lot of floating cover for the baby swords. Try to put the babies in a separate tank otherwise the adult fish will eat them

Many diseases are brought on by the tropical fish being stressed due to transport or water quality issues. If you've just set up your tank, please read about new tank syndrome.

It's a very good idea to have a small quarantine tank for new fish so that you may monitor the fish for a few weeks before adding the fish to your main tank. You can also use the quarantine tank for your fish that come down with a disease and can avoid adding chemicals to your main tank.

Good luck and i don't want them to die either.

Answer 4

It sounds like your tank isn't cycled yet and isn't able to deal with all of the ammonia your new fish are producing. Without knowing how long the tank has been running or it's size that's somewhat of a guess, but I think it's a safe one. The best thing to do for now is a large 50-60%) water change

Here's a page with some info about what's going on in your tank that will help you see what's going on and how to deal with it over the next few weeks:
http://www.firsttankguide.net/cycle.php

Hope that helps.

MM

Answer 5

you may need to place some filter add in the take and clean it again and give the filter a GOOD WASH then fill the tank back up and put filter aid in it you all so may want to put some nitrate neutralizer in but check the levels fist!!!!!

Answer 6

Have you tried cleaning out the cage? Even though you have a filter, it's a good idea to clean it out every now and then.

Answer 7

if you just filled the tank with tape water it take a couple of days to clear up. the best wat is to use bottled water so all the chemicals are out of it or let tap water set for a couple days before you use it.

Answer 8

take them to the vet.