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LPN2639

Aquarium Advice Apprentice
Joined
Apr 19, 2003
Messages
21
Location
GA
To make a LONG story short....the last tank I had was back in 1994. I was 8 months pregnant and taking a nap one day. I heard a lound BOOM and lo and behold the table my 20 gal tank was on collapsed and the water, fish, gravel, live plants etc went all in my living room floor. Had to have carpet extracted. A BIG MESS.

Anyway...3 weeks ago I got a wild hair, went to Petsmart and got a new starter tank..10 gal. :p

I set it up and let it run about 2 days before adding the fish. I did not read up on establishing the bio filter I have found out about. I lost some fish in the beginning and have just lost one this evening. A molly.

Currently I have 3 gouramis (small ones), 4 zebra danios, and an algae eater.

One of my Gouramis is the red kind---forgot the name. BUT for the past 3 days or so he is looking funny. Like his head is turning brownish and he just looks DIFFERENT. He is swimming and eating. But staying in the plants (not live) some also. He looks sick to me. But seems to still be OK. :cry:

I have some ammo test strips that said toxic and I did about a 40% water change today. Second water change in 3 weeks. I have WELL water and I have not added any chemicals. :?

Any help anyone could offer would be much appreciated. I really want to maintain my tank and have healthy happy fishies. :p

What do I need to do?

Laurie in Georgia
 
You will have to do regular water changes until the cycle is complete. If you allow the ammonia to rise to toxic levels, it will burn the fishes gills. This damage is usually irreversible. Once the ammonia levels drop, the nitrite will begin to rise. Nitrite inhibits the ability of the fishes blood to carry oxygen...also very bad.
Your well water is probably fine without adding chemicals. You might want to check the pH to make sure it's not too high. As long as you are careful acclimating new fish, they should adjust to the pH fine. I have well water also and have successfully kept many species in it with no problems. The thing you don't want to do is try to start making drastic changes in the pH by adding chemicals. This will result in the yo-yo effect where the pH is up and down. This will stress your fish and probably kill them. You may have to do a small water change as often as every other day.
Logan J
 
Wish I had good news for you but there is not a lot you can do. The tank has to cycle itself. It usually takes about 30days ish to do so. From what I read you are on your 3rd week so it should stable out here in about a week or a little more. Water changes during the "cycling" process tend to lengthen the process.

IMHO...
That being said, I would let the tank run its course. Hopefully in a few days the levels will stablize and you can do normal water changes. If you "really" feel that you need to do a water change then change out 1 gal.

Hang in there you will be cycled soon!

EDIT: Comment on loganj's post - if they do daily or everyother day water changes they are going to prolong the cycle. Being 3 weeks into it, why not let the Ammonia spike and drop? Then let her do some water changes.
 
Not to be argumentative of course, but if the levels are allowed to rise to the point that the fish are killed, then the purpose of having the tank has been compromised. I realize that the water changes will prolong the cycle somewhat...you are very correct about that...but I think the lives of the fish take priority over our own convenience in having a quicker cycle. Personally, I feel the "fishless cycle" is the way to go. Many people don't know about this when they start their tanks though and have to do it the other way. I have always done water changes on new tanks and haven't ever experienced a cycle over 6 weeks. JMHO :) .
Logan J
 
Hey, I have no problem with lengthening the cycle for the sake of the fish but I just figured if she can get over the ammonia hump, then do some minor changes she might be able to cycle it and not have a problem after that. :mrgreen:

I've done water changes on a new tank also, so I'll agree with ya on the water changes, now lets hope she can save the fish.
 
hi people
thanks for the replies
i lost a zebra this morning and another one just seemed to disappear. what i have now is 4 gouramis (error earlier i think i noted 3,,,but i really have 4) they are the dwarf ones...and i have one algee eater.

i went to petsmart today and got a different test kit for the ammonia and also a test kit for nitrAte. with an A. the kits are the ones where you fill the glass cylinder and add the drops and read the results compared to the ranges on the printed card.

ANYHOW>..the ammonia read severe. and the nitrAte read high also.

i added one of the fizzing alka seltzer type tabs called Ammonia Free..I also added stress zyme and stress coat. I bought some aquarium salt that the girl at petsmart recommended but i did not add it.

what is the deal with the nitrAte? I thought it was supposed to be high so it can break down the ammonia. But the ammonia is still high. The fish are alive...look OK....two of the gouramis are staying behind the decorations.

remember i have well water. i may need to check it alone before adding any to the tank. WHAT SHOUld I put in my water before adding it to the tank...anything????

you all are so helpful. i appreciate your comments and depend tremendously on them

LPN in Ga. :roll:
 
Good deal on buying the ammonia kit...you'll probably need the nitrAte kit also. One more you need to get is nitrIte...with an I. This is what will spike after the ammonia settles down and it will also kill your fish. It inhibits the hemoglobin in the blood.
I don't like to add chemicals to control ammonia/nitrite during the cycle, but that's just me. Since you have, look at your ammonia kit and see if it is a nessler reagent or a salicylate reagent. If it's a nessler, you will get false readings because of the chemicals in the tank. I don't use aquarium salt, but I'm not going to tell you not to use it. I'm sure it has beneficial effects in the proper concentrations.
The fact that you are showing nitrates already makes me wonder if it's coming from your water source. Well water can have nitrates in it. You are not far enough along in the cycle to have nitrates showing from the bacterial activity in the tank. Ammonia=nitrIte=nitrAte. I would check the source water for nitrates since you have the test and see what shows up. You may be able, if the concentration is not too high, to use a nitrate sponge or a poly filter pad to remove it. You'll need to pick up a pH test also. I suspect your well water, like mine, is alkaline. That, in itself, doesn't pose a problem as long as you are careful about acclimating new fish. Sudden pH changes will put them into osmotic shock with is often fatal. If your pH is really high...like over 8.0, you will probably need to either use RO water with a buffer to set pH and hardness or you can mix RO or distilled water with your tap water to achieve the proper concentrations. This will be a "test and add" thing until you get the correct proportions. For this, you will need a hardness kit in addition to the pH kit. You're on the right track, just be patient, keep testing, and keep reading :) .
Logan J
 
Logan...I see your replies on a lot of entries and you are very knowledgeable about aquariums, and I appreciate it.

I had another dead fish this morning and another one is on the way out. So now I have 3 gouramis left and the algee eater. All not looking good.

The algee eater seems to be ok. Probably hard to kill him. If all my gouramis die then what other types of fish should I try. I need a hardier variety. Cichlids??? Maybe a baby oscar (tiny) or what about goldfish?

It is 9 a.m. at my home and I am fixing to test my tap water and do a PWC.

Please reply.

Laurie :oops:
 
I dont think cichlids would be too smart and an oscar is a bad idea. They get to be like 12 inches long and 10 inches high. I think danios are your best bet. There is a profile on the zebra danio in the profile section.
 
yes I think you are right....althought the zebras look like minnows to me. what about angels or goldfish....i like them better. :?:
 
Angels are VERY sensitive to ammonia and nitrite and will not likely last through the rest of the cycle. I wouldn't recommend them until the tank is well established. I wouldn't recommend them at all in a 10...it's just not big enough. Goldfish are pretty tough. They produce A LOT of waste. It's best, although people do it, not to mix them with tropicals. I agree that the zebra danios would probably be the best thing to put in there. You will need to try to get the ammonia levels under control before adding any new fish though. As long as you have 1 fish in there, the tank will cycle. Then, once it's finished, you can add a few more small fish slowly. The lower you keep the bio load, the less trouble you will have.
Logan J
 
So what did you come up with on the well water tests?

ph, ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate readings would be really helpful in giving you solid advice. Logans advice above was really pretty good without us knowing what the water parameters are. GH and KH would be good to know also, if you have tests for them.

If you don't have tests for all these things, usually your LFS will do the tests for you, either free, or for a minimal charge.

Now i know you said the ammonia and nitrate are currenly high and you were going to do a partial water change, thats good, try to keep the rest of the fish alive unitll the cycle is finished and things have settled down.

I would suggest not not even thinking about the next fish untill you get through the cycle and current crisis.
 
thanks for the reply.

what do you mean by LFS?

The only things I can test are ph, ammonia and nitrate. all were within normal limits when i tested my tap water.

i dont have a nitrite kit but i am gonna buy one wednesday when i get paid.

did not realize i had to have all these tests or i would have purchased the whole kits instead of buying them separate.

also....i wish someone had told me to get a bigger tank...like a 20 gal. wish i would have. now i am stuck with this one. i would take it back but i dont think i still have my receipt.

i will just keep trying to get this one right.

thanks
lpn :roll:
 
what do you mean by LFS?

Local Fish Store.
also....i wish someone had told me to get a bigger tank...like a 20 gal. wish i would have. now i am stuck with this one.

Try not to feel too bad, this happens to soooo many people, including me. It goes against normal logic, but bigger is actually easier as water conditions cannot fluctuate so fast, there is more room for error.

Anyway, my next suggestion is to buy a good basic freshwater aquarium book, published within the last 3-5 years, and read it like you were studying for finals! It will serve you well in the long run. I'm sorry I don't have a specific book to suggest (I really gotta do this to help the newer folks out), but the folks at your LFS should be able to reccomend one.
 
my next suggestion is to buy a good basic freshwater aquarium book

That is good quality advice, if the book was published in the last 3-5 years, it most likely has good and valid info
 
Why don't you add PWC = partial water change? That'd be a good one. :lol:
 
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