I have a 30 gallon tank , over the back filter and air filtration , my prob is i have had my tank up bout 1 month or so when i started it i used start right, I decided to put a tiger oscar and a algae eater in there , well i got my first alage eatr from pet smart it died for days later , so i took a water sample and it back they told me my water and nitrates were all ok not enough to kill it, so i broke my tank down and cleaned it, and put start right in it again and put my fish back in well in a week or so the alage eatr died again , so i thought maybe it was just bad fish in the store so i took a water sample and everything was fine so this time i decided to go to another store and get a algae eater well it lived a week and 2 days and died , I have noticed before they all die the will turn brown or have a brown spot , i have tried all fish stores and nobody knows whats going on any help would greatly be appreciated.......
Algae Eater Prob
- Thread starter wes5314
- Start date
kcalbat
Fish Fanatic
Im kinda of a newbie..but i know and have been through the terrible cycling issues.
The tank needs time to cycle. In a weeks time the biological bacteria havnt had time to establish itself and since you broke down the tank the process had to start over.
The first few weeks (4 to 6), the water will be going through some changes that will put a certain amount of stress on the fish you place in there.
I dont know about tiger oscars, but i know that to cycle the tank using fish you need to choose very hardy fish that can withstand those changes. About the algea eater...depending on which kind you have gotten..they can be pretty sensitive to water fluxuations. Also, if the algae eater is one that relies solely on veggie matter the tank did not have enough algae matter to substain the fish. Provide him with commercial made wafers that sink to the bottom or certain veggies like cucumbers. (feed at nite to give him a chance at the food.)
In addition, do u have a heater for your tank. If not i would suggest getting one because this greatly help in keeping the water temp stable as major drops or rises in temperature can place great stress on fish.
Last thing i can tell you is check the pH and hardness of water to see what fish are compatible with your water parameters. This will ensure the fish u purchase will be comfortable in your waters.
Research well on the cycling process and ur on the road to success. Good luck and i hope my information helped.
The tank needs time to cycle. In a weeks time the biological bacteria havnt had time to establish itself and since you broke down the tank the process had to start over.
The first few weeks (4 to 6), the water will be going through some changes that will put a certain amount of stress on the fish you place in there.
I dont know about tiger oscars, but i know that to cycle the tank using fish you need to choose very hardy fish that can withstand those changes. About the algea eater...depending on which kind you have gotten..they can be pretty sensitive to water fluxuations. Also, if the algae eater is one that relies solely on veggie matter the tank did not have enough algae matter to substain the fish. Provide him with commercial made wafers that sink to the bottom or certain veggies like cucumbers. (feed at nite to give him a chance at the food.)
In addition, do u have a heater for your tank. If not i would suggest getting one because this greatly help in keeping the water temp stable as major drops or rises in temperature can place great stress on fish.
Last thing i can tell you is check the pH and hardness of water to see what fish are compatible with your water parameters. This will ensure the fish u purchase will be comfortable in your waters.
Research well on the cycling process and ur on the road to success. Good luck and i hope my information helped.
Thats crazy normally alage eater are hardy but depends on which ones u buy -- pleco are hardy
if u got an chinese alage eater i have had bad luck\\
as for cycling must be down
or over 50 % of fish will died
must keep the water in the tank try to never take all water out it kill all the bactuim
let it run for a week then a 1-2 fish at a time
if u got an chinese alage eater i have had bad luck\\
as for cycling must be down
or over 50 % of fish will died
must keep the water in the tank try to never take all water out it kill all the bactuim
let it run for a week then a 1-2 fish at a time
dwarfgourami
Fish Connoisseur
I would not trust the shop to do your testing. Buy yourself a liquid test kit and test every day for ammonia, nitrites and nitrates. The ammonia and nitrites should stay at zero, the nitrates should not preferably not go over 40- but test your tap water; they should stay within 10 ppm or so of the tap water. Nitrates that are much higher than tap water are a sign of overstocking or overfeeding. Keep testing for a fortnight and do not buy any more fish during this period. kcalbat has given good information about cycling and I imagine this has been a major part of the problem- which is why you need to test your own water stats.
During this time, you need to be thinking about your future plans. A 30 gallon tank is not going to be enough for a grown-up oscar- they grow big and live a long time. Do you intend to keep him and upgrade? or if you know you won't be able to, would it perhaps be a better idea to sell him while he is still young? Do not expect him to adjust his size to your tank- some fish can get stunted if kept under unsuitable conditions (as can human beings!), but this is a sign of ill health, not what you're aiming for.
I am not quite sure what algae eaters those were that died, this is where Latin names are so helpful, but if it was a common or sailfin pleco, that too would have outgrown the tank. Adult Chinese Algae Eaters can be kept in a 30 gallon tank, but they won't really leave room for that much else.
During this time, you need to be thinking about your future plans. A 30 gallon tank is not going to be enough for a grown-up oscar- they grow big and live a long time. Do you intend to keep him and upgrade? or if you know you won't be able to, would it perhaps be a better idea to sell him while he is still young? Do not expect him to adjust his size to your tank- some fish can get stunted if kept under unsuitable conditions (as can human beings!), but this is a sign of ill health, not what you're aiming for.
I am not quite sure what algae eaters those were that died, this is where Latin names are so helpful, but if it was a common or sailfin pleco, that too would have outgrown the tank. Adult Chinese Algae Eaters can be kept in a 30 gallon tank, but they won't really leave room for that much else.
kcalbat
Fish Fanatic
im trying really hard to remember if this is correct but i read that high nitrites can cause discoloration namely brown spots...but take that with a grain of salt.
However, it is clear that your problems are related to your tank not having established bacterial colonies. Just a little research on this will get you back on track.
However, it is clear that your problems are related to your tank not having established bacterial colonies. Just a little research on this will get you back on track.
DarkEntity
Eater Of The Fishies!!!
Black spots are usually Ammonia burns iirc. You are not letting the tank cycle pior to adding fish. read the Cycling sticky.
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