something's fishy with my aquarium...!

[irons414]

so yea, i got a 10 gallon hex aquarium that has 1 black paradise fish, 1 "waterfall" barb (dont really know what he is), 1 rainbow cichlid, and 1 plump cory cat.
a week or so ago, i had two filters running in my tank. one was a penguin 150b and the other was the penguin powerhead with those attchments that directed the flow of water to the undergravel filter. all worked great and like ammonia, nitrite tested at 0 and nitrate was near 20-40. i did water changes every 4 days or so, around 30-50%. all was great.

then i removed my anubia plant keeping th amazon sword, i took out the undergravel filter and the powerhead. the water is like cloudy now with only a temporary lull when i add amquel or transclear. the paradise fish now sulks near the rock and the cory cat isnt as active as before (he used to swimm near the top constantly!) also, water tests read:
ammonia 2.5 ppm
nitrite .05 ppm
ph 7.6
working on a nitrate kit...

so whats going on?!
i know im overstocked, but it should'nt be this bad, should it?! like before with the two filters, water was clear, plants were thriving, no algae except the green stuff that they ssay is good, and the fish were happy and eating well. now i got a little of some ugly black algae growing, the cory is always on the bottom, the paradise fish hides near the rock, and the water is cloudy, despite 30-50% water changes every few days or so.

any help is good help, so chime in!

 

[rich311k]

Your tank is recycling, you need to do some major water changes. Pulling the UGF must have brought up all kinds of gunk. You need to change water until that ammonia gets under .5 ppm. Then test and change water as needed until the tank restabilizes. Also I know you know but you need to rethink your stocking or get a bigger tank.

 

[irons414]

yea, im thinking about upgrading in june when i get that tax refund. what do u mean by "recycling"? well, the undergravel filter plate had nothin under it when i pulled it up. guess the flow was strong. it was the sponge on the intake pipe of the powerhead that was stuffed with crap.

 

[rich311k]

By pulling the UGF you lost your bacterial filter. You need to get it reestablished. To do that safely you need to change water to keep the ammonia and nitrite levels safe for the fish as the bacteria regrows.

 

[CatatonicBug]

You say you took out the UGF. It sounds like you are going through a mini-cycle. For info on the Nitrogen cycle, check out this article. The cloudy water is a bacterial bloom (it's a good thing and will go away with time). What kind of test kit do you have? I suggest staying away from the strips, and use the liquid kits (like the API Master test kit).

 

[irons414]

ok, well thats good to hear. this might be a stretch, but what sor tof bacteria are causing the bloom? ive heard of algae blooms in the ocean, where they are cuased by excess nutrients in the ocean current. is this simialr to what's happening in my little eco-system?

ummm, i only use the red sea test kits. i was wondering if there are any test kits that use solid reagents that you add to the water, or are those just for like lab use?

another question. im thinking about upgrading to a 14 gallon hex. i like the hex tank cause of its size, since i got a small apartment. would that be sufficient for my current fish or should i start organizing my space for something larger, like a 20 or something?

thanks for all the help! the articles linked in the posts given were helpful and informative.

 

[rich311k]

The bacteria causing the bloom are the ones that feed on ammonia and nitrites they will settle on solid surfaces in the tank. Have you changed water yet? How is the ammonia now?

 

[irons414]

i changed the water two days ago (50% or so) and the cloudiness has dissappeared. my rainbow cichlid does seem somewhat stressed however. he is gasping with his mouth constantly and seems to have lost some of his appetite. is there anything i can do to help aid the fish? im sorta attached to him...

when i was doing water changes before posting here, i added amquel to my solutions to hopefully "kill" the ammonia in my tank and clear the water. if my tank is cycling, then wouldn't adding amquel have just defeated the purpose? like, amquel kills ammonia really good, but if the tank is re-cycling, then i just put off the cycle, hence why i kept having ammonia spikes the next day afetr adding amquel? am i right or am i missing something? this whole aquarium stuff is sorta new to me; when i began, i read read up on cycling from drfostersandsmith.com website ( i heard of them via Target...)

finally, the tests read:
ammonia: .05-1.0
nitrite: .05-1.0

 

[irons414]

anyone?

 

[Purrbox]

Do at least a 50% water change.

Your Ammonia and Nitrites are too high for cycling with fish. It's obvious from the behavior that your fish is exhibiting that it is stressed. You want to keep them under 0.5ppm. The Amquel just converts the Ammonia to a non toxic form, but does not actually remove it. Depending on your test kit, it may detect the non toxic Ammonia. Further it only treats the Ammonia currently present in the aquarium but Ammonia produced by your fish will continue to build untreated until you dose again.

Increasing the aeration in your aquarium would also be advisable. If you've got a bubbler of some sort increase the flow, but if you're using a HOB filter then lowering the water level so that the water splashes back into the aquarium will help.

 

[irons414]

yea i did a 50% water change again. fish seem alot happier and water is for the most part clear. i added an air pump to help with oxygen. fish dont seem to care for it too much as they tend to keep their distance, but the fish are for the most part more active than before.

the rainbow cichlid still seems stressed though. his mouth is always gaping and he moves kinda lethargically with his dark colors showing. the usual gold, blue, and red sheens i grew accustomed to seeing are gone.

i heard that marineland sells their formula called "bio-spira" in small packages. my pet stores in the area dont carry it; where can i buy some online so that i can put this mistake behind me? i feel bad that the fish are suffering.

in other news, ive stopped using the amquel; im juts using novaqua for now and ive really laid off the ferts for the plants.