Fish Are Dying Weekly

[rdd1952]

ok thansk, i will research, i will buy some PH lowerer if i need to.

Stay away from the pH adjusting chemicals. They only put your pH in a constant swing. What it the pH of your tap water? It could be that you have something in your tank that is raising the pH. Most fish can adapt to a pH that is outside their optimal range so any stable pH is better than one in constant swing.

It sounds like your filtration is good The general rule of thumb is that you need to process the water at least 5 times per hour. One thing that could be causing a problem though is the UGF. How long has it been in the tank? They pull a lot of trash down into the substrate where you can't remove it with a gravel vac. It then decays and produces more ammonia than just what your fish are producing. Even though it is filtration, you may actually be better off if it isn't running so that no more trash gets sucked down.

I would start doing water changes as often as needed to get the nitrite below .25 ppm and then as often as needed to keep it there until the tank cycles and can remove it naturally. Nitrite isn't a quick killer like ammonia can be but actually has an effect on the oxygen exchange of fish. It may take a little longer to kill but it is still deadly.

I've been told to get a filtration system for when i get my new tank that filters it 2-3 times a minute.

Actually, 5 times per hour is the general minimum you need with 7 to 10 being better and allowing for some overstocking. You definitely don't need 120 to 180 times per hour (2 to 3 times a minute).

 

[fiskkeeperpro]

i suck up the waste in the UGF every 1-2months depending on how dirty i feel the tank is, but, if u feel that it could be the UGF then i will take it out, i would rather the fish be happier than me spending more money and fish dying. thanks people

 

[rdd1952]

UGFs as a general rule are outdated. The flow begins to diminish almost as soon as you set it up. After a couple weeks, you end up with streams that are still open as other areas become blocked by trash. I don't really know if removing it would make a difference or not. The key thing is to keep the ammonia and nitrite levels down by doing frequent water changes until the tank completely cycles and to reduce the stocking level although that may be hard to do unless you get a larger tank.

 

[Chubbywubs]

Actually, 5 times per hour is the general minimum you need with 7 to 10 being better and allowing for some overstocking.

Cool thank you, but with a 400 letre tank you would need a filter than can do 4000 letres an hour, or two 2000 filters.. Wouldnt these be really exepsnive and huge?

 

[Tolak]

soz i havent been on since you hav asked questions.
PH- 8.2
Ammonia- 0
Nitrite-1ppm
Nitrate-20ppm

I leave the water in my kitchen that is heated by underfloor.

I had
3 platys,
7 male endlers,
3 cardinals,
3 guppys,
2 cherry barbs
Now
1 platy
7 male endlers
2 cardinals
3 guppys
1 cherry barb
My filtration is as follows,
1 undergravel,
1 fluval 2+
1 juwel compact s

Any nitrite levels are not good, this shoud be zero. From the beginning this is a fairly heavily stocked tank, With the remaining fish I would consider it fully stocked.

i suck up the waste in the UGF every 1-2months depending on how dirty i feel the tank is, but, if u feel that it could be the UGF then i will take it out, i would rather the fish be happier than me spending more money and fish dying. thanks people

You should be doing a gravel vac weekly with the stocking you have. This will cost you no money, other than the cost of replacing the water removed.

Actually, 5 times per hour is the general minimum you need with 7 to 10 being better and allowing for some overstocking.

Cool thank you, but with a 400 letre tank you would need a filter than can do 4000 letres an hour, or two 2000 filters.. Wouldnt these be really exepsnive and huge?

Yes, larger tank filtration can get expensive, especially if you stock with larger, more messy fish. This is where sump filters become more effective, cost wise as well as filtration wise.

I would bet the problems with this tank start with stocking, and include a too infrequent maintenance schedule. If you plan on stocking this way you have to vac the gravel weekly, and do weekly water changes of 40% to 50%.

 

[rdd1952]

Cool thank you, but with a 400 letre tank you would need a filter than can do 4000 letres an hour, or two 2000 filters.. Wouldnt these be really exepsnive and huge?

For normal stocking levels, a 2000lph filter would be fine for a 400L tank. That would be 5 times per hour. Actually for a tank that large you would be better off with 2 1000lph filters, one at each end, to give you better circulation.

 

[Chubbywubs]

Ok excellent thank you. Would the two 1000lph be external or internal? or doesnt it make a difference?

 

[rdd1952]

It really doesn't matter. I prefer external as they don't take up room in the tank.

 

[Chubbywubs]

oh ok, what about a sump filter that some one mentioned above? i cant seem to find any information on them.