I have 3 fancy goldfish and today i bought a new clownfish loach?

Question

I was adjusting the clownfish loach to the water and before i knew it the fish was gone. I know the clownfish loaches are more sensitive than goldfish. My ph was on the high side it was around 8.0 and my amnonia was alittle high. im not sure if this is why the fish died or not. i dont want to add chemicals to the tank because i am afraid it will only hurt my other fish. if anyone knows why my loach didnt make it and what i could do so that future fish i buy wont pass away. im confused thou because one loach did make it and then the one i got today didnt. so i really dont know

I have a heater and i keep the water on the warmer side to accomodate the clownfish loach

The loach doesnt need salt water. it is also a freshwater fish

I really need to know how to lower the ph. it is really high. without adding chemicals. any natural methods

clownfish loaches are jumpy they kept trying to escape.

Answer 1

If the ammonia in your tank is high, you shouldn't be adding more fish. Ammonia is toxic to fish, and goldfish produce a good bit of ammonia. Your tank sounds as though it's fairly new, because in a tank that's been running for a few months, you shouldn't detect any ammonia at all - it should be converted by bacteria in your tank to nitrite (also toxic), then to nitrate, which isn't toxic in moderate amounts. This process is called cycling, and your tank isn't cycled yet if you're seeing ammonia. You can read more about this in the links I'll post at the end.

The goldfish will have adapted somewhat to the ammonia level, since for them it will have increased gradually, but for the loach, the change may have been too much. You would do better to wait until your tank is farther through the cycling process, or finished withit, before you try and add more fish.

Another consideration is that clown loaches and goldfish require different conditions, and these shouldn't be kept together. Goldfish are a coolwater species, so their temperature should be 65-75o, while the loach should have a temperature 76-80o. Both are large-growing fish, with goldfish growing 8-24 inches, depending on the variety, and the loach will grow to about a foot long. Loaches are a social fish, and should be kept in groups. To keep the goldfish as adults, they should be in a 30-55 gallon tank. The clown loach should havea 55 at least, but for a group, the tank should be even larger.


ADDITION: Unless your pH is over 9, your fish will be fine in it. I've kept fish in water with a pH of 8.3 with no problems. You'll only cause the fish more stress if you try to change it from what they're in now, because it will change every time you do a water change. The pH isn't as much of a problem as the ammonia and mix of species.
http://www.firsttankguide.net/ph.php

Answer 2

That is only a 15 gallon tank. I am sure your cleaning your tank alot, cloudy tank much as well? Each goldfish can grow up to be 6 inches long and more and create a ton of waste. And depending on your kind of minnows, if they are rosey red they have the same potential. Your Tank is way to small, need at least a 40 gallon if not more. A sucking loach is not a species but a vague description. There are many loaches and if your actually describing a algae eater such as a pleco, these are two different fish. Your sucking loach could even be a Hillstream Loach. As for most loaches and plecos, when matured or even during juvinile size they will suck and nip at scales or slime coats of fish. I found out that yoyos like to suck the slime coat of my golden dojos, even though yoyos were deemed nonaggressive. ("'\(o.o)/"')

Answer 3

first the ph was a little high and clown loaches like it 7.0-7.5 also like you said clown loaches are sensetive and like the amnonia level just right for them. some advice that i can give you is: examine the fish while its in the bag and see if it look healthy, also clown loaches need alot of swiming room because they are fast and playful fish. your loaches were probably try to jump out of the tank because the ph lvl is way to high for them and they got stressed

Answer 4

goldfish water has to be off, like u know the waste produced is just hard for the loach to handle.

it might also be a differnece in water temp. Goldfish like colder, when the loach likes warm.

So they dont belong together anyway, prehaps or the best.

Answer 5

your mixing goldfish with tropical fish -clownloach ,the 2 don't mix well and gold fish are not tropical so they don't need heaters- I would take the heater out. then i would get another tank to put the tropical clown loaches in ,I have 4 in a community tank with silver dollars and Tiger barbs...

Answer 6

That's odd because allot of times there pretty tough you can bring a little watter from your tank to a pet store and most of them will check it to see how your pH and stuff is.

Answer 7

i had a loach once it tried to jump out of the tank i would check the floor.

Answer 8

could have been sick when you got
it
ph is probably what killed it thou it could have been temperature
next time research the fish your getting before getting it
and but some medicine to treat your tank any way
its not going to hurt them but it will make sure what ever reminant of illness wont get them

Answer 9

you do know that goldfish are freshwater and can't be in heated water and clown fish are saltwater and need heated water right? Your going to kill one or the other breed.