My boyfriend recently got this big fish tank from a friend, he didnt scrub it before using it though he only rinsed it out with water, the first event that happened was he bought lots of feeder fish for his turtles and desided to keep them in there. The next day they all died. He even used water softner stuff too. Okay so then yesterday he bought three fish not sure what kind but they are small and cute. He wanted to keep them as pets. Well last night they died too. Is it the PH level of the water??
2007-06-25 06:58:43 · 14 answers · asked by Kitty 2 in Pets ➔ Fish
What's happening is that you're putting what are probably too many fish into a tank without the needed bacteria in it to convert the ammonia the fish produce (which is toxic to them) into something less toxic. See this link on ammonia poisoning: http://freshaquarium.about.com/cs/disease/p/ammoniapoison.htm and this one on cycling an aquarium (how to prevent ammonia poisoning in the future): http://www.fishlore.com/NitrogenCycle.htm
You may also not be acclimating the fish properly - floating them for 15 minutes so the temperature of the water their in equalizes with that in the tank, then doing small additions of tank water to their bag so they get used to any changes in water chemistry gradually. BTW< don't add water from their bag to your tank - it's a sure way to introduce diseases, parasites, and unwanted algae to the tank.
2007-06-25 07:10:05 · answer #1 · answered by copperhead 7 · 5⤊ 0⤋
I highly recommend you read "The complete idiot's guide to freshwater aquariums" (no I am not calling you an idiot) it gives you great details on the cycle and cleaning regime for freshwater aquariums as well as telling you the bioload based on size of tank.
You should NEVER use a cleanser in an aquarium, even in trace amounts this can kill a fish.
You should also get your water tested (most local fish stores or pet stores that deal in fish will test it for free if you bring them a sample).
Tanks go through a cycle of unhealthy water and only the hardiest of fish will generally survive that cycle (unless you cycle it without fish.... do some research). You also need to consider the bio-load of your tank. (for example: a ten gallon JUST starting out should have no more than about 2-4 SMALL fish, think 1 inch or so, until it is fully cycled. Thats anywhere from 3 weeks to 8 weeks, you will need to test your water to tell when its done)
2007-06-25 14:31:02 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
If your boyfriend wants to KEEP fish in that tank, he needs to 'clean it thoroughly' ... use HOT WATER and a 'brush' for the sides, then he'll need to RINSE IT with first 'equally hot water' and then three more times with the 'rinse water' getting cooler each time. He may need to use some 'disinfectant' but tell him to BE SURE that the 'disinfectant' isn't going to 'cling' to the tank and kill more fish ... he should be able to buy a good 'disinfectant' for a fish tank at any store that sells live tank fish (NOT A DEPARTMENT STORE OR OTHER BIG STORE ... ONLY A PET STORE OR "FISH STORE") ...
but your boyfriend may also have been given a tank that is RUINED as a home for fish ... I have two 20 gallon long 'fish tanks' ... one holds my two very fat and very happy goldfish, and one holds my HEDGEHOG. I would NEVER use the hedgehog's tank for anything but another DRY LAND pet, because the hedgehog needs 'different things' and some of those could get 'into' the corners of the glass and kill any fish I tried to keep in it ...
If the tank is 'very large' (over 30 gallons) it may be the Ph of the tank that is causing the 'deaths' or it could be something else ... if he has a 'pump/filter' and it 'fits' the tank (they come in 'sizes' because a larger tank needs more filtering and more 'air' in the water) and the fish are still dying, I think you should tell him that the tank needs to be 'thrown out' or used ONLY for 'dry animals' and not have fish kept in it.
2007-06-25 14:09:39 · answer #3 · answered by Kris L 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
It could be many things. Did your boyfriend float the bag of fish in the water for 20 minutes? If not, then they could hage died of temperature shock. The nitrite/nitrate/ammonia levels could be too high. Buy a test kit to moniter all these. Even though fish seem like an easy pet to keep, some can get pretty expensive.
~ZTM
2007-06-25 14:05:51 · answer #4 · answered by ZooTycoonMaster 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
i would drain it and clean it wioth a sponge and vinegar, rinse well, when you think its ok, rinse for another 10 minutes. pH is a measure of how acidic or alkaline the water is. pretty much anything between 6-8 is ok. i would buy a good book on aquarium keeping. by water softner i guess you are talking about aquasafe or somekind of chlorine remover, aerate or circulate the wwater for a while before adding anything. im sure someone ahs a link toa good article on starting your first fish tank. what size tank and what kind of filter??
2007-06-25 14:27:00 · answer #5 · answered by michael_j_p_42503 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
There could be a lot of problems with the water. He should have cleaned the tank with hot water and bleach and then rinsed it real good and then wipe it out real real good.
Since he didn't do any of this. Then have him take a sample of the water to the pet store and they will run a water test on it [free] and can tell him what is wrong. I raised salt water and fresh water fish. In the tank for my fresh water fish I used bottled water. I had a 100 gallon tank [ every 3 weeks it took 10 (5gal bottles) of water to refill and clean the tank. ] My fish lived a long time and I had goldfish that got 7" long. They where beautiful...
2007-06-25 14:13:13 · answer #6 · answered by Angell 6 · 0⤊ 2⤋
Try taking a water sample to PetSmart. They do free water testing, and they'll find out the right pH for the fish you want to keep in the tank. Also, they may be able to pick up on it if there is a communicable disease that was present in the tank that wasn't washed out fully, which may be the problem as well.
2007-06-25 14:02:54 · answer #7 · answered by prisoned_angel 1 · 2⤊ 1⤋
Do you have a heater most fish need heated water. You might be able to take a water sample to the place you bought the fish from and they might be able to telkl you what the problem is.
2007-06-25 14:25:47 · answer #8 · answered by pink_angel1022 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Could be the temprature, Did you cycle the tank?. Did you put the stuff in to take the cholride in out of the water?
2007-06-25 14:02:34 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
well i would sugest scrubbing the tank and rising it really well to get all the soap out, second if you are using tap water (which contains chlorine) let the tank sit w/ the water for 24 hours before putting the fish in, hopefully that will work!
2007-06-25 14:11:44 · answer #10 · answered by Zu-Zu 2 · 0⤊ 2⤋