StickySwamp
Aquarium Advice Newbie
On Tuesday, Feb 4, 2025, my husband and I set up a 55-gallon tank and we were recommended to use 6 leopard danios to do fish-in cycling. The tank has a soil bottom with a sand and pebble cap and has 14 plants throughout along with one piece of aquarium decor (a ship). When we acclimated the 6 leopard danios, we let the bag float on the surface for 10 minutes and over the next 30 minutes added a cup of water from the tank into their bag in 10-minute increments. After that, we netted the fish and added them to the tank where they primarily stuck to the top and were gasping for air. We chalked this up to being stress-induced because no ammonia, nitrates, nitrites, or chlorine were present, the water had a pH of 6, and the temperature was at 70. The next day they began to explore a little more but still came up to the top for air. They were also responsive to food, and we have been cautious not to overfeed or underfeed them. This behavior continued but then they began to slow down which was concerning because the pet store we went to warned us that these were a type of fish that never slowed down. On Thursday morning I woke up to one of our fish dead at the bottom of our tank. I immediately contacted the pet store via Facebook and explained what had been happening and they said that the pH was too low and that it needed to be brought up and the water temperature could rise as well. While also doing research we discovered that they could benefit from some more oxygen in the water. That day I bought a bubbler and heater for the tank and have been raising the pH by .2 every day. The fish began to perk up and get their energy back so I was hopeful, but today I woke up to one of our fish nearly dead with the rest of them happily exploring the tank. I checked the pH and temperature and the pH seemed to be on a steady gradual incline at about 6.4 and the temperature was a nice 74. I left for work hoping he would pull through but when my husband arrived home from work this morning about 3 hours after I had left he came home to two more of our fish dead at the bottom of the tank. Now we have 1 fish doing amazing but the other two are hovering near the bottom gasping for air looking like they don't have much time left. The unhealthy fish at the bottom have started to become a more orangey color whereas the happy and healthy fish has not changed. I have been checking the ammonia, nitrites, and nitrates every day and all are at 0ppm and today I noticed the slightest rise in nitrate but not enough even to consider it as 5ppm. If there is a rise in nitrates wouldn't that mean the tank is beginning to cycle?? My husband and I are at a loss for what to do now because it seems like as much as we are caring for these fish it does not seem to be enough. If anyone could give any advice or explanation as to what's going on much would be appreciated. Also, will they be okay with only 3 of them in a 55-gallon tank, maybe turning to be 1 if these poor guys don't pull through? I have read that they're happiest in groups but I would hate to add more to the tank if they are going to be met by the same unfortunate fate.
Extra info:
-We are feeding them shrimp flakes
-We used water conditioner before they ever entered
-The pet store recommended using FRITZZyme Turbo Start Freshwater 700 the 1fl oz. bottle. They recommend dosing 1/3 of the solution before they enter the tank, 1/3 of the solution 3-4 days after they're in, and then the last third after a week of them being in there. The bottle says to use the whole thing in one dose for a 50-gallon tank and with our fish only getting worse we ended up using the remaining 2/3 today because we were beginning not to trust the recommendations we were given and were planning to rely on the bottle.
Extra info:
-We are feeding them shrimp flakes
-We used water conditioner before they ever entered
-The pet store recommended using FRITZZyme Turbo Start Freshwater 700 the 1fl oz. bottle. They recommend dosing 1/3 of the solution before they enter the tank, 1/3 of the solution 3-4 days after they're in, and then the last third after a week of them being in there. The bottle says to use the whole thing in one dose for a 50-gallon tank and with our fish only getting worse we ended up using the remaining 2/3 today because we were beginning not to trust the recommendations we were given and were planning to rely on the bottle.