Tank Issues

[Aislyn-cook]

Hello!
Recently I had a goldfish die after I had it for at least a year. I’ve been trying to get my tank prepared for a new fish and after doing that, I decided to buy ember tetras. I acclimated them, and woke up the next day and they were dead. A couple days ago, I took my water to get tested and the levels were perfect. I purchased a gold fish with the assurance that my tank was okay and the same thing happened. It died the next day. I have no idea what’s going on. Does anyone have an idea??

[Andy Sager]

Originally Posted by Aislyn-cook

Hello!
Recently I had a goldfish die after I had it for at least a year. I’ve been trying to get my tank prepared for a new fish and after doing that, I decided to buy ember tetras. I acclimated them, and woke up the next day and they were dead. A couple days ago, I took my water to get tested and the levels were perfect. I purchased a gold fish with the assurance that my tank was okay and the same thing happened. It died the next day. I have no idea what’s going on. Does anyone have an idea??

Need much more information.
Tank size,
Temperature,
test results ( numbers, not ok or not ok)
how did you acclimate the fish?
What did the old fish die from?
A picture of the tank would help.

[Colin_T]

Hi and welcome to the forum

The fish are being poisoned by something in the tank.

Did you use any cleaning products in the aquarium after the original fish died?

Do you have buckets/ containers and hoses specifically for the aquarium?

Do you have anything on your hands (perfumed soap, moisturiser, hand sanitiser, grease, cream, perfume, etc) when working on the tank?

Does anyone smoke, paint or use aerosol sprays in the room with the fish tank?

Do you have any pictures of the dead fish?

[Aislyn-cook]

Originally Posted by Andy Sager

Need much more information.
Tank size,
Temperature,
test results ( numbers, not ok or not ok)
how did you acclimate the fish?
What did the old fish die from?
A picture of the tank would help.

The tank is 10 gallon. The temp is 70 degrees. I’m not sure of the numbers, the guy just said they were right where they needed to be. The old fish died from me putting too much algae fix in the tank when I was having a bloom. I acclimated the fish by setting the bag it was in in the water for an hour to get it used to the temp in my tank.

[Aislyn-cook]

The only thing possible in this list is the aresol spray, but I have been told that it wasn’t used near the tank, and that is was used when we had the old fish. If this is the problem, what should I do?

[Aiken Drum]

What are you using for a water conditioner?

Is the 70f temperate maintained by a heater?

I would either get a water test kit of your own, or return to the store with a sample and get them to give you actual numbers.

Might be worth asking your water company if they did any maintenance on the supply network recently.

For future reference, goldfish shouldnt be kept in a 10g tank. While the tank size isnt going to be a factor in fish dying overnight, it could easily be a factor why your original fish died. Goldfish live decades and grow to maybe 12 inches long. Too small a tank will stunt the fishes growth and this can lead to health issues and shortened lifespans. A single goldfish should be in a tank at least double the size, 30g better still, preferably a pond.

[Andy Sager]

Originally Posted by Aislyn-cook

The tank is 10 gallon. The temp is 70 degrees. I’m not sure of the numbers, the guy just said they were right where they needed to be. The old fish died from me putting too much algae fix in the tank when I was having a bloom. I acclimated the fish by setting the bag it was in in the water for an hour to get it used to the temp in my tank.

It sounds like the main issue is that there was something that got into the water and poisoned the fish. It wasn't removed when you changed water after your fish died or if you didn't change water, it was not consumed by your bacteria bed and is probably still present. What exactly that was /is would take very expensive testing by a real lab so the end result for now would be to strip the tank down, rinse everything off and reset it up.
Things to keep in mind:
*While 70 degrees is okay for goldfish, 70 degrees is too cold for fish like the Ember Tetras. They should be in water from 75- 82 degrees. (But 70 would not have killed them outright, it would make them sick first.)

*As Aiken mentioned, a 10 gallon tank is too small for any goldfish specie long term.

* Acclimating fish: you only need to float the bag for 10-15 minutes for the water temps to equalize. You can read the rest of the process here: https://www.aquariumcoop.com/blogs/f...9360%20minutes.)
( There a a few ways of acclimating fish but each way is not the best for every situation so if you do any research, look at more than one way. )

*Aerosol sprays should never be used anywhere near your aquarium. When using an air pump, if you can smell what is being sprayed, so can your air pump. That's how even a tank with a lid does not solve the spray problem. You also want to be careful with floor cleaners or wiping the tank down with any cleaners other than water. The product "Windex with ammonia D" has killed a lot of fish tanks over the years due to the ammonia getting sucked into the water via an air pump. This is also why kitchen fish tanks are not very successful due to oils or fumes emanating from the frying pan. If you can smell it, so can your air pump. ( I repeated this because it is that important. )

Hope this helps.