Please Help Me With My Tank

[TropicalLeeTracy]

Hi Everyone,
I'm New to the tropical tank game and i have bought a tank that the previous owner told me i could buy fish and put them straight in as soon as the tank was up to 80'f. I was told to put tap safe in which i did to the manufacturers specified amounts to my 24gallon tank. So i did this, went out and bought some fish, 9 neon tetras, 5 guppies, 2 angel fish, 4 pink kissing gouramis, 2 2" plecs, 2 swordtails. I have lost 3 guppies, 1 gourami, both swordtails. I had noticed 1 of the gouramis had what i diagnosed as mouthrot and treated the tank with interpet no'8 anti fungus & finrot. But sadly lost the gourami the day after. I did this 2 days ago. Today i noticed the fish had whitespot and have treated the tank to cure this. Little did i know i should have waited seven days before using this as i used the mouthrot treatment 2 days ago. I have only realised as i have read the full book that came with the treatments and have only just worked this out.

I have also noticed the fish are darting around and there is algae floating about here and there.

So basically i am wondering what i am doing wrong or have done wrong and if any one could help me out as i don't want to loose anymore fish.

Many Thanks
Lee

 

[black angel]

Could you tell us how long the tank was empty before you added any fish.
I take it theres a filter as Im thinking that maybe it has dried out and you are basically adding too many fish too soon.
Did you get a reason as to why he sold the tank? You would need to know if it was from disease as many fish parasites and other nasties can survive a long time without a host and the filter and any gravel/sand would probably need to be sterilised.
Have a read of the beginner section at the pinned topic and learn about cycling a tank as well.
Basically you should add fish very slowly to a new set up.
Get some test kits for ammonia and nitrite to begin with and then you can see if you have any problems that way.

The fish you bought as well could have been diseased which is why its recommended to invest in a smaller tank such as a ten gallon to quarantine and treat new fish.

 

[TropicalLeeTracy]

Could you tell us how long the tank was empty before you added any fish.
I take it theres a filter as Im thinking that maybe it has dried out and you are basically adding too many fish too soon.
Did you get a reason as to why he sold the tank? You would need to know if it was from disease as many fish parasites and other nasties can survive a long time without a host and the filter and any gravel/sand would probably need to be sterilised.
Have a read of the beginner section at the pinned topic and learn about cycling a tank as well.
Basically you should add fish very slowly to a new set up.
Get some test kits for ammonia and nitrite to begin with and then you can see if you have any problems that way.

The fish you bought as well could have been diseased which is why its recommended to invest in a smaller tank such as a ten gallon to quarantine and treat new fish.

I'm Not Sure how long the tank was empty from the person i got it off as i bought it from ebay. The lad seemed to know what he was on about with tropical fish. I do have a filter, Its a interpet IPF Duo 3 internal power filter. I have washed some activated carbon i got with it and added it to the filter compartment. The filter by the way came with the tank. It was brand new, he had had it 12 months.
He sold the tank due to moving in with his girlfriend who had a larger tank and he didn't want 2 tanks. I presume he moved the fish there, but he didn't say as i can remember. The bottom of the tank has mixed gravel, and glass pebbles like you get for show with candles.
I am going to get a test kit tomorrow that tests the tank 40 times for everything at 21.99. Hopefully i may be able to do something from there.
Like i said in the first message i am new to tropical fish keeping and only went off the lads recommendations whom i bought it from.
Many Thanks for your reply and merry xmas
Lee

 

[cujoho78]

Hi. Sounds like you're having trouble. I'll try to help a little. You've made some mistakes so far so i'll try to offer some suggestions to help correct them. Let's start with the basics first.

Temperature: I noticed your temperature is about 80F; you could probably turn this down a few degrees to 77 or 78 (I feel that 80 is just a little too high). Something to remember is that warmer water holds less oxygen so if you have a heavy stocking load there's less oxygen available for the fish.

Stocking: The rule of thumb when deciding how many fish to get is to use the 1" per U.S. gallon rule. You find out what the adult size of the fish is, and then add up how many inches you have in total depending on the number and type of fish you have. The number should not be bigger than the number of U.S. gallons of water in your tank. So if you have 9 neon tetras, their adult size is about 1" so you have 9 inches of fish. Your tank is 24 gallons so when you bought your fish originally there were too many according to the 1" per gallon rule. So it's best that you not get any more fish.

Cycling: the cycle is the most important thing to understand when starting a new tank. You can find much info about this in the beginner section. Basically, fish produce waste which is toxic to them. Over time, good bacteria develops in the tank which converts the toxins into less toxic forms. An ammonia test kit will allow you to see how bad things are. The level of ammonia should be zero, but you will find elevated levels in a newly set-up tank.

Water changes: water changes are your biggest friend in my opinion. By removing water and left over food and fish waste from the gravel you will take out contaminants and replace them with fresh water, thereby diluting the remaining toxins. It is recommended to do a 10-20% water change per week including a vacuuming of the gravel. You can do up to about a 50% water change at a time at most. It's important to try to make sure the water that you add back to the tank is similar in temperature and has been treated for chlorine etc.

Feeding: Overfeeding will also create problems. If there is uneaten food that sinks to the bottom, it will rot quickly and foul the water. This is a big problem in a new tank. You'd be surprised at how much left over food can be hidden in the gravel. You need to get a gravel vacuum to suck it up! Just feed once a day and only enough that the fish eat it all in about 2 minutes. If there is a lot of food sinking to the bottom then you are feeding too much.

Ok so there's the basics. I have a feeling that you will lose more fish, but i think that you should not buy anymore fish until you've got the tank established. So in the mean time i would get an ammonia test kit and test the water daily. Try to keep the ammonia down to 0.25 or 0.5 at most by changing tank water and vacuuming the gravel. You may want to change a gallon or two of water every couple of days if the ammonia is persistently high. There are also products available that will make the ammonia less toxic which you could consider. When using these products (like Ammo-loc) you will still get a positive test for ammonia but it will not harm the fish.
You'll have to decide what type of fish you want most. 9 neon tetras, 2 guppies, 2 angels, and 3 gouramis is already at or over 24" and would be considered fully stocked. Also, something to note is that most people will tell you that an adult angel fish will eat a neon tetra and so are not compatible. Lastly, feed sparingly. Less is better. Fish will eat if you feed them, but once a day is enough and just try not to let too much sink to the bottom. Make sure to read the articles on cycling as well. You learn what happens with the water and why, and realize why adding too many fish too fast is causing problems.

All in all it's not the end of the world. I don't mean to sound critical; i just want to help you get your tank straightened out because they are very rewarding once they are established. Please consider some of the things i've talked about, and remember that i've only really scratched the surface. Please feel free to ask questions. There are many knowledegable people here that are friendly and happy to help you. I hope this helps you some and good luck!

 

[TropicalLeeTracy]

Hi. Sounds like you're having trouble. I'll try to help a little. You've made some mistakes so far so i'll try to offer some suggestions to help correct them. Let's start with the basics first.

Temperature: I noticed your temperature is about 80F; you could probably turn this down a few degrees to 77 or 78 (I feel that 80 is just a little too high). Something to remember is that warmer water holds less oxygen so if you have a heavy stocking load there's less oxygen available for the fish.

Stocking: The rule of thumb when deciding how many fish to get is to use the 1" per U.S. gallon rule. You find out what the adult size of the fish is, and then add up how many inches you have in total depending on the number and type of fish you have. The number should not be bigger than the number of U.S. gallons of water in your tank. So if you have 9 neon tetras, their adult size is about 1" so you have 9 inches of fish. Your tank is 24 gallons so when you bought your fish originally there were too many according to the 1" per gallon rule. So it's best that you not get any more fish.

Cycling: the cycle is the most important thing to understand when starting a new tank. You can find much info about this in the beginner section. Basically, fish produce waste which is toxic to them. Over time, good bacteria develops in the tank which converts the toxins into less toxic forms. An ammonia test kit will allow you to see how bad things are. The level of ammonia should be zero, but you will find elevated levels in a newly set-up tank.

Water changes: water changes are your biggest friend in my opinion. By removing water and left over food and fish waste from the gravel you will take out contaminants and replace them with fresh water, thereby diluting the remaining toxins. It is recommended to do a 10-20% water change per week including a vacuuming of the gravel. You can do up to about a 50% water change at a time at most. It's important to try to make sure the water that you add back to the tank is similar in temperature and has been treated for chlorine etc.

Feeding: Overfeeding will also create problems. If there is uneaten food that sinks to the bottom, it will rot quickly and foul the water. This is a big problem in a new tank. You'd be surprised at how much left over food can be hidden in the gravel. You need to get a gravel vacuum to suck it up! Just feed once a day and only enough that the fish eat it all in about 2 minutes. If there is a lot of food sinking to the bottom then you are feeding too much.

Ok so there's the basics. I have a feeling that you will lose more fish, but i think that you should not buy anymore fish until you've got the tank established. So in the mean time i would get an ammonia test kit and test the water daily. Try to keep the ammonia down to 0.25 or 0.5 at most by changing tank water and vacuuming the gravel. You may want to change a gallon or two of water every couple of days if the ammonia is persistently high. There are also products available that will make the ammonia less toxic which you could consider. When using these products (like Ammo-loc) you will still get a positive test for ammonia but it will not harm the fish.
You'll have to decide what type of fish you want most. 9 neon tetras, 2 guppies, 2 angels, and 3 gouramis is already at or over 24" and would be considered fully stocked. Also, something to note is that most people will tell you that an adult angel fish will eat a neon tetra and so are not compatible. Lastly, feed sparingly. Less is better. Fish will eat if you feed them, but once a day is enough and just try not to let too much sink to the bottom. Make sure to read the articles on cycling as well. You learn what happens with the water and why, and realize why adding too many fish too fast is causing problems.

All in all it's not the end of the world. I don't mean to sound critical; i just want to help you get your tank straightened out because they are very rewarding once they are established. Please consider some of the things i've talked about, and remember that i've only really scratched the surface. Please feel free to ask questions. There are many knowledegable people here that are friendly and happy to help you. I hope this helps you some and good luck!

Thanks for replying. I have been out today and bought a full test kit and done all these tests and these are my readings ph 7.0 ammonia 0.5 nitrite 0ppm nitrate 0ppm .
Going off what you have said i think i may have been feeding them to much. Some of the fish have got white spot and i treated them yesterday using interpet whitespot treatment,i also took the carbon out of the filter, but today it seems to be alot worse. I have been to the pet shop today and bought waterlife protozin and stress coat, would you recomend doing a water change and cleaning the gravel and then re-treating the fish.
Thanks for your help

 

[LisaLQ]

You've already had some fab advice but wanted to say - dont drop the temperature while they have white spot - you need it higher to speed up the life cycle of the parasite that causes it and therefore speed up their treatment and recovery. We knocked ours up to 82-84. Also, in the long run, sooner rather than later though - as soon as they're better, I'd return the kissers, angels and plecs - as all will get too big for your tank (especially the plecs and kissers - the angels you might, maybe get away with - although they may eat your smaller fish). Plecs can get to 18", some 2ft, depending on which species they are (gibbies/sailfins being the biggest of the most commonly sold). They would need at least a 5ft x 2ft x 2ft.

As your tank hasn't cycled yet, it is likely you will lose more fish, and treating the whitespot might be trickier as you'll have to keep doing water changes to keep the ammonia and nitrite levels down as it cycles, whereas most whitespot meds say dont do any water changes. I think it might be worth posting in the emergencies section as there's a very experienced member there (Wilder) who is always spot on with advice, and she might know which is more important - water changes or the treatment.

The plecs will no doubt live through it - but like I said, they'll need either a tank upgrade, or returning to the shop

Best of luck!