Shrimp Salad!

[Essjay]

In that case, I have to agree with Nick. It is far too small for the fish you have. In my opinion, the only fish suitable for this sized tank is a single betta (siamese fighting fish) - my betta has a 26 litre tank. Or just shrimps.

Cardinal tetras need a tank with a 60 x 30 cm footprint, which is usually around 60 litres. http://www.seriouslyfish.com/species/paracheirodon-axelrodi/
Harlequin rasboras need a tank the same size http://www.seriouslyfish.com/species/trigonostigma-heteromorpha/
There are several species that look similar to flying fox, the smallest of these needs a tank 120 x 30 cm.


Did you cycle the tank by adding ammonia before getting fish? What are the readings for ammonia and nitrite at the moment?

 

[Feri]

I see, well I got different information from Pets at Home specialist and another Aquatic shop. They said I could put up to 12 small fish in a tank of that size. They even didn't let me buy bigger fish when I asked them for it. It seemed they knew what they were talking about, I don't know to be honest this is my first time setting up a small fish tank

I don't know the readings now I need to go home and get them.

 

[Essjay]

Please do not believe anything a shop worker tells you, most of them haven't a clue and will make up any rubbish to get a sale. Pets@Home is notorious for this. Always research things for yourself before buying anything. The best place for research is http://www.seriouslyfish.com/knowledge-base/ which will tell you the size tank a species needs, the type of water it needs etc.

The fish you have will be stressed from being in such a small tank. Stressed fish not only become sick and die easier, they also behave more aggressively than usual.
It is very unlikely that the shrimps harmed your fish. Either the more than doubling of the number of fish in one go caused the water conditions to deteriorate enough to kill fish (though that should also have killed the shrimps) or some of the fish are so stressed they are turning on the others.

 

[Feri]

Thanks a lot, it make sense now

 

[NickAu]

I would return all the fish and keep the shrimp.

 

[Feri]

To be honest the only reason I got this fish tank was to keep Cardinal Tetra, it wasn't part of the initial plan to get anything else. So I'd rather to get rid of all of them but keep 6 tetras.

 

[Essjay]

If you want to keep cardinal tetras you will need to get a bigger tank, I'm afraid. They will be stressed little fish if they are kept permanently in 20 litres.


Do you know how hard your water is? That is something else the shops won't have mentioned, the need to keep fish in water with the same hardness as their natural habitat. Cardinal tetras need soft to slightly hard, so it you have hard to very hard tap water they will not be happy with that either. You should be able to find out the hardness of your tap water from your water compnay's website - we need a number and the unit rather than some vague words.

 

[Feri]

I know, it's a shame
I might get Bettas.
The water hardness is 264 ppm

 

[Essjay]

Just one betta, male or female. The tank is not big enough for more than one, and males and females should never be kept together in anything but enormous tanks, except for very briefly when breeding them. Your hardness is right at the top end of the range for bettas, but it is too high for cardinals even if you had a larger tank.


Did you cycle the tank before getting fish - and by that I mean did you add ammonia to the tank for several weeks? if you didn't, you will need to cycle the tank properly between taking the current fish back and getting a betta instead. though since you've had fish for 3 weeks it will be partially cycled so it won't take as long.
Fish shops don't tell you about cycling either. http://www.fishforums.net/threads/cycling-your-new-fresh-water-tank-read-this-first.421488/

 

[NickAu]

A few male Endlers would be OK

 

[Essjay]

A few male Endlers would be OK

Just to clarify, that's instead of a betta, not as well as a betta.
Male endlers are small brightly coloured fish. Females are quite a bit bigger, plain grey and will have lots of babies every month and over populate the tank in no time. That's why Nick said only male male endlers.

 

[Feri]

Thanks
No didn't cycle my tank (but was running for a week and a half before I put fish in it, I also added Fast Filter to the water), my test kit doesn't have Ammonia test, but have got a master kit which will arrive tomorrow, I will run a test on the tanks using it.
Also last night when got home the fish looked a lot happier even the one which had his tail cut off wasn't at the top anymore and was swimming with the others.
And interestingly two of the Rasboras were mating not sure if that's a good sign of the water condition/ tank or it's just something that they would do anyway.

 

[trash.binh91]

Thanks
No didn't cycle my tank (but was running for a week and a half before I put fish in it, I also added Fast Filter to the water), my test kit doesn't have Ammonia test, but have got a master kit which will arrive tomorrow, I will run a test on the tanks using it.
Also last night when got home the fish looked a lot happier even the one which had his tail cut off wasn't at the top anymore and was swimming with the others.
And interestingly two of the Rasboras were mating not sure if that's a good sign of the water condition/ tank or it's just something that they would do anyway.

So will you get a bigger tank for those fish?

 

[Feri]

Nope, I don't have space for that, so I will try to return the fish this weekend and a get a Betta.

 

[Feri]

Test results are in

PH - 7.2
Ammonia - 0.1
Nitrite - 0.25
Nitrate - 25

What do you guys think?