How Much Fish Loss Is Normal?

[confused mermaid]

I have a 46 gallon with about 30 fish in it. (So yes I'm slightly overstocked). The fish consist of Dwarf Gouramis (3) glass cats (5) yoyo loach(3) zebra loach(1) red tetra (4) kuhli loach (5 two black three banded) BN Pleco (1) Male Betta (1) Clown Loach (1) USD cats (2) Angelfish (2) dalmation mollies (2)

The tank has been established for about six months. Lately every week there is 1 fish loss that I can't seem to explain. First of all let me say that the clown loach I rescued last week along with another one that died yesterday. I know they get large and am planning on setting up a 125 gallon tank for them in the spring.

A couple of months ago I had a powder blue DG that got dropsey and died...so I bought another one and that one got stuck and dround behind a rock. Other than those two explainable losses I have not had any till about a 6 weeks ago. One of our banded kuhli loaches that we had waited long for and just got in died. No explainable illness or trauma. The next week another one of those died, and the next week another one. Mind you we have had the two black ones for months and we haven't had any problems with them. The week after that we found one of our glass cats dead that we have also had for a few months. Yesterday I found one of the little clown loaches that we had taken from undesirable circumstances dead. This one was more of a recluse and always hid in the plant whereas the other one is out more often. I do a 50 - 75% water change once a week. I test weekly and after each fish loss. All tests have been normal (ammonia 0, Nitrites 0 etc). We watch our fish probably more than we should and except for the occasional chase around all of the fish get along fine. (Yes even the betta and the angels) I have never seen any nip at the others. I carefully examine each lost fish and find no sign of fighting missing fins or trauma of any kind. The fish eat good, they get a varied diet, their breathing is fine and do not seem stressed from what I've seen. I have a good filter, lots of hiding spots and only turn the light on when I'm feeding. The only explanation I can come up with is that either they are stressed from the other fish and not showing it or its the result of the high PH (8.3) or the hard water we have. I'm not replacing any more of the deceased untill I get a bigger tank.

SO

Do you guys that have a lot of small community fish suffer losses like that that you can't explain or is ther something seriously wrong with our tank?

 

[WILDER]

Do you hoover the substrate once a week.
Is there plenty of aeration in the tank.

What test kit are you using.

It could be bacterial if no fighting, stress, darting, excess mucas, flicking and rubbing, laboured breathing.

 

[confused mermaid]

Do you hoover the substrate once a week.
Is there plenty of aeration in the tank.

What test kit are you using.

It could be bacterial if no fighting, stress, darting, excess mucas, flicking and rubbing, laboured breathing.

Yes, thats how I do my water change by vacuming the gravel till the tank is a little over half empty once a week. I don't have air stones or anything like that but my filter puts out a lot of flow and oxygen bubbles.

 

[WILDER]

If you lost quite a few fish I would add a bacterial med to the tank.

 

[confused mermaid]

If you lost quite a few fish I would add a bacterial med to the tank.

I have a lot of loaches though. Don't bacterial meds kill them because they don't have scales?

 

[WILDER]

its more the parasite meds.

 

[always4lora]

normally you can use the med's just read the instructions i think it normally says about laoches, use less of the stuff, normally around half the dosage

 

[confused mermaid]

I went to the LFS last night and the guy said if I don't see any signs of infection, parasites or anything on the fish, he things that I'm shocking them every week by doing a 50% water change. He thinks I'm messing with the bacteria in the tank. He said just try to do 25% and see if I stop losing fish.

I do 50% because I vacuum really good (I have messy fish) and it usually takes me half the tank to get it to my liking. I will try doing 25% only with testing every other day I guess to see if the ammonia goes to high doing it that way.

Do you guys agree with his statement or do you think it's rubbish?

 

[JMatthew]

I suggest dropping down to a 20 to 25% water changes and adding second filter to the mix. There is no such thing as over filtering and with so many fish you really do need to be considering another filter. My 55 Gallon Mbuna tank has 10 Mbuna and 3 Synodontis in it and I consider that heavily stocked. You are working with over twice that.

 

[confused mermaid]

I suggest dropping down to a 20 to 25% water changes and adding second filter to the mix. There is no such thing as over filtering and with so many fish you really do need to be considering another filter. My 55 Gallon Mbuna tank has 10 Mbuna and 3 Synodontis in it and I consider that heavily stocked. You are working with over twice that.

OK....I'm planning on getting a larger tank in a few months. I have seen that people get a larger filter than the size of their tank to assist with the clean up. I wish I had known that before. I'm planning on ordering a 125 Gallon tank. So if I get a filter for a 150 gallon can I put it on the 46 gallon right now or will that be too much over? Then I can just switch it to the bigger tank when I get it established?

What say you to that?

 

[indigoj]

you'll need 2 externals on a 125g so I'd get one now and use on the 46g.

 

[confused mermaid]

ok, so I have a marineland penguin bio-wheel 200 (I think) Whatever number it is, it's for up to 50 gallons. If I buy and add the marineland emperor for the 80 gallons to this tank, will that suffice in the 125 gallon tank also? I don't want to waste any money.

 

[JMatthew]

you'll need 2 externals on a 125g so I'd get one now and use on the 46g.

Agreed - and it won't be a waste - I'm near positive - LOL! And, yes, since you are moving up to a 125, it can't hurt to get the filters for that tank working and cycled early. As for if that will suffice for the 125 gallon - dependings on if you add more fish. If you toss in another 35 to 40 fish you may need to double up again, but then I would reccomend that you don't even bother going down that route this time and add a few of your favorites sparingly !