Murdering Filter part two

[lyquidphyre]

Yah, i just woke up from a nap and another one of my fancy guppies is dead and stick in the filter tube thingy


*sigh*

 

[Allivymar]

Aw I'm sorry lyquidphyre. It is unusual for healthy fish to get sucked onto the filter; usually its because they are weak or dead already. Is it possible there is something wrong with them?

 

[lyquidphyre]

They are new fish so they might have been sick when I purchased them. It's just weird that two of the same fish in two days have managed to gravitate towards the filter tube after death.

 

[madasafish]

How are the rest of the fish looking? Are they losing coloration?

 

[lyquidphyre]

I bought 4 guppies and they all looked healthy, so I thought- no discoloration or anything. I don't notice anything weird about any of the fish I purchased. All my other new fish are fine- its just my guppies =o(

 

[Fruitbat]

lyquidphyre...

My daughter just had exactly the same thing happen in her guppy tank. I found two fancy guppy males stuck to the intake of the HTB filter...both deader than doornails. The female guppies weren't bothered at all.

I suspect that the males fancy guppies with their much longer tails are a lot more susceptible to being grabbed by a powerful filter. They can't swim as strongly as the more streamlined females and just don't have the swimming power to avoid being nabbed by murderous filters.

I replaced the power filter with a simple sponge filter (Jungle Dirt Magnet)...the kind that I used to use with great success in small tanks. The male guppies don't have to struggle so much against the current and the tank is staying crystal clear. Might be worth a try.

 

[grimlock3000]

What filter are you using???

 

[cdawson]

They are new fish so they might have been sick when I purchased them. It's just weird that two of the same fish in two days have managed to gravitate towards the filter tube after death.

Happens to me whenever a fish dies in one of my tanks.
If it doesn't happen right away it happens before I notice it. That's how it works in the wild, anything light enough gets carried away in the current. dead fish included.

 

[AJ]

I always find my dead fish stuck to the filter tube. I have watched them die and know that isn't why they die. The current into a filter isn't that strong. Only the dead go there. They were dying from worms and finrot. If they're new you never know what they might have. My guppies have always ended up there - which is OK, I've never had to search for dead fish.

 

[lyquidphyre]

Ack! I just came home and my third fancy guppy was stuck to it as well as 3? rasboras. Grrrrr.

Maybe they are sick.

Even though this isn't an amusing subject, i find it "amusing" that my goldfish with swim bladder, who wasn't expected to make it, is out living all my new fish *shakes head*

What filter are you using???

Im using a Tetra Whisper filter

 

[cdawson]

did you cycle the tank?
do you change the water?
if you didn't or don't even know what that means go here,
http://fishinthe.net/html/forum/viewtopic.php?t=4436
your fish probably died from ammonia or nitrite poisoning, which if you're a fish. Is a bad way to go.

 

[grimlock3000]

"Tetra Whisper"

Unless you have the largest Whisper made in a small tank, I do not believe your filter has anything to do with killing the fish. If you are running a filter meant for your size of tank and not totally overdoing it by having a filter rate like 20x+, the fish should not have an issue.

Your fish are most likely weakened or killed by disease or bad water, then the fish get stuck on the filter. Any healthy fish should be able to get away rom the intake current, even if it gets caught off guard. I have a 200 gph Aquaclear in my 26g tank running full blast and I have never got a fish stuck to it. The Guppies all started off in the tank very small as well. Heck, the Fantail Guppies will even sit right in front of the filter and eat algae off the intake strainer.

 

[Allivymar]

*nods and agrees with grimmie*

I run a Penguin170 (170 gph) on my 10g; I have never had a fish get stuck to the intake tube, although I have seen them nibbling at it.

 

[lyquidphyre]

my filter is made for the size tank I have (29 gallon).
I know what changing the water means and I understand about cycling my tank.

I realize now that the filter didn't have anything to do with their deaths but when my fish died and decided to gravitate towards the filter instead of floating, it concerned me.

I plan on changing my water and all that good stuff tonight.

 

[cdawson]

ok, I wasn't sure if you had said anything about water changing or cycling beforehand. I was worried I'd risk sounding like a jerk, but I'm just trying to help =)
Try testing the water quality (ammonia, nitrite, nitrates), something must be amiss.

 

[lyquidphyre]

I know you were trying to help =o)

Im thinking now I just bought sick fish. I need to get a water testing kit- I plan on doing that late tonight so I don't have to fight the people who are there shopping for aisle space and maybe I can figure out what is going on =o)