what can i do :(

[cluster]

i have a bad ammonia problem right now at level 3 this is th eonly tank i have i was considering purchasing a 5-10gal and set it up temporary without gravel or maybe with if i even will, i went throuh a good amount of fish that must of died of this cause well im down to

1 bala shark
1 cory
1 pleco
2 neon tetras
and my one pride and joy blue ram, i love this little guy when i got him the store had to hold him for 3 days before i could take him home due to a sickness he had, the bala and cory are extremely happy chasing eachother all levels are good exept the ammonia my quation is is there a quick way i can set a tank up so they will be save and then try to manage this tank to have them there home back, im currently changing water daily not feeding to much due to wastes....im desperate here i really love these guys especially my ram


any help will be appreciated just looking fr something quick to do to get them out of danger my tank is right by my computer which i work on at home so im consantly monitoring the tank cause im real worried

 

[enchanted]

I would recommend a water change right away, somebody else would be better qualified for how much, but I would say 25% to begin with.

Has your tank cycled? What are your other readings?

Also, setting up a seperate tank may or may not help the problem. If this tank isn't cycled then another tank will just have the same problem.

You could purchase some ammo-lock or another form of product that will kill the ammonia, but your levels will still register high and this would also slow the cycle process if the tank hasn't cycled yet.

 

[Tempestuousfury]

What is current tank size? How old is it? How long have you had those fish?

 

[cluster]

this is the first week for the fish tank is a few weeks old, it ran a mini cycle and its 29gal

what trips me out is a few years ago when i knew absolutley NOTHING about this i used straight tap water and had a pleco 4 tiger barbs and a pair of kribs and i did not have a single problem, now that im trying my ass off to do right it just crashes, i did buy some ammonia stuff today

 

[cluster]

id have to find the readings i had them yesterday

ph is 7.5-8
nitrite= 0

ammonia is the only problem i can think of with the tank at the moment but i also hear when it goes down then the nitrite goes up....

 

[Tempestuousfury]

Eventually. You are going to have to keep up water changes and try returning some of those fish on store credit and gte them back. That way you don't lose any.

 

[cluster]

so no hope in keeping them...... im changing water each morning 20-25% and testing the water i will have all results tomorrow

 

[cluster]

it just beats the hell ou tof me people buy a tank at walmart set it up go back get fish dont do anything liek add chlorimine remover all the good stuff and they have perfect fine lives with fish, here i am trying to do the best for my little friends and nothing goes good for me

 

[Tempestuousfury]

I know, I know. Like with me. I started off killing 14 of 17 fish in my 5 gallon, but the three that survived were pretty healthy until I gave them away.

Don't fret, though. We're here and you now know to do research.

Also, is that a common plec? If so, you're better off just giving it away now, since it'll get pretty big later on. (15")

 

[enchanted]

Actually, out of all those that get tanks at walmart.

10% (maybe) find help on net
10% (maybe) get help from friends
10% (maybe) already know what they are doing
10-20% (maybe) get lucky in fish choices, etc...
50%+ give up or lose a lot of fish.

 

[cluster]

well tomorrow im starting up a 10gal tank to qurantine my ram and cory

 

[enchanted]

Before you quarantine them, which will just also fill up with Ammonia, do a 50% water change and see what happens.

Then you could pick up NitroMax or Cycle from your LFS which will help speed up the cycle (at least I know personally NitroMax does).

Since you do not want to lose the cory or the ram I would return these fish.

1 bala shark
1 pleco
2 neon tetras

The Pleco is a huge mess maker which is probably part of your ammonia spikes. The other two are just further waste producers at the moment.

Keep the ram and the cory, the ram only if you really want to as I don't know how hardy they are.

I have learned from experience and my LFS that corys are pretty hardy and shouldn't have a problem w/ a cycle as long as you keep the ammonia low.

By returning the rest you should take a good deal of load off the aquarium, put ammonia in a manageable level. then adding the bacteria booster of some kind you should be okay if you watch and change water often.

 

[cluster]

would the shark be to much to keep, if i would cycle with the cory,ram and shark?? and take out the pleco and neon if the shark is to much i can find a home for him

 

[cluster]

also everyone especially temp for the help, yall been a great help tomorrow 50% of the water will be changed and take it from there i bought ammonia stuff liek u said ddreams but not sure if it was what u said i will look for it tomorrow at the LFS my stuff is in a small puch and has gravel like rocks inside

 

[lizard]

Okay...take a deep breath and stay calm

You can keep your fish through this. I found out about cycling *after* I had a tank full of fish (overstocked, at that). I kept all the fish I had and once I found out what was going on and got some healthy fish, they all did fine. I did a 20 or 25% water change every day, to help keep ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate levels down. When the tank was done cycling, I didn't know what to do with my extra time It was very strange not doing water changes on a daily basis

That being said, however, you do have a couple fish that are going to be too big for your tank when they get full-grown. If you're planning to upgrade to a 55 gallon or larger, then you're fine with 'em. The Bala and the Pleco (depending on species) are going to get quite big - too big for a 29-gallon. As mentioned above, Plecos are very messy My tank cycled with a pleco in it, though, so it can be done. Just something to be aware of.

Tetras like to be in schools of at least five and Corys like to be in groups of at least three or four. Neon Tetras tend to be somewhat delicate, or so I've heard. Mine apparently never heard that, though As long as you don't have Panda Corys, the more common varieties of Corys tend to be pretty hardy (my Albino was and my Peppers are, and I think the Bronze are, but I have no experience with them). If you're doing water changes every day, you could probably add a couple more Corys, but I don't know if I would *recommend* it... The Cory's probably lonely, yet you don't really want to subject more fish to a cycling tank.

Your lfs may be able to "board" the fish for you until your tank is cycled. Another option is to do as ddreams recommended and return some fish to the store. My recommendation would be to see if you can get a handful of gravel from a tank at the lfs - it will contain a lot of the bacteria you need to finish up your cycle and will make cycling time much shorter I just went to my lfs and asked for a couple handfuls of gravel and told them I was setting up new tanks. They were happy to give me some. Any decent lfs should be able to do that for you. Some lfs's have "bio balls" (little plastic or foam or whatever balls that offer additional spaces for bacteria to grow) and would perhaps give you a few of those instead of some gravel - but I don't know on that.

Lest you be confused or wonder what I'm really recommending you do...I'll tell ya Do frequent water changes, if tests (or fish behavior) indicate the need. As soon as you can, go to the lfs (or call first) and see if you can get some filter media or gravel from one of their tanks. Keep monitoring water levels and do water changes if test levels indicate they're needed (or fish behavior).

After your tank cycles, I'd recommend getting at least two or three more Corys and at least three more Neons (if you decide to keep those fish). My 29 gallon tank currently has four Corys, 13 Neons, one Oto (he'll be getting a couple buddies sometime soon), and two Kuhli loaches. I want to get Rams - I love 'em Your ram is lovely

If you need clarification or have more questions, just ask!

Pamela
aka Married Lizard