Losing Fish After Fish

[xamy_valox]

Hi there,
I am hoping someone here can help me as I am at my wits end. Since upgrading my tank from a 70 litre to a 125 I have had nothing but deaths. At first I was putting it down to old age, as the majority of the fish that were dying were from my very first Fluval Edge tank and so were 3-4 years old. However it has continued and I am so fed up of losing poor fish.
Just in the last few weeks I have lost a honey gourami, cherry barb, a baby Angel, a loach, a panda cory and 2 swordtails. Over the time I have had this tank all I have had is bad luck.

Ammonia: 0.25
Nitrate: 0
Nitrite: 0
Don't ever test PH or hardiness, but when I did test PH a few months ago it was around 6.8
I do normally have my nitrate around 5 and my ammonia at 0 but this was what was reading the day after doing my water change.

Fish include:

1 Baby Angel
1 Honey Gourami
3 Neon Tetras
7 Harlequin Rasboras
8 Platinum Tetras
4 Cherry Barbs
3 Platy's
6 Corydora

Looks like strange numbers due to recent deaths =\

I change my water by roughly 20-25% every sunday and use API Stress Coat as a dechlorinator and a liquid plat fertiliser that I can't remember the name of as I finished it off a few weeks ago.
Its a 125 litre tank and the last fish I added were 2 swordtails and 2 Honey Gouramis, both swordtails have died and 1 honey gourami.

 

[OldMan47]

One of the first things we need to explore is your high ammonia, which could be the reason for your losses. Did you move the filter from the old tank to the new one? If not, you are in the middle of a fish-in cycle and will lose fish unless you do frequent very large water changes. Even after your losses, you are still heavily stocked for a tank that has not matured and developed its full bacterial colony in the filter yet. OPlease read through how to do a fish-in cycle. You can reach the article using a link in my signature area. You will get quite good at testing for ammonia and nitrites before you are done.

 

[xamy_valox]

Yeah, the tank was previously my brothers and had been running for 3-4 years. I had his filter and his mature media, so the tank was already cycled. I swapped my 70 litre with him and moved the fish that I had in there to the 125, left it for a month or so to make sure the levels stayed ok (which they did) and then began to add more fish slowly.
As previously mentioned, I do test my water frequently and have never had any issues until yesterday when I tested after a water change and noticed my ammonia had crept up again.
Must also mention that I have had the tank running since September last year, so its by no means a 'new set up'.

 

[AshP1986]

Yeah, the tank was previously my brothers and had been running for 3-4 years. I had his filter and his mature media, so the tank was already cycled. I swapped my 70 litre with him and moved the fish that I had in there to the 125, left it for a month or so to make sure the levels stayed ok (which they did) and then began to add more fish slowly.
As previously mentioned, I do test my water frequently and have never had any issues until yesterday when I tested after a water change and noticed my ammonia had crept up again.
Must also mention that I have had the tank running since September last year, so its by no means a 'new set up'.

You say you left the tank running for a month or so, during this time did you add food or ammonia to the water at all?

If not, most, if not all, of the "good" bacteria died.

Therefore, you basically have to restart your cycle...

 

[xamy_valox]

I mean I left adding anymore fish. I had my fish from the previous 70 litre tank in there, and was obviously feeding them haha.
So yeah the food and the fish poop would have kept the cycle running.

 

[deftuch]

Did you clean your new tank out with chemicals? Perhaps you didnt rinse the chemicals out properly?

 

[xamy_valox]

Nope, I just used elbow grease! My brother had kept it in pretty good shape to be honest, and so all I had to do was wash out some gunk from the bottom that his gravel had left behind and scrub some algae off the glass.
Didn't use any chemicals what so ever.
My sand in some places has turned a greenish colour. Not so much the visible part on the top, but the bit pushed up against the glass. I was putting this down to algae as its the side where I have a lamp, so I assumed it was just too much light exposure. But would it have anything to do with it?

 

[deftuch]

Perhaps you didnt add enough tap water conditioner. Maybe its the stress too! And i dont mean to be rude but do you have the right temperature? Is your heater the recommended wattage for your tank size? The temperature could be dropping just below the capability of the heater at night time. Remeber different tanks can lose more heat than others. Im not an expert but hope i helped a lil?

 

[xamy_valox]

I do tend to over water condition to be honest as I'm always worried I'm doing enough. But it may be a consideration?
The tank is set at 26 degrees, and tends to hover between 26-27. I haven't seen it drop or rise dramatically.
The heater is big enough for the tank as I bought a new one when I got the tank off my brother and this one is anything upto 200 litres so with mine being 125 I'm assuming it should be fine?

 

[xamy_valox]

I do tend to over water condition to be honest as I'm always worried I'm doing enough. But it may be a consideration?
The tank is set at 26 degrees, and tends to hover between 26-27. I haven't seen it drop or rise dramatically.
The heater is big enough for the tank as I bought a new one when I got the tank off my brother and this one is anything upto 200 litres so with mine being 125 I'm assuming it should be fine?

 

[deftuch]

Only thing i can think of is disease,fungus,parasites. Look out for imflammed gills,white spots, fin rot. Ect actually you say you never test your ph? Maybe after the tank swap there was a change in ph shockijg the fish and killing them. Also you have a reading of ammonia but no nitrate what so ever. I find that hard to believe seems as you have that much fish. Sounds to me that your tank isnt converting the ammonia properly. Ammonia is fish pee and poo essentially, it also kills them. Thats me out of ideas im afraid. Good luck. Hooe you dont lose any more fish

 

[winmore]

Y need to do 50% water change every 3 days untill you get nitrate readings and 0 amonia.could take 4 weeks of this.