Molly Tank Crashing? Help!

[Sophie]

Follow the instructions - it should be directly into the tank but ymmv. Calculate based on volume of your tank.

 

[FallynLeigh]

Okay.  I'll do that.  I think I'll mix it with a little bit of tank water first.  
 
Also, my mom is now refusing to help me with the mollies and water changes because all she wanted was "a few pretty fish in the 10 gallon, not a new tank and a bunch of work" so it looks like I'm on my own.
 
I'll update on how the tank is doing in 30-60 minutes.

 

[fluttermoth]

Oh, dear; parents, eh? What can you do? My mum is the same; luckily I'm grown up now, so I can do what I like with my tanks and not have to look at her terrible set up all the time 

 
Best of luck; keep us updated and we'll help as much as we can!

 

[Sophie]

Okay.  I'll do that.  I think I'll mix it with a little bit of tank water first.  
 
Also, my mom is now refusing to help me with the mollies and water changes because all she wanted was "a few pretty fish in the 10 gallon, not a new tank and a bunch of work" so it looks like I'm on my own.
 
I'll update on how the tank is doing in 30-60 minutes.

 
 
That's really sad.. Fish are a lot of work, but it's the work that's enjoyable and the outcome is even more pleasurable. With any pet you have to accept responsibility..
Best of luck, let us know how it goes.

 

[FallynLeigh]

Thank you guys!  The fish are all doing pretty okay, and I know that ammonia can cause burns, but none of them are showing white splotches and their gills seem normal too.  The fry are all okay as well.  I think it may be crisis adverted, but I'll keep you guys updated!

 

[the_lock_man]

 
 
I don't think we have any water conditioner... I'm pretty sure my mom just leaves the water out for a few days.  She's had fish for 30+ years, and so I just go along with what she says.

 
 
I wonder......
 
It would be worth checking to see whether your local water supply utility has recently changed their treatment procedure from chlorine to chloramine.
 
In the "good old days", the way to dechlorinate your water was to leave it standing for a few days, and the chlorine would drop out of solution, and evaporate into the air. A lot of utilities are now using chloramine, a combination of chlorine and ammonia. This doesn't "gas off" like chlorine does, and prolonged exposure to chloramine would harm your filter bacteria. Possible explanation of your current issues.
 
Tapsafe would also remove chloramine from the water, if that is the case.
 
In any event, it's always good to have around, so that you can do immediate water changes if necessary.

 

[Sophie]

Well, you still need to keep up the water changes and sort out putting the Mollies in a larger tank (I swear another of your posts is about a larger tank for them?!)
 
As fluttermoth said, the tank is overcrowded not to mention the likelihood it is not cycled properly, even with the Angelfish before. The bacteria have grown to cope with the waste made by the Angelfish, you now have more fish that produce even more waste than the Angel did, so the bacteria need to grow and develop more to cope (or this is how I interpret things, I'd love a confirmation from TLM about this or TTA but yeah!)
 
To confuse you a bit more, if you overcrowd a tank, there will not be enough filter media for enough beneficial bacteria to grow on to cope with the amount of ammonia being produced (again, my interpretation).
That and as the Mollies grow they will produce even more waste, they are actually pretty big fish at max size!

 

 
 
I don't think we have any water conditioner... I'm pretty sure my mom just leaves the water out for a few days.  She's had fish for 30+ years, and so I just go along with what she says.

 
 
I wonder......
 
It would be worth checking to see whether your local water supply utility has recently changed their treatment procedure from chlorine to chloramine.
 
In the "good old days", the way to dechlorinate your water was to leave it standing for a few days, and the chlorine would drop out of solution, and evaporate into the air. A lot of utilities are now using chloramine, a combination of chlorine and ammonia. This doesn't "gas off" like chlorine does, and prolonged exposure to chloramine would harm your filter bacteria. Possible explanation of your current issues.
 
Tapsafe would also remove chloramine from the water, if that is the case.
 
In any event, it's always good to have around, so that you can do immediate water changes if necessary.
 

 
Good thinking Batman!
 
Go and grab some 'tapsafe' from your LFS
It is an essential.

 

[FallynLeigh]

TLM- I wonder if that is the case.  I know theres fluoride in the water but I don't know if thats harmful.  I'll check up on that, thanks!
 
Sophie- Yes, I have a 35 gallon tank coming in a few days.  That may be possible as well.  Anyways, they won't have to stay in the tiny tank for too much longer!

 

[daizeUK]

How much water has your mum been changing in this tank and how often?
With the nitrates so high and pH so low, I am wondering if this is a case of Old Tank Syndrome - i.e. not enough water changes, the nitrates have built up to high and caused the pH to crash which has killed off your bacteria.
Sorry if somebody else already addressed this and I missed it.
I would suggest that in future you need to do more regular water changes, with dechlorinated water.  I would suggest doing at least a 30% water change every week.

 

[the_lock_man]

Sophie, confirmed

 

[fluttermoth]

How much water has your mum been changing in this tank and how often?
With the nitrates so high and pH so low, I am wondering if this is a case of Old Tank Syndrome - i.e. not enough water changes, the nitrates have built up to high and caused the pH to crash which has killed off your bacteria.
Sorry if somebody else already addressed this and I missed it.
I would suggest that in future you need to do more regular water changes, with dechlorinated water.  I would suggest doing at least a 30% water change every week.

OTS is why I suggested smaller water changes to start with, building up to larger ones gradually, although I didn't actually mention it; I should have done, thanks!

 

[FallynLeigh]

 
 

How much water has your mum been changing in this tank and how often?
With the nitrates so high and pH so low, I am wondering if this is a case of Old Tank Syndrome - i.e. not enough water changes, the nitrates have built up to high and caused the pH to crash which has killed off your bacteria.
Sorry if somebody else already addressed this and I missed it.
I would suggest that in future you need to do more regular water changes, with dechlorinated water.  I would suggest doing at least a 30% water change every week.

 
So to answer your questions:
-She hasn't changed the water in either of the tanks in at least 6 months
-It could be old tank syndrome, that sounds a lot better then some other things google had come up with last night
-Since I am now in charge of the tank I'm not sure how often I can do water changes.  I have school and a chronic illness, so they may be bi-weekly.

and there is chloramine in my local water

 

[daizeUK]

I hate to say it, but at this point I would ask yourself honestly if a new 35 gallon tank is going to be too much work for you?

 

[the_lock_man]

 
 

How much water has your mum been changing in this tank and how often?
With the nitrates so high and pH so low, I am wondering if this is a case of Old Tank Syndrome - i.e. not enough water changes, the nitrates have built up to high and caused the pH to crash which has killed off your bacteria.
Sorry if somebody else already addressed this and I missed it.
I would suggest that in future you need to do more regular water changes, with dechlorinated water.  I would suggest doing at least a 30% water change every week.

 
So to answer your questions:
-She hasn't changed the water in either of the tanks in at least 6 months
-It could be old tank syndrome, that sounds a lot better then some other things google had come up with last night
-Since I am now in charge of the tank I'm not sure how often I can do water changes.  I have school and a chronic illness, so they may be bi-weekly.

and there is chloramine in my local water

 
A mix of all our suggestions then. Definitely do the slow water changes that Fluttermoth suggested, and get some water conditioner. If you can find it, most of us use "Prime", it is very concentrated so a large bottle lasts absolute ages. Bi-weekly is fine, so long as the changes when you do them equate to about 30% weekly.

 

[FallynLeigh]

daizeUK- I don't think it will be because I am home 24/7 (because of my illness I can't go to school, school comes to me haha) and I'm pretty sure my grandfather will help me with getting the supplies and doing the water changes.  I'm sure my mom will come around, she's just super grumpy today.  Anyways, the tank is already paid for so its a little too late to back down now.  Fish tanks are supposed to be good for people with my condition though because of how relaxing they are to watch (when they're not stressing you out!).  
 
I'll ask if my grandpa can take me to the LFS to get some 'tapsafe'.  I've got to go for a bit to go take care of my other, much larger, pet- but I'll be back in an hour or two with an update.