Introducing myself also foolish newbie need help

[lucy24]

I'm Lucy I set up my tank on May 2 2011.
It is only a 64 litre I know its already overcrowded but waiting on bigger tank.
I have 4 clown loach 1 is knicknamed junior he is 2.5inches almost 3 inches.
the other three are still very young 1 is almost a inch while the other two are just half a inch.

I also have 9 black widow tetra they are about 1inch.

I also have a common pleco and a rainbow shark and they are about 3inches.

I have made some very stupid mistakes with this tank being a first time aquarium owner.

I have lots of questions I want to ask but for now I have one really important one.

I made one of my clown loaches sick or act out of charactor the babies seem to be fine its just the one i call junior.

My tank was really sarting to thrive my clown loach had really become close and were schooling alot more.

 

[FishieMomma]

I think we all start out as foolish newbies! (I killed my kid's Betta recently by forgetting to put declorinator in the new water. It died in a self-created packet of slime.) The important thing us everyone here is so welcoming no matter what predicament we get ourselves in to.
I'm doing a 55 gal build and double checking every step this time!

Good luck with this situation.

 

[jetajockey]

welcome to the forum.

That is definitely a huge amount of fish for that size tank. Have you tested your water? If not I suggest doing some big water changes every few days until you can test it. That amount of fish in that size tank is bound to have toxin issues, which could explain why your loach is acting out of sorts.

There are some cycling guides on the forum that are worth looking at that will give you a better idea of whats going on in the tank.

 

[lucy24]

I put salt in tank which is why one of my clown loach went crazy.
the other three were fine with it.
The clown loach is now back to normal luckily.

I was trying to help a tetra who had lymphocyst.

My new tank arrived today, I will be setting it up and doing things properly with the next tank.

My testing kits turned up yesturday and I'm going to use them for the new tank.

Luckily I have only lost one fish that had lymphocyst it was ver close to its gill and it got infected.

The others are still alive and have never had any health probs.

When i got the fish we chose what we liked the look of and they happily sold the fish to me knowing what size tank I had, I was really stupid I didnt do my homework first.

Once i got the fish I looked up each one and got a big massive shock!

I started saving up right away which is why I got the bigger tank which is still not big enough I know!

It's 130 litres Im still not sure how many inches of fish it will hold.

I have a big decision to make get rid of the clown loach or save up for a 300 gallon.

The pleco also depends on this... if I do get the 300 gallon he will be able to stay with the clown loach If I rehome them he would have to go too.

Also I'm worried I wont be able to rehome them with lymphocyst hanging about it's something that never goes.

I love the clown loach they're amazing always hungry but are so clever.

I noticed they copy other fish and they have big personalities.

They are truely amazing fish and really deserve the best of what they get.

I want to mimic Their natural habbitat as much as possible.

but to start with I want to ask what is a air rock? I know it gives extra air in the tank but would it be a good idea for me to get one in the new tank? This new tank has an external filter apprently they are pretty new.
Also I want to get plant but first need to find out how to treat the plant etc before adding it to the tank but would a plant be ok with a air rock?

at the moment I have a internal filter I keep it on full flow as all my fish seem to love the current it provides.

Bit worried this new filter is not as powerfull as the one I have at the moment.

I clean my current filter a lot to keep it at a maximum as i know my tank is over crowded and is more prown to getting filthy.

I do have a gravel cleaner and use it every two weeks.

I was using tapsafe (crap stuff) compared to aqua safe whish I have recently just purchased.

The testing kit I just got is really good for begginers I read on its reveiws as it tells you what to do about the results etc so say if the PH isn't good it tells you how to change them etc.

I'm also going to add the fish very slowly, I heard they can die if you move them because they adapt to the minrals their tank provides them.

Hoping they have not adapted too well in the tank they are in now as losing 1 was bad enough and really dont want to lose any more.

 

[jcolon]

By the sounds of your last post ... it seems like your realizing the demands of this hobby. Yes it can seem overwhelming at first ... but once your tank is established ... it's more or less downhill as long as you keep up with maintenance.

To answer your question .. an airstone is a porous rock connected to an hose and air pump. IMO every FW tank .. planted or not ...should have one ... it increases surface area that helps promote gas exchange (O2 in CO2 etc out) by agitating the surface.

If possible start by rehoming some of your fish ... the tank is overcrowded which means a bunch of ammonia is being put into the water. With clown loaches a 55gal should be the minimum and then only a couple. As you read ... common pleco's can get HUGE ... a bristlenose pleco may be more reasonable for your size tank.

Without knowing your water parameters ... I'll just assume your tank is not cycled yet. Below is a link on cycling ... the key will be to test the water daily and be prepared to do 50% PWC's. If you can I would highly suggest you buy a bottle of Seachem Prime dechlorinator ... it helps detoxify ammonia and nitrites for up to 24+hrs giving the fish some breathing room till the next PWC.

I just learned about cycling but I already have fish. What now?!

What is the name of the filter you are using ... it could be you have inadequate filtration for your stock which contributes to tank issues. You may also have to upgrade to a more powerful filter.

It sounds like you have a lot of ideas / plans for your tank and this site is a great place to go for help.