Fish dying, need advice.

[Squareheads]

As I have said, I don't have the master kit, but I do have the Ammonia test kit. My Ammonia levels are fine, the results always show up yellow and never anything close to green.

Side discussion:
I'm well aware that buying new fish was a wrong move on my part. But I couldn't help but pass up the sale for these Kribensis cichlids. It even seems like one of the females is pregnant, I searched up images and I have the exact same situation, their belly is large and pinkish-red in colour. Not sure if I should make a new thread at the Cichlid Discussion board. But there's a shipwreck decor in my aquarium where it is possible to use as a place to lay the eggs... Will the Gouramis just see the baby cichlids as fish food? Because I've seen it happen before to baby guppies being eaten by their own...

 

[Ickletas]

I imagine that gouramis would indeed omm nom nom on fry. I was advised against Gourami with chilli/mosquito rasbora by my lfs for that very same reason (I didn't get either in the end as it goes but that's besides the point )

 

[Ickletas]

"Getting the Master Kit is just solving half the problems. All I'm doing is finding the variables and not the solution."

Surely you need to know all the variables in problem before you can solve it? The master kit will tell you exactly how much ammonia, nitrite and nitrate you have in your tank and can pretty much confirm or eliminate whether it is the water that is the problem. It's a process of elimination and water is the first place that I would look.

 

[Squareheads]

"Getting the Master Kit is just solving half the problems. All I'm doing is finding the variables and not the solution."

Surely you need to know all the variables in problem before you can solve it? The master kit will tell you exactly how much ammonia, nitrite and nitrate you have in your tank and can pretty much confirm or eliminate whether it is the water that is the problem. It's a process of elimination and water is the first place that I would look.

I know, but the thing is, everyone is emphasizing on my ammonia levels, when I HAVE an API Ammonia Test Kit to test my ammonia levels, and right now, it's safe.

 

[librarygirl]

I know, but the thing is, everyone is emphasizing on my ammonia levels, when I HAVE an API Ammonia Test Kit to test my ammonia levels, and right now, it's safe.

It's good that you have an ammonia kit and it is showing 0. Is it showing exactly 0 or does it have some green in it (0.25)? If there is even a bit of green in there then the tank may be either going into a mini-cycle or there's too much fish food, decaying fish, etc or something else going on that's causing the ammonia to show up. In a well-established tank the bacteria will convert the ammonia that the fish put out (waste) and that from decaying food, etc. But if ammonia is showing at all that is an indicator of a problem. It may be a simple solution such as vacuuming gravel more thoroughly (and if you have decor in the tank it's a good idea to remove those and vacuum under them as well once in a while) and removing dead fish as soon as you notice them, etc.

What is your feed schedule? Perhaps you are over-feeding?

The nitrite, nitrate test will show the rest of the parameters. Ideally nitrite should always be 0 in a cycled tank. Nitrites are toxic to fish just as ammonia is. Nitrates should be kept <40 (20 or under is probably the safest level) which is where the pwc come in. If you test for nitrate once a week and say it's 80, then you want to do at least a 50% water change to get them down to 40. Nitrates are less harmful to fish but in very high levels they can become an issue, so that's why we do weekly water changes, to keep the nitrate levels safe and to replenish minerals, etc in the water that the fish have used up.

As for the filter, you can get an internal model. I have an internal Fluval U2 (I also have an external filter and an internal sponge, can never have too much filtration lol) and it attaches to the inside of the tank wall, so you could try an internal one if you don't have the space externally.

Another unofficial rule of thumb is generally not to listen to what the LFS tells you. Most will say do small water changes weekly and say nothing about cycling, etc. Their mission is to sell you stuff, not to keep your fish alive. There are some good LFS out there, but for the most part you at least want to research what they tell you before believing it wholeheartedly.

 

[Ickletas]

But what about the nitrites and the nitrate? They are also pretty toxic just not quite as much as ammonia. Also your ammonia reading should be 0 in order to be safe.

 

[Squareheads]

I just make sure I feed my fish once a day or twice even. I do believe I may be overfeeding them. I recently bought TetraMinPro flakes and if there is some sort of rule of thumb about feeding, that'd be great to know.

I don't want to completely doubt my LFS but I think I know enough to have some sort of intuition whether or not what they're saying is true. I always end up double checking in the internet anyways.

@librarygirl
I have a 20 gallon tank and I'd like to know how big yours is with the Fluval U2. That may be a sound option if I was to get another filter, although I'm scared it might take up too much space and attract too much attention if it stands out.

I'm also wondering, when is a good time to test the water? Before the pwc or after?

*I currently have 2 malaysian driftwood on decor that I think was the culprit of my MTS problem before. I've read somewhere here that they can start to decay, smell, and cause problems. I'm considering taking them out and probably buy ferns or other plants that can live in low-voltage lighting. So I'm not entirely sure if its still safe to keep the driftwood in my aquarium... and I also have frozen bloodworms that has been in my fridge for the longest time. I'm not sure if they've already been freezer burned, but I am also considering throwing it out as well.

 

[librarygirl]

I just make sure I feed my fish once a day or twice even. I do believe I may be overfeeding them. I recently bought TetraMinPro flakes and if there is some sort of rule of thumb about feeding, that'd be great to know.

I don't want to completely doubt my LFS but I think I know enough to have some sort of intuition whether or not what they're saying is true. I always end up double checking in the internet anyways.

@librarygirl
I have a 20 gallon tank and I'd like to know how big yours is with the Fluval U2. That may be a sound option if I was to get another filter, although I'm scared it might take up too much space and attract too much attention if it stands out.

I'm also wondering, when is a good time to test the water? Before the pwc or after?

I have a 20 gallon also. It doesn't take up too much room. I can post a pic in a bit if I can get a decent one. Here's the filter. If it's the only one you're going to have on the tank, you may want to go a bit bigger and get the U3 model. I have this filter and an Aquaclear 20 HOB just to be safe.

The general rule of thumb when feeding fish is to only give them as much as they can finish in 2 minutes. I find it hard to measure out flakes b/c they are so big and messy. Fish's stomachs are only about as big as their eye. You could probably cut down to feeding once per day and even fast them one day per week. Are you just feeding them flakes or anything else? Fish like variety too

You should probably test the water before a water change, which will give you a good indication of what the levels rise to each week (in terms of nitrate). If you are having ammonia readings you may want to test every couple of days for a while just to be sure nothing is going on and they don't rise. Same with nitrite when you get the test. You can test after a pwc as well if you like just to be sure you changed enough water and to test the levels, but definitely test before.

I'll see if I can get that pic....

 

[librarygirl]

Here's the pic. I didn't do a full tank shot so you can see the filter. It doesn't take up much room at all, IMO.

 

[Squareheads]

Maybe I can keep both filters as an option as well.

I'm going to test my ammonia levels right after this. If it's going to be a slightly green in colour, am I suppose to instantly do a water change?

I'm also concerned about the recent 'kribs' that I got, I am almost certain one of the females is pregnant. She's been hiding in my ship decor and everytime i see her, she has a really big pink belly. My only option right now, to keep the babies safe from the gouramis, is to trade them in, if it's possible, or separate the tank with an improvised barrier, with an aluminum tray. :S

*@librarygirl
It doesn't look that bad! I'll probably see if that's in stock.
Knowing how to drive and having enough money, would be so much easier for my situation right now.

 

[librarygirl]

Hm, you may not want to put aluminum in there, that could be toxic to the fish and water. Someone else should verify this though but that's my first thought.

You could try a breeder net or trap, they're fairly inexpensive and you can keep it inside your current tank.

 

[librarygirl]

Maybe I can keep both filters as an option as well.

I'm going to test my ammonia levels right after this. If it's going to be a slightly green in colour, am I suppose to instantly do a water change?

I'm also concerned about the recent 'kribs' that I got, I am almost certain one of the females is pregnant. She's been hiding in my ship decor and everytime i see her, she has a really big pink belly. My only option right now, to keep the babies safe from the gouramis, is to trade them in, if it's possible, or separate the tank with an improvised barrier, with an aluminum tray. :S

*@librarygirl
It doesn't look that bad! I'll probably see if that's in stock.
Knowing how to drive and having enough money, would be so much easier for my situation right now.

It depends on the level of ammonia. If it's more than 0.25 you definitely want to do one. If it's between 0 and 0.25, you can let it sit for a while and test again in 12 hours or so and see if anything changes. It's up to you. If your fish seem distressed though you can do one.

 

[Squareheads]

ill see if i can get a breeder net today... I always wanted to take care of little fishes. I think one of the primary purpose why I wanted Fish in the first place is to exercise my responsibilities and time management.

I just tested it. It seems like the yellow shade is around 0-0.25...

The guy at my LFS said the smaller Kribs are the males and the bigger ones are the female. If that is so, i see the females becoming more territorial under cover. hmm. ah well, i'll continue to observe then!

thanks for the advice!

 

[bruinsbro1997]

You're doing well! If it is around .25 I would reccomend a small PWC and that should do the job to lower it. Kribs are nice fish and I think one of the few African cichlids that will do well in a community tank. But keep in mind they can be possible fin nippers and will also eat livebearer fry. They can also turn out to be agressive too.

 

[Squareheads]

You're doing well! If it is around .25 I would reccomend a small PWC and that should do the job to lower it. Kribs are nice fish and I think one of the few African cichlids that will do well in a community tank. But keep in mind they can be possible fin nippers and will also eat livebearer fry. They can also turn out to be agressive too.

Well right now it seems like their dominating the bottom portion of the aquarium and the gouramis are roaming around the top. How big do baby cichlids first appear to be? cause i plan on seeing if i can buy a breeder net today just in case it does happen.

 

[bruinsbro1997]

Cichlids lay eggs, so you won't be needing the breeder net. They take care of their fry and won't eat them, that's one of the fascinating things about cichlids, thier parenting behavior.

 

[Squareheads]

Cichlids lay eggs, so you won't be needing the breeder net. They take care of their fry and won't eat them, that's one of the fascinating things about cichlids, thier parenting behavior.

I know but I have two Gouramies that is like 10x the size of a baby cichlid. I'd just rather be safe than sorry.

And yeah, I do find that fascinating. I was watching Planet Earth, the documentary, and it was a part where they showed Lake Malawi and how it is full of cichlids and it was just awesome how that parent cichlid uses her mouth as a defense mechanism for the offspring. xD