Help!

[jhelen]

Hi

Can anyone help? I have never had tropicalfish before and I was not told about anything to do with the cycling process until I already had fish in there:

i have -2 angelfish
4 platies
2 clown loach
1 pleco catfish

I have had it for 12 days and have the following readings:

ammonia- 0.6
nitrite - between 0.3 and 0.8
ph -7
nitrate - 10

I didnt think nitrate would be there yet..so i'm a bit confused about the whole process as I was told it would take at least 3 weeks to get nitrate..but i've still got ammonia and nitrite in there--is this normal? Should I just carry on testing the water as normal (i've done two 10-15% water changes so far) and only feed them every other day

Is there anything else i can do to help the fish?

Also the loach and 1 angelfish has white spots which i have been told is Ich and have been treating..Is it right that you have to treat for 4 days AFTER all the spots fall off..and is all this medicine affecting the cycling process?
I really dont want the fish to die, and i dont want to stress them too much,

does anyone have any other suggestions as to what i could do, or do i just wait??


many thanks

 

[rvm]

For the ammonia problem; The nitrAte reading is quite normal, you may just have nitrate in your tapwater. I would keep doing your water changes and really the best you can do is hope it doesn't spike too much. I went through a problem with my filter recently, and had readings similar to yours with no ill effects on the fish for justs under a week before it was back under control.
As for the Ich. yes, you have to continue treating as the medicine will not kill the parasites in the 'white spot' form. It will only kill them when they become free swimming. You can speed this process up by turning the temp in your tank up to 79-80 F

 

[Phantom Thief]

Firstly, to the forums!!!

Try to do water changes to keep ammonia and nitrite as low as possible, at the moment, your fish can't take the stress from cycling, which is probably why they got ich.

edit: how big is the tank?

P.T.

 

[jhelen]

thank you

the tank is 20 gallons..do I have too many fish? (the person who sold us all this is my boyfriends friend but he didnt tell us any of this)

Also one of the angelfish has red bits in his eyes - i think they have always been there..is this normal because he has some red colouring..but none of the other fish have them??

 

[Phantom Thief]

Yes, you are overstocked. But if the fish are juviniles, then they will be overstocked. Angels need 18" tall tanks. Clown Loaches get to 12+" and plecos can reach even more than that.

P.T.

 

[rvm]

You'll probably find the plec you have is a common, and will fast outgrow that tank. they will grow to 15" easily. Also Clown loaches should be kept in groups of at least 3, and will also get large (around 10-12") but they do grow slowly. The angelfish will also get large, but they need a deep tank as their size is mostly in their fins. I'm not sure how big they get as I've never kept them, but I think with all the fish you have at their adult sizes then yes you are overstocked

Edit: You beat me to it P.T!!!!!

 

[jhelen]

Maybe I should give some fish back? do you think?

Whats best to keep? I'd like to keep the angelfish..the tank is about 18" tall but only just

Am i right to feed every other day..the angelfish always seem to be looking for food but i think they are greedy

 

[Phantom Thief]

rvm. Is this a competition?

For the moment, feeding every other day will be alright, probably the best thing to do. As to what's best to keep, hard choice. angels might be ok, but they are pretty sensitive. clown loaches will be too large, and so will plecos. Perhaps you could return the clown loaches and pleco. But dunno how wise it is to keep the angel though...

P.T.

 

[rvm]

rvm. Is this a competition?

Like I said before, I don't know too much about angels, but I know they will eat neons, so they may have platies as well, might be worth checking it.
Easiest thing would be get a new tank!!! A nice 55g should be Ok for that lot!!!!!

 

[jhelen]

well.,i'll see how they get on..but i'd rather give them back than watch them die

thanks ..really helpful..i might have more questions l8r !!!

 

[Dragonslair]

The question you ask is a common one amongst new fishkeepers.
Considering you already have ammonia and nirtrate/nitrite in the water and doing water changes will only dilute the chemicals minimally. I would suggest that you purchase a product like bio chem-zorb or a more specialised one such as nirta-zorb or ammo zorb. The product are made by API and can be purchased from most good UK fish outlets.

 

[Dragonslair]

I have three marbled angels which "grew up" with a shoal of neons/cardinals. The angels have not tried to eat the neons. They don't even bother to chase them. The angels are quite happy with their own kind and likewise the neons. The only fish I have that are just a bit flighty are my 11 scissortails. The stick together also, and when they all turn around together in the tank, they look like a mirror flashing in the sunlight. Really wonderful to see.