water polltuion problem?

Question

i do 10% water cahnegs a week for which my socar fish is very messy. but as i did my weekly cleaning i came to realize that one of my plant has been all rotted out. i took the palnt out as soon as possible. then i see otehr plants rotting so i took those plants out. my oscar seem to lay at the bottom of the tank but when i walk in hed be fine and start swimming again. wondering if there may be some kind of disease in the tank. the oscar fish is so clam all the time so its ahrd for me to know if anyhting is wrong. anyone have a suggestion of knowing if theres a problem or have any suggeston?

Answer 1

The plants rotting are not necessarily indicative of a water problem or a disease. Even low-light plants require a watt/gallon. If you get plants that need more light, things can get very complicated - carbon dioxide injection, fertilization, expensive lighting, etc. A good planted tank is a lot of work. Novice plantkeepers (like me) often end up with terrestrial plants in their aquarium by accident, too.

However, the decay of the plants may cause a problem for the oscar. Take them all out and don't put them back - like the first guy said, oscars are hard on plants and other decor anyway. Test the water and keep an eye on your oscar - they can be pouty for all kinds of reasons. If it's not acting sick, you should be ok.

What size tank? How big is the oscar?

Answer 2

I'm surprised you've managed to keep plants in there, When I've tried keeping plants they just get uprooted and tossed out so i only use giant valisnera, but back to the question, several years ago when i first started to do planted aquariums and knew almost as much as i know now (nothing). I ordered from some mail order place a batch the majority were supposed to be dwarf amazon stuff like that. Having planted up the tank the next day when i got in from work the house stunk, and the tank was a mess, i then took so called plants to a LFS some miles away who told me that what i had were all semi-aquatic in other words they generally lived at the side of rivers and could cope if they were submerged etc and named them, they all came from places like NZ, and where not tropical at all. therefore when they were put in they just rotted from the roots up. which i would imagine is what happened to yours, i would suggest you get it all out and do a 25 pct water change and another one in a few days time, then double check to make sure you have everything out. You have to ensure you've got the root ball out otherwise it just turns into a smelly sludge.

As i said earlier i would stick to something like the giant vals well anchored nothing else is really suitable as they take too long to root or as you've found may look good with big leaves but are not suitable.

Answer 3

First the plants - the Oscar probably ate the plants - most cichlids will.

There is probably something wrong with your water, rather than a disease. Is there any physical indications on the fish? If not have your water tested. White spots or patches is probably some sort of fungus. Oscars are also pron to hole-in-head disease (as the name implies they get holes on their heads). Discoloration of the scales would probably indicate ph/alkalinity problems.

Answer 4

Oscars sulk for emotional reasons. Unlike most other fish, they sulk for more than physical or environmental discomfort. He could also be sleeping... Oscars tend to sleep on the bottom.

Most fish flash (scrape their bodies on the gravel fast), or show visible signs of wear & tear like fast breathing, clamped tail fin, or loss of color when they're Ill or infested with parasites.

Sometimes if a tank is too hot it can cause an oscar to act lazy. I keep mine at 76F.

The plants are probably just dying. It takes a delicate balance of intense lighting, co2 rich water, minerals, and regular fresh water to keep a lot of plants alive in a fish tank. I've wasted hundreds of dollars trying to get my plants to live. Its more normal for them to die than to thrive. If the undersides are dying, cut them off with scisors & remove all the dead stuff. The rotting vegetation will increase phosphates & nitrates in the water and can be a cause of stress for your fish, bad smells coming from the aquarium, and black hair algae. In an oscar tank, its best to go without live plants & go with artificial decorations or my favorite, terra cotta pots.