My thoughts on fish keeping.

[Caliban07]

I'm just sat here looking at my tanks. I'm really happy with them right now and I've finally managed to get them healthy and thriving.

I wanna share my journey so far and hopefully highlight some importance's for the newbie most of which is just common knowledge to the veterans.

I went out and bought a 15 gallon and joined this forum after years out from owning my first tank. A 10 gallon.

When I bought my 10 gallon I was about 17. I had no clue about the nitrogen cycle and basically just picked fish that I liked the look of. This will come as a shock but this was my stocking

1 angel fish
6 neon tetra
2 pangasius catfish
4 zebra danios
1 blue gourami
5 green barbs
3 swordtails

Fish died and I didn't know why. I had so many different chemicals. I had compatibility issues, deaths, disease. I changed 25% water once a fortnight. I spent a lot of my student loan in my LFS and they just stood by and let it happen. When I went for water tests they just tested the ph and I was none the wiser. My water turned brown when I added a large piece of bog wood and I thought my fish would die. It was horrendous.

Fast forward July 2013 I bought my 15 gallon now I had my own place.

It was stocked with

2 gbr
8 harlequin rasbora
6 neons
2 dwarf gourami
3 swordtails.

Everything was fine. I joined this forum and realised that what I thought was a fairly big tank was indeed pretty small. I realised I was slightly over stocked and I just had to have a larger tank.

I bought a 47 gallon jewel vision bow front off a guy at work. He told me not to clean the gravel and he left the water in the filter. My first mistake was not washing everything and starting from scratch. My second mistake was adding new fish and NOT quarantining them first. I proceeded to change 25% water a week. But although I had a liquid test kit and my parameters were fine. Lack of water changes, tank maintenance , and failure to quarantine new arrivals spawned disease. I thought I had ich, so I dosed unnecessary meds and turned the heat up. This didn't stop my fish from flashing so I then dosed gill fluke meds. I got fungus so I finished the gill flukes course and added fungus meds. I just didn't know that this was bad for my fish. I lost many.

I then went to a old couple LFS and bought some fish food. I had purchased some panda Cory's to go with my stock. They were not eating pellets so I started to throw fish food on to the gravel so they could eat. Soon enough my ram got sick. He started to get saddleback lines and my neons were turning white and growing fungus on their mouths. It was columnaris. I ordered meds from the US and they cost me twice the price and only enough for one course. Then I realised the fish food I had bought was out of date! Water quality had deteriorated. I immediately changed fish food to new life spectrum which was recommended on this forum. I then upped my water change regime to 50% twice a week. 800L of water I am now carrying back and forth a week! I cleaned my filters more regularly and gravel vac once a week. Since doing this my fish have stopped dying and completely turned around. My ram has got better and now my neons school together.

My other 47 gallon cichlid tank has never had any problems and it's all thanks to the fantastic people and advice on this forum. I have learned so much since being here and I have read and studied so much that I believe I can't go wrong now although there is always more to learn.

If you are a newbie and are reading this I just want to highlight some very important advice.

1.Always buy a liquid test kit and CYCLE your tank.
2. Change at least 50% water a week
3. Maintain your filter and clean gravel.
4. Don't always trust your LFS
5. Never overstock.
6. Research fish before you buy.
7. Always seek advice here first if you are ensure and take it.
8. Varied and healthy diet for your fish.

Most of this is common knowledge to experience fish keepers but these simple steps could save you a lot of time money and stress. But most importantly, the lives of your fish!

Thanks to everyone who has helped me so far on this forum. You know who you are.

happy fish keeping.

 

[Caliban07]

I would also like to add. If you are a newbie or not and your are experiencing problems with your tank/s just remember we have all had problems somewhere down the line.

Just ask question on here and follow the advice. The people on here will help guide you to a healthy tank.

I know it's just as stressful for the hobbyist as it is for the fish but just stick at it and feel free to ask questions!

 

[Brookster123]

Can you explain saddleback lines?

 

[Caliban07]

Can you explain saddleback lines?

They are white lesions that start at the base of the dorsal fin and continue a little down on to the body like a saddle.

 

[Brookster123]

They are white lesions that start at the base of the dorsal fin and continue a little down on to the body like a saddle.

ok, thanks!

 

[threnjen]

Thanks for sharing your work so far! I feel so bad you've been losing so many fish. I'm so glad things are turning around these days.

 

[Caliban07]

Thanks for sharing your work so far! I feel so bad you've been losing so many fish. I'm so glad things are turning around these days.

Thank therenjen. I just want beginners to feel they are not alone and we have all experienced problems. It can be a stressful hobby at times but we are all finally happy

How are you angels?

 

[senorkevin]

Tell me about it!

 

[Mebbid]

If you don't mine I'd like to post my experience to come along side yours.

I started when I was around 14 and was given a 15g hex tank by my grandma. I immediately went out and added this stock all at once having never heard of the nitrogen cycle.
1 - black moor
1 - red tailed shark
1 - tire track eel
4 - guppies
2 - Chinese algae eaters
1 - common pleco

Things were dying in droves and I kept replacing fish. My Chinese algae eaters killed my black moor by going after its eyes. I got ich and so on and so forth. The last fish I had left alive was a black moor that I had replaced and then we had an ice storm that knocked out the power for weeks. He ended up dying then.

I stopped trying to keep fish until I was about 20. At that point I added a black ghost knife, fiddler crab, and pretty much the exact same stock I had before minus the eel, red tailed shark, and evil Chinese algae eaters. Eventually the tank crashed and everything died from the initial ammonia spike. I replaced everything a few times and even tried live plants but everything kept dying and I couldn't figure out why.

Then I was 22 and bought a 29g tank. Still without knowing what cycling was I added the same fish as in the last one plus a pair of jeweled cichlids. The jeweled cichlids mated and killed all the other fish practically overnight. I had the last jeweled cichlid for almost 5 years and he died 2 months ago. He was blind in one eye and was too fragile to go with my roommate's mbunas so he was kept in his own tank by himself the entire time.

Then last year I decided to try fish one last time before to giving up entirely and that's when I found aquarium advice. I saw the light and did a fishless cycle. Now I have a 55g heavily planted tank, 10g heavily planted tank, and a 20g soon to be 90g mixed reef.

The worst part is that this entire time not one of the 4 - 5 fish stores I went to ever mention cycling an aquarium.

 

[Caliban07]

If you don't mine I'd like to post my experience to come along side yours.

I started when I was around 14 and was given a 15g hex tank by my grandma. I immediately went out and added this stock all at once having never heard of the nitrogen cycle.
1 - black moor
1 - red tailed shark
1 - tire track eel
4 - guppies
2 - Chinese algae eaters
1 - common pleco

Things were dying in droves and I kept replacing fish. My Chinese algae eaters killed my black moor by going after its eyes. I got ich and so on and so forth. The last fish I had left alive was a black moor that I had replaced and then we had an ice storm that knocked out the power for weeks. He ended up dying then.

I stopped trying to keep fish until I was about 20. At that point I added a black ghost knife, fiddler crab, and pretty much the exact same stock I had before minus the eel, red tailed shark, and evil Chinese algae eaters. Eventually the tank crashed and everything died from the initial ammonia spike. I replaced everything a few times and even tried live plants but everything kept dying and I couldn't figure out why.

Then I was 22 and bought a 29g tank. Still without knowing what cycling was I added the same fish as in the last one plus a pair of jeweled cichlids. The jeweled cichlids mated and killed all the other fish practically overnight. I had the last jeweled cichlid for almost 5 years and he died 2 months ago. He was blind in one eye and was too fragile to go with my roommate's mbunas so he was kept in his own tank by himself the entire time.

Then last year I decided to try fish one last time before to giving up entirely and that's when I found aquarium advice. I saw the light and did a fishless cycle. Now I have a 55g heavily planted tank, 10g heavily planted tank, and a 20g soon to be 90g mixed reef.

The worst part is that this entire time not one of the 4 - 5 fish stores I went to ever mention cycling an aquarium.

That's another sad story to begin with but another happy ending. It just shows you how bad some of the LFS are or were. Maybe they just genuinely didn't know about the cycle either? I don't go to that place anymore.

Thanks for sharing mebbid.