Tropical Fish Experts?

[OhioYJ]

Ok guys, I'm stumped. Mrs.OhioYJ and I decided we wanted a fish tank. Nothing real fancy, just a 10 gallon.

We started out with 2 x-ray somethings, 1 orange guy, and 2 fancy guppies. One guppie died in short order, so we bought two other fish, which also died in short order. Then a few days later, another guppie. Now one of the x-ray guys died. The 4 remaining fish don't seem very active at the moment either.

After each fish died, I've taken a water sample into the pet store to have it checked, and they say everything is perfect...?

We've been feeding them twice a day. They have a nice bio-wheel filter system, heater keeps the water pretty solid 78-80 degrees. We have an air pump in there too.

I can't figure out why these fish keep dieing?

I guess if the rest die, maybe I'll try my luck at the Zebra Dinos which is what everyone seems recommend for beginners?

What am I doing wrong, how do you mess up with fish, they eat and swim right?

[Dk]

Thier is alot more to keeping fish alive then you think! I have had several aquariums running at once. At the momment i just have a 55 with s american fish and a 20 with 2 who seem to want to eat the others heheheheh. A ten gallon kinda limits your choices since you need 1 gallon per inch of fish, and if its one of those hex tanks not a rectangle then cut that into about 1/2 .

Honestly without knowing your water peramiters and setup i really cant tell you why they died. Maybe shock, maybe ammonia, maybe they were already sick when you got them ect. Like walmart fish for instance count on at least 1/3 of them you buy to die w/ in the 1st week.

If i had a 10 gallon id have maybe 8 neon tetras, or like 4 cory cats or somethign that only grows to like 1-2 inches. WHatever you do though dont buy a pleco! cause they will totally out grow your tank. Also on the do not buy list are, channel cats, columbian sharks, irridescent sharks. All of them grow in feet not inches .

A betta would also be a good choice and they are ussually pretty tough. Plus they breath air from the surface. Dwarf guramis are colorful and also breath air. white cloud minnows are small and tough but need cooler water. 10 gallons is a bit small but you could keep 1 goldfish in there for quite a while.

I coudl go on and on about fish lol. If ya have any questions you can always pm me or email me and id be happy to help!

[Dk]

I just noticed something else 78-80 degrees is kinda warm for guppies they are a colder water fish, like gold fish.

I included a pic of my 55.

http://images6.theimagehosting.com/100_0098.f7f.th.JPG (http://server6.theimagehosting.com/image.php?img=100_0098.f7f.JPG)

[The Duke]

Had fish for years but they became to much work and I got rid of them. It usually takes several weeks for the tank to stabilize. Try starting out with some hardy fish. I always had good luck with angel fish. Make sure that the fish that you have do not fight or kill each other either. I had Silver Dollars for a while and they killed almost all the other fish I had at the time.
Make sure you have a bubble strip and a filter if the fish you have require them (most do with a few exceptions like goldfish and betta).Clean it every 1-2 weeks, but make sure not to remove more than 1/4-1/3 of the water.
Fish can be lotsa fun, but they require a bit of care. With a full time job, my own business, and my Jeep, I just don't have the time for them anymore.

[OhioYJ]

Thats a cool looking tank.

I can't find my last water tests, but I'll get another sample test and let you know my levels.

I forgot to mention, we do have two small drawf frogs in there, and two algae eaters. The frogs and algae eaters seem to be doing great, its just the fish that seem to be not doing so well.

They all came from PetSmart.

The temp being sort of high is something I keep hearing, so I've turned the heater down.

The orange guys require aquiarium salt, so we added that intially when we setup of the tank, but I've been told the salt is heathly for the other fish as well.

[The Duke]

I never put salt in my tank. You do need to check things like the PH levels and use an additive to correct them if necessary.
Stuff like the algae eaters and the frogs will probably live through any thing.

One question though. How long did the fish live in the tank before they died? A day? A week?

[OhioYJ]

The first few that died, died within a few days. The last couple fish that have died, have been more like at least a week, probably more actually.

[The Duke]

I'd say the first few died from the shock. The others may have due to PH levels and the instability of a new tank.
When you put the new fish in the tank you don't just dump them in, do you?
You need to float the bag that the come in in the tank for a few hours to gradually adjust the temp. Then you dump them into a net over a bucket and then put them in the tank with the net. Don't dump the water in because it may have contaminants in it.

[OhioYJ]

When we intially setup the tank, we filled the tank, and added some chemical that was supposed to help cycle the water, and we let the pump run for 5 days, before we added any fish.

When we added the fish we did float the bags.

I think our thermometer doesn't work, because I turned the heater down, and this morning just feeling the water I can tell its much cooler, but that stupid thermometer still reads the exact same temp it did.

Maybe our fish are just more active at night, or I'm not normally up this early but, since the water temperature is decreased, all 4 fish, and the frogs are out swimming around, they seem to be more active.

[Dk]

As for aquarium salt. Alot of fish do like a tiny bit. But there are several species that cant take it to. I have had my ups and downs with fish. But now i have a pretty stable tank. I have a hard time killing anything, and believe me ive tried. The most fish i have lost frankly was due to fighting. Thats why i either keep them seperated, or give them to friends. I have never delt with pet smart so i dont know how good thier stock is, but you may have just lost some due to them being weak and then shocked when you put them in the tank . AN aquarium really needs about 1 month to cycle properly with about 1 or 2 tough fish in it to be stable. Ammonia can suddenly spike and bye bye to anyone not tough enough to handle it.

Also i dunno what was sold to you as algea eaters, but regardless of species you are looking at around 1 to 2 ft of fish a piece eventually. Also when they get bigger they will becoem very territorial. AS for guppies they are really fun to breed and watch but they can come into season every 2 months or so and can fill that 10 gallon in one cycle. Thast why i gave mine to a freind because i just didnt have the room for all them guppies. It took away from all the room that i coufl ahve used for more catfish heheheheheh.

[OhioYJ]

Ok I found my last water test. This was right after one of the fish had died.

Nitrate 0
Nitrite 0
Hardness 300
Alkalinity 300
pH 8.4
Ammonia 0.25

[Dk]

Ok well first off You want to get that amonia to 0.0 Do daily 20 percent water changes till it drops off. Since your tank hasnt cycled yet you are gonna have to check that amonia level every day to make sure it doesnt spike and kill your fishies. Also you have soem seriously hard water compared to mine. Most fish do better with a ph closer to 7 Although if you wanted to keep cichilids you woudl be in good shape with water that hard. Although they would need a much bigger tank!

Id just keep checking the water for ammonia every day and change the water as needed. until it doesnt show up any more. Keep feeding to a min a fishs tummy is only as big as thier eye. Also its a good idea to starve them once or twice a week.

I know it seems like alot but once your tank is cycled youll find it isnt much work at all. But it does become addictive so watch out! I just bought 1/2 a dozen new ones today plus im building a custom top with some 4 ft shop lights to promote plant and algea growth for the loricaids i have to eat.

[OhioYJ]

I've done a couple water changes since that test, and have been feeding them less food. When I get back Monday I will have the water tested again and see what more current tests show.

[DalTxYJ]

Also try the stuff called Stress Relief. While they are in the bag a little before putting them in the tank give a little squirt of it. I used to do that with every fish I added, and never lost very many fish.
A warning about the "Dwarf Frogs" they get big enough to and will eat your fish at night, if they dont eat them they chase them around and stress them out or injure them and they die. I used to keep a couple of Tiretrack eels and some Ciclids in my 55 gal. It was cool to watch them eat live ghost shrimp.

[Dk]

Yeah using stress coat with water changes is always a good idea! I use some melafix also if the fish have missing scales ect. I have a loach i bought yesterday that i didnt notice had a sore on him although i dont think hes gonna make it, but i put a little of that in to try and help.

[tinknocker]

When you start a new tank you are not supposed to put in a lot of fish at once. The tank needs to build up the proper bacteria to handle the waste the fish put in.

You should start out with 2 fish.. wait at least a week, check your water and if it it good add 1 or 2 more. Dumping 5 fish into a newly established 10 gallon tank is a lot!! It can make your amonia level go up quickly which will kill off your fish.

I also would not add any salt to the tank. If you are getting guppies, platys, tetras, neons.. your basic fish.. you don't need any. Also if you get new fish and add them to the tank and they are not used to the salt, or the level is too high it could kill them. They are under enough stress just being moved.

[edudley]

Are you using city water? If so are you treating for chlorine? I would start with some tough fish like gouramies. I keep my tanks at 75 degrees and rarely change much water one the tank has matured. It can take 30 days to mature the water. You might try ciclids one you get going. Some of mine are more than 5 years old.

[GPER]

Twice a day is too much to feed the fish, but the frogs are hardy eaters and will eat and kill your fish.

[DalTxYJ]

Originally posted by edudley:
If so are you treating for chlorine? I would start with some tough fish like gouramies. I keep my tanks at 75 degrees and rarely change much water one the tank has matured. It can take 30 days to mature the water. I think he used the tank starter which speeds up the cycling process. I have used it also and the water was normal after a couple of days.
75 Deg. is a good temp.

[Dk]

Yeah i have herd nothing but bad things about those frogs! Ive never tried that cycle stuff before. When i start a new tank i take a couple pounds of gravel from one of my others to kick start things. Plus i keep soem extra floss in my filter to preseed the new filter box then put one or two fish in. Ussually a betta or gurami since they can breath air. Let it run for a month while doing your amonia nitrate tests. Once you can keep all 0s add 1 or 2 more fish let it run for 2 weeks and so on.

Ussually once your over the initial cycle hump you dont have to worry about it. Unless you do something liek clean your filter material with tap water, use bleach, take out all the water, or the gravel. Just feed sparingly and see how your fish act.

[we3jeepers]

I know 2 things:
make sure the chick at the pet store gets the snails from the bottom of the tank.....it makes more of her shirt get wet, also dont tap on the tank while saying "FISHY FISHY" they dont like that graemlins/lmao.gif

[OhioYJ]

Ok went and got my water tested and wow!

Ammonia - 3.0!
Chlorine - 0
Nitrate - 0
Nitrite - 0
Hardness - 300
Alkalinity - 300
Ph - 8.4

The ammonia is obviously not right, so I got some stuff that is supposed to help bring the ammonia down.

The Ph seems like its been creeping upward, but the pet store said that it is normal, and roughly where its supposed to be.

Dumping 5 fish into a newly established 10 gallon tank is a lot!! It can make your ammonia level go up quickly which will kill off your fish.Probably why my ammonia levels are so out of whack then.

I also would not add any salt to the tankI was told I had to use salt for the orange guys we bought.

Yeah i have herd nothing but bad things about those frogs!Yeah thats what I keep being told, but the frogs have to stay as Mrs. OhioYJ loves them.

[Mike 95 Wrangler]

Be warned these problems are just a few bumps in the road of having fish. Once you start getting familliar with how your tank reacts to changes you can get HOOKED on fish. You'll wind up spending a lot of $$$ on bigger tanks and other stuff. This will take away from your JEEP. I started four years ago with a five gallon tank, now i'm looking for a fifty five gallon tank. GOOD LUCK

[jeeper92]

It is an addictive hobby. I started with fresh water years ago. Now for the past few years I have moved on to salt water aquariums. I will never go back to fresh water again. I now have a 90gal, and once we move to our new house, I am going to be setting up a 240 gal. Like I said it is addictive.

[OhioYJ]

I'm still not really sure about how often to add salt? 2 of the fish in the tank require the salt, and I've been told its healthy for the other fish. However how often should you add it, and how much?

[Mike 95 Wrangler]

The salt should be added once. Read the package it should give amounts. Mine states one tablespoon per every 5 gallons. but read the lable. Also you shouldn't have to ever add more except if you take water out and change it. Salt doesn't evaporate.