Do I have a bad tank?

[EinreB73]

Back in March I decided to buy my first aquarium. I bought a 5 gallon acrylic tank at Wal-Mart and all the necessary items like thermometer, heater, gravel, and such. I also bought test strips for water testing believing that strips would be easy to use and would work well enough. It was trial and error at first and I lost a couple of fish even though when I tested the water with the strips it showed that it was OK. At one point the water became very cloudy and I asked a local pet store what the problem might be. I was told that I was probably overfeeding the fish and that was causing the tank to become polluted. I mentioned to the clerk that I believed that maybe the gravel I had was too big since it seemed that a lot of the food was falling down between the rocks where the albino catfish couldn't get to it. He agreed and suggested a smaller gravel. I changed the gravel and half the water. This seemed to do the trick and everything was fine for about a month, then when I came home from work one day 2 out of 4 of the fish where dead. Only the catfish and the orange balloon mollie were alive, both the silver and black mollie had died. This time when I tested the water with the strips both the nitrate and nitrite levels were off the chart high. I decided at this time that the problem had to be the strips that I was using to test the water. I bought a test kit and AmQuel+ and Stress Zyme to bring the levels back to normal. Now even after 10 days of doing water changes and adding the chemicals I can not get the levels down even though I only have just the 2 fish and have cut way back on the amount that I feed them. I'm so frustrated at this point I'm ready to just give up all together. I'm doing all the routine maintenance and don't know what else to do. The only thing I can think of is that the tank I have is not a very good tank. Where the water comes back down after being filtered always churns up the food when I feed the fish causing the food to end up at the bottom. Everytime I vacuum the gravel I get a lot of uneaten food coming out. This is the only reason I can come up with as to why the nitrite levels are always high. I would greatly appreciate any advice or suggestions about this because I really don't want to give up. Thanks.

 

[redflame56262]

ok to start with walmart kits arent too good their heater, filter, etc. are some of the cheapest ones you can get, Second if you're a begginer you would do better to start with a bigger tank since they are easier to take care of. I believe that planted tanks can help you have better quality since plants absorb the ammonia and other chemicals in the tank. good luck and i hope you dont quit the hobby. Its quite fun once you learn how to. I started with a 10g and had a lot of problems but now my water looks crystal clear and my fish happy A good tank size to start with would be 20-30 since you can have more fish and would be way easier to take care off but if you want you can also start a 10g like i did. I only had problems the first 2 weeks and then everything went right

 

[redflame56262]

oh and third you should only feed your fish what they can eat right away on a few minutes. Not a lot of food should be going to the bottom because thats how problems start with water quality. Hopefully if you do start a new tank it would be wise to do fish less cycling. The cycling can take about two weeks or less but in some cases about a month but if you add some plants it should be sooner than that. Well if you decide to start the tank and have any problems you can count on me to help you

 

[fishyrican]

First, Welcome to AA!


I agree with red. Just feed what you see your fish eating in a few minutes. Remember that for most fish, the stomach is very small, usually about the size of the eye (from what I've heard). If the filter is spreading the food around, you may want to consider decreasing the water flow or turning off the filter for the few minutes you are feed and turn it back on when you are done. Also, you will need to be sure you have carefully and thoroughly cleaned the gravel of any existing food. The water changes will not help much if there is food that continues to decompose in the gravel. You still continue to do the water changes, but make sure you are cleaning the gravel.

If the tank has not completely cycled, I'm not sure that chemicals would help, since they could be slowing down the cycle.

As for your test kit, strips can be inaccurate, as you found out. Your best bet is a liquid reagent test kit. I use the Aquarium Pharm kit.

Don't give up! This can be a lot of fun (and expensive 8O ) once you get the hang of it.

 

[patagonia]

welcome to AA!!!
i also started with a 5gal tank (still have it) and 2 platies...it took a long time to cycle it...7 weeks or so...and i also have the filter pulling down the food problem like you...and what i do is i just unplug it for the 2 minutes or so the fish are eating and then plug it back on...i also fed my fish every other day while cycling...i believe amquel can delay your cycle....so what i would do is just try to get as much of the stuff out of the gravel...do a water change and then start feeding every other day....at one point i was doing pwc everyday to keep the levels down...but make sure once u clean the gravel and start unplugging the filter while feeding you dont disturb the gravel again until your cycle has finished...just vac out whatever you see on the surface so that way you dont disturb the bacteria u want to grow...make sure you dont touch the filter either....worked for me....good luck!!!

 

[dax29]

Actually I think this hobby is one of the least expensive I've been involved in. When I was buying stuff for golf.....

 

[Fishyfanatic]

The cloudy water was most likely a bacterial bloom. It is part of the cycling process. This will go away with time and water changes.

First, how often were you doing water changes, prior to the cloudy water?

How often did you change the carbon pad in the filter? The pad doesn't need to be replaced and should not ever be replaced while the tank is cycling.

What kind of catfish do you have? I have never heard of a catfish that can be kept in a 5 gal tank.

Mollies shold not be housed in a 5 gal tank. They need more swimming space than the tank can offer. They should be in a minimum 20 gal tank.

Stop using chemicals to treat the tank for the higher levels of Nitrite and Nitrate. The only thing that should be used is a dechlorinator. Your bio-load is overloaded and cannot control the amount of ammonia that is being dispursed by your fish. The tank is VERY overstocked. Your stocking options in a 5 gal is very limited.

I agree that you should definately get an Aquarium Pharmacuticals Master Test Kit. The strips are not as accurate and may be giving you false readings. If I were you, I would take all of your fish back to the fish store and get something more appropirate. A 5 gal tank is just not the proper home for mollies or catfish. Something more appropriate would be a Betta, ghost shrimp, snails, danios, neons, and several more. Whatever interests you, just ask on this forum if it would be ok in the tank BEFORE purchasing. The lfs is just out to get money. We do this free of charge

The smaller the tank, the harder it is to maintain perfect water conditions. Beginners should start with a minimum 29 gal tank to avoid frustration. If it were my tank, I would tear it down and start fresh. Doing a fishless cycle before adding any new fish. Cycling a 5 gal may take about 3 weeks since it is so small. If you need info on cycling, just do a quick search on this site or shoot me a PM. And to avoid confusion, contrary to most fish store advice, cycling is not the process of letting water sit in a tank untouched for 7 days before stocking.

It is great that you are here asking for advice and taking a great interest in having a happy healthy tank. We are all here to help. No questions are dumb questions around here. Just ask away. And, WELCOME TO AA!

 

[Fishyfanatic]

Actually I think this hobby is one of the least expensive I've been involved in. When I was buying stuff for golf.....

That is until you develope MTS and MUST have a bigger and better tank just as soon as the last one is up and cycled. Then comes the upgrading.

 

[zilla870]

oh then i have MTS bad 40g setup and running good and already order a 65g lol

 

[dax29]

My wife has a cure for MTS.

 

[zilla870]

what is it? a bigger tank about 250g

 

[dax29]

No. It involves getting no more tanks of any size. She could explain it better than anyone else so I won't try! lol :| :?

 

[fishyrican]

My wife has a cure for MTS.

Man is that the truth!!

 

[EinreB73]

Thank you all for the great advice. Unplugging the filter while feeding is pure genius, I'll definetly do that. I'll stop using the Amquel too. The catfish that I have is a small little albino that the clerk at the store said would grow no bigger than 2.5 inches. I think what I'll do for now is just keep the 2 fish that I have and try for a 20 gallon tank in the near future. 20 gallon is about the biggest that I would have room for. BTW I did go out and purchase a master test kit right after I found the 2 fish dead, and I wish I would have done that right from the beginning. Thanks again Everyone, I'll keep you posted

 

[jersysman]

Sounds like you have an albino cory. I don't remember what other fish that you have, but I would get a 20 gal as soon as possible and move the other fish into it and get a betta and house it in the 5. I have a betta and 2 cories in my five gallon. You have to definitely stay on top of those water changes when cycled and, if you remember anything from this experience, ask here for advice and not the lfs.

 

[An t-iasg]

Everyone has given wonderful advice! I would stop using the Amquel+ and the StressZyme. They won't help your cycle and may stall it. But you still need a dechlorinator. I use Novaqua and Amquel (not the "plus" versions). Just use the Novaqua and Amquel, or just the Amquel alone, to initially treat your tap water. If your water tests indicate an ammonia spike, correct this by doing a water change, and NOT dumping in more Amquel. Too much Amquel will probably stall your cycle, but just initially treating your tapwater will not interfere with the cycle.