SHY fish....only comes out when lights are OFF :(

[Bubble_B0y]

can someone please help me out.

I am having trouble with my white clouds.
i have 10 white clouds

I have a planted tank, 20gallons,
ammonia 0, nitrite 0, nitrate 40

anyways, my fish are very shy.

I noticed that when the aquarium flourescent lights are switched "ON"
they go hide in the plants.

when the lights are switched "OFF"
they come out, and start swimming around.

WHY??

 

[dr_girlfriend]

How heavily planted is your tank? If you don;t have any get some floating plants to make some shading for them to feel more comfortable.

 

[Bubble_B0y]

How heavily planted is your tank?
.

not much plants...
only "1" side of the tank has plants.
maybe this isn't enough??

If you don;t have any get some floating plants to make some shading for them to feel more comfortable

i don't have any floating plants.
i might get some...

 

[Bubble_B0y]

question:
the aquarium shop had white clouds in a tank with NO plants.
but they were swimming around fine.

how come they don't swim in my tank??

 

[Bubble_B0y]

would it help if i switched my lights on MORE
and leave the lights on LONGER??

also, i've only had these fish for 1 week

 

[dr_girlfriend]

I would defintiley add more plants, this will help with potential algae problems too. Pennywort is a good floater, but it needs moderate lighting.
Sometimes fish are quirky. Fish act different at the store than they do in your tank at home.
They might have been at the store for quite a while and with a bigger group than they are now, which maybe why they were out schooling and swimming. Then they get netted and plopped into a totally new environment with a smaller group, so they may not feel as secure with the lights on.
This is just a guesstimate, as I can't ask fish why they do the things they do sometimes.
How big is your tank?

 

[Bubble_B0y]

20 gallons.
10 white clouds
they come out during feeding time...
but after dinner....they go back and hide

 

[dr_girlfriend]

You should have your lights on with plants for about 9-12 hours a day. Keep it on a consistent schedule, a timer is good for this. If you only had the fish a week, I wouldnt worry about it. Add some more plants and they will gradually become more secure in their environment.

EDIT: Are you sure your tank is cycled also?

 

[Bubble_B0y]

You should have your lights on with plants for about 9-12 hours a day. Keep it on a consistent schedule, a timer is good for this. If you only had the fish a week, I wouldnt worry about it. Add some more plants and they will gradually become more secure in their environment.

EDIT: Are you sure your tank is cycled also?

yes
my tank is cycled i had goldfish in this tank before. But they died.

9 hours !!!
wow.
i have only been leaving the lights on for 2 hours.

i have another tank with female bettas & peppered corydoras.
and they are swimming day & night !!
so this shy fish is strange

 

[Blazeherd2306]

ammonia 0, nitrite 0, nitrate 40

There is no ammonia or nitrite, but there is nitrate, so the tank is cycled.

i have only been leaving the lights on for 2 hours

If you have plants, you really need to keep the lights on for at least 10 hours. Do you have flourescent lights? What is the wpg? And what types of plants do you have?

I agree you should add more plants whether they are real or plastic. It will let the white clouds know they have places to hide therefore it will make them feel secure and they should start coming out more often.

 

[greenmaji]

Your NO3 is higher then needed for a planted tank as well 10-15ppm should be more then enough for your plants..

 

[Bubble_B0y]

guess what............

i RE-ARRANGED the plants.
and for some reason, that are HAPPY NOW !!
they are schooling.

i guess that didn't like the original aquascaping.

that's the lesson for today.

if your fish are not happy:
1) check your water (ammonia, nitrite, nitrate)
2) check your oxygen
3) check they are eating/sick
4) change the environment, re-arrange the plants, gravel, rocks, decorations etc..

 

[dr_girlfriend]

cool! Good luck!