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Removing the gravel probably removed a lot of bacteria that kept the water safe for the fish, while at the same time, stirring up a lot of "nasties" into circulation.   Many would say (especially in europe) that two fancy goldfish require at least 140 litres of water to live in.   It is hard to...

I would suggest a ~95% water change pronto in the goby's current tank   One of the worse things you can do is put fish into a smaller tank, when the tank and its filter is not cycled. There is less volume to dilute the ammonia and nitrite, so levels will reach deadly toxic levels quicker.  ...

How many of each of these midwater fish are in this ~70x65x51cm tank?   Which plec species did you have?   What food were you giving this catfish?   Were you regularly seeing this catfish actively eat the food you added?

Ctenopoma acutirostre are very easy to feed dried foods, my four year old group eat Tetra Prima; Doromin; Cichlid XL; New Era Tropical Pellet; New Era Plec Pellet; Hikari Cichlid Gold.   Feeder fish, besides the whole ethical debate (it is illegal to use them in the UK), are a major risk for...

I've seen the anti-social personality of Redline Torpedo Barbs first-hand, I started with 3 and there was a dramatic change when I added another 3 to their QT a few days later.   Moving them between tanks is a loaded game of "Russian roulette," they are unbelievably sensitive to water chemistry...

How long is this hex tank?   Congo Tetras (Phenacogrammus interrptus) are moderate sized, semi-active fish that need at least 120cm of tank length. I have six that youngsters (~3.5-5cm SL) that make good use of a 120x30x37cm tank. They are rather adaptable as far as water hardness goes, upto gH...

10+ of any social species acts more natural and looks great, my biggest group is 25 midwater; diurnal; schooling catfish (Pareutropius mandevillei).

The tank dimensions could work, you could even add a small group (6) of small, upper water "dithers" that are comfortable in the conditions Chaetostoma spp. need (10-20x real turnover with plenty of surface movement, 20-23C). A few options that spring to mind are Bloodfin Tetras (Aphyocharax...

Are you aware that some rainbows including Pseudomugil gertrudae are not "tropical" fish? During the year, their natural waters are recorded to change from 12-34C.   http://rainbowfish.angfaqld.org.au/Gertrud.htm (site is great reference for rainbows)   Such fish can be kept in a tank without a...

A group of 10+, in a 5-foot tank that changes temperature through the seasons (~15C winter season through to ~25C summer season; spring/autumn ~20C) and lots of water movement for high oxygen levels in a sight to behold.   A very misunderstood fish in the hobby, they are not "tropical" fish.

25% monthly water changes is rather low, I do ~50% weekly changes on my five active tanks, including my African Congo/oddball 6-footer.   Even though you have a nitrate reading of 100mg/l, it could be higher, the test reagents fall out of solution and give false lower results. Shaking/banging...

In my experience, detectable traces of nitrite tend to be more lethal in the short term than ammonia. Nitrite messes with the ability of fish to supply their body with oxygen, a classic sign of nitrite issues is when fish are gasping at the surface (which can also be a sign of simply low oxygen...

Hopefully you are letting that tank temp cool during a winter period, Buenos Aires Tetras are not "tropical" fish, they have evolved in a region where the temp drops to ~16C.   Taking the seasonal/temperate conditions above into consideration, temperate Corydoras should be chosen, such as...

What are the ammonia and nitrite readings now? How warm is the water? What pH is the water? Have you still got the old bio cubes?   On the face of it, this sounds like you have removed a lot of the beneficial bacteria and you are now "fish in cycling."   If you have been doing frequent (weekly)...

I really do hope you have mistyped in this post between "degrees" of hardness and milligrams per litre! ;)

What else is in the tank with them? Midwater fish of a similar size, that are not very boisterous, will act as good dithers.    I started with 5 Dwarf Chain Loaches (like you, all shop had), then added two more (which cost a lot more per fish, hence only 2 bought), which did not really help make...

Connect a water butt to the guttering of the house, then work out how to mix this "raw" rainwater with your hard tap water to get softer water. Peat will have negligible effect on gH 17 water.   Or as DrRob wrote, choose your South American fish with care, choosing species that are very...

Define "normal population of fish!" Species, numbers, rough size of body excluding tail fin ("Standard length.")   Dimensions of this 29g?   You should not be continually replacing filter pads, I'm still using the same ones I started with upto four years ago. When these get clogged up, slowing...

Wish I had spotted this thread earlier...   The Synodontis eupterus would probably be ok, they are quite adaptable regarding water chemistry and can normally look after themselves in most community tanks.   However, Synodontis nigriventris would be an awful idea in a Rift Valley community. These...

30C could well be a factor. I lost two of my Steatocranus over Tues/Weds this week in my Rio240, including one of my ~2.5 year old males on the Tuesday. This tank had a horrid outbreak of HITH disease earlier this year, so I'm going to quarantine the tank for a few weeks just in case disease was...

A young eel, perhaps?   The European Eel found in some of our UK freshwaters (apparently declining these days, caught them for fun by hand as a youngster in North Wales in the early '80s) goes through quite a life cycle, spending time in brackish estuaries and youngsters being born in the...

Don't rule out the current heatwave, some of my tanks are hitting 27C at least (which normally sit at 20-22C), warmer water holds less oxygen. Make sure your tanks are getting lots of surface rippling.   What barb species was your loss? As an example, Redline Torpedo Barbs will really struggle...

Nothing happened yet as far as I know, but I have a ~20cm SL Chrisichthys ornatus in my "Congo rapids" 6-footer, which has a ~5cm gape when he/she "yawns." In theory, he/she could swallow any of my 4 ~10cm SL Euchilichthys guentheri/royauxi; 3 ~11-14cm SL Synodontis brichardi; ~10cm SL...

Bosemani Rainbowfish need 120cm long tanks and even that is borderline IMO, I would prefer to put them a in 150cm long term.

Wow, that syno has come on leaps and bounds in your care, good job! :)

From the info provided, my first hunch would be low oxygen levels, as warm water holds less oxygen. Get the water surface rippling lots, if you have not already done so.   25C is mainstream tropical, 27C is considered to be high end. As a regular temp, this is not good for Redline Torpedo Barbs...

I had 4 males in my group (one was a late developer), as they got more mature, they did get more aggressive with each other (one time saw two of them lip-locked flying around the tank). How bad this might get I cannot say, as I rehomed my 7 after the pencilfish incident. A tank with lots of line...

My broad answer is nothing small! I bought 7 of these killis as youngsters just over a year ago, ~3cm each, they were reasonably fine in the community but then I started seeing some of the smaller fish with nipped fins. The Beckford Pencilfish group and a male Hageni Halfbeak recovered in a QT...

Shame it didn't work out this time, but getting them to spawn is a very encouraging sign.

Another rare breeding chance, good luck with the remaining 10 eggs! :D

 Pencilfish are small, but they are territorial with their own kind, a typical 20l is far from suitable.   I started with 6 Nannostomus beckfordi ~18 months ago, the alpha male was a bully with the other male and the four females, when in my 620T ~130l tank (~62x39x55cm). When I moved them to a...

Biotine loaches form a complex social structure with a regularly challenged pecking order, in small numbers there tend to be more aggressive with each other and others in their tank. I was recently able to finally up my Dwarf Chain Loach group from six to thirteen, the young newcomers have made...

How did you cycle it? Did you do a "qualifying week" where you got 0 ammonia/nitrite every 12 hours after dosing ammonia, for 7 consecutive days? What fish did you add, numbers and species, once you thought it was cycled?

That figure, while not impossible, is suspect to me.   What is the nitrate reading of your water source (tap water?)? My tap water comes with ~40ppm nitrate in it, just like a lot of the Uk south coast.   How much water do you change and how often? I change ~50% in my active tanks every week...

You have still not told us what species you are trying to introduce to the main tank.   Quarantining for just 2-3 weeks is still pretty conservative in my eyes, especially if the new fish are species reknowned for not adjusting to hobby life (eg. Chaetostoma spp.), or they arrive half-starved at...

Black Ghost Knife and Clown Knife need something much bigger than a typical 100 US gal for life, a baby BGK will reach close to 50cm within two years. You can almost certainly count the number of members ever on this forum with a suitable 10x4x4 foot tank on one hand.   The bare minimum tank...

Could be critically different water chemistry between the tanks.   Could be your cichlids are not taking kindly to new "invaders" to their home.   What fish have you been buying?

 Given proper care in a suitably massive tank, they will reach close to 50cm (~20") in about two years, their growth rate is insane. Hidden somewhere on this forum, an old member documented the growth of their BGK around 2010, it outgrew his 6x2x2 within a couple of years.

Candy loach might be Biota striata, aka Zebra Loach.   Most loaches, especially biotine loaches, form complex hierachies (pecking order). It is far better to have 10+ to prevent aggression within the group and reduce the chance of other community fish beating the victim of nipping.   This is why...

As is often (but not always) the case, tank volume is not the vital criteria here, it is tank dimensions.   My "Congo rapids" 6x1.5x1.3 foot (~310l) would be more than adequate for a 10+ group of Redline Torpedo Barbs, if I was able to provide a variable temperature that was close to ~15C in the...