turtlechick Posted June 27, 2008 Report Share Posted June 27, 2008 (edited) I am a TOTAL newbie to tropical fish. I started a tank about 2 weeks ago. I added 1 Bala shark, 1 dwarf gourami, 1 powder blue gourami, and 2 plecos. The dwarf died last night and don't know why. I don't know anything about ph testing or anything...can anyone help? TEACH ME!!!!! PS all the rest are doing VERY well...and no signs of them attacking the dwarf thanks! Edited June 27, 2008 by turtlechick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
turtlechick Posted June 28, 2008 Author Report Share Posted June 28, 2008 REALLY? 23 views and no one can help me? I'm really sad about my fish and don't want it to happen again..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terrie Lee Posted June 28, 2008 Report Share Posted June 28, 2008 It could be that your tank is not finished the nitrogen cycle. If your Ammonia or nitirites are too high it could have killed your fish. Link to info about nitrogen cycle: http://freshaquarium.about.com/cs/biologic...trogencycle.htm What are you using to remove the chlorine/ chloramine from your water? I am not sure about Calgary but here in Edmonton we have chloramines which is added to the water with the chlorine and not all water conditioners will remove it. How often do you do water changes? You should do a regular water change of 20-40% once a week. Where did you buy your fish? If the fish was in ill health when you bought it, being put into a "fresh" or unestablished tank would kill it. What size is your tank? The fish will behave differently toward each other depending on the size/decor in your tank. If they feel exposed sometimes they can get stressed and die. What kind of filter do you have? Gouramis prefer less water movement, but you still need to move the water enough to get it clean. What kind of heating do you have? Those are all tropical fish they need it to be warm. (75-80 farenheight, correct me if I'm wrong guys) What kind of plecos did you get? Plecos are poop machines and having two of them in a small tank can make it very dirty very fast. (Refer to the nitrogen cycle link to find out why that may have killed your fish) In my opinion it was that your tank is not cycled yet. You need to get test kits for ammonia and nitirites. They are sold at any pet store. If you go to one of our sponsors you will probably get very good advice as well. I recommend Nature's Corner Store. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
turtlechick Posted June 28, 2008 Author Report Share Posted June 28, 2008 Thanks, guys!!!! I went to my local hardware store (where they sell fish) to buy test kits and found that the owner of the store is VERY knowledgeble in keeping tropical fish. He helped me pick out testing kits and products. He told me how to do everything and I think everything will be okay now!!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gobies et al Posted June 28, 2008 Report Share Posted June 28, 2008 Thanks, guys!!!!I went to my local hardware store (where they sell fish) to buy test kits and found that the owner of the store is VERY knowledgeble in keeping tropical fish. He helped me pick out testing kits and products. He told me how to do everything and I think everything will be okay now!!!!!! I'm glad there is someone on hand to help! There is a steep learning curve!! :thumbs: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Qattarra Posted June 29, 2008 Report Share Posted June 29, 2008 Wanting fish is a great thing but very difficult to start slowly as everyone wants to jump in with both feet and have a show tank the first day( I certainly did). Unfortunately doing the necessary research , educating ones self and taking baby steps is very hard to do. You are on the right track now. What you will be doing is trying to recreate an environment and mother nature can't be recreated perfectly but quite close. Nitrite spikes can happen quickly one thing to look for is if the fish stays at the top of the tank or worse starts to gasp at the surface. For now feed very lightly (less wastes) and add an airstone . It'll be a while before the good bacterias can catch up to your needs. You can add some aquarium salt (1 Tbl per 5 gal, desolved in some tank water then added to the tank). This will help the fish breath. It could get worse before it settles in, adding real plants will help the cycle. Hornwort is a good one as it can just float. Sue Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
turtlechick Posted June 29, 2008 Author Report Share Posted June 29, 2008 I think maybe I wasn't clear...that's why I wasn't sure what to do. I didn't add the fish right away. I let the tank run about 2 weeks before I added the fish in.......I think that's why I was lost. I tested my PH and everything yeseterday and added some of that salt after. the PH was only 7.5......it didnt really mean anything to me until I read the instructions :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terrie Lee Posted June 29, 2008 Report Share Posted June 29, 2008 Did you read about the nitrogen cycle? Just running the tank empty does not help. There needs to be waste products put into it so the bacteria can grow. Did you test the ammonia or nitirites? Those are the big killers in a new tank. Good luck! If you have any more questions you can always ask here. Someone will answer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
turtlechick Posted June 29, 2008 Author Report Share Posted June 29, 2008 I had a couple gold fish in it after about a week or so. I figured they pooped enough to grow bacteria :-) LOL Are there test kits for ammonia and nitrites? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Qattarra Posted June 29, 2008 Report Share Posted June 29, 2008 (edited) It took me a while and trial'n'error to catch on . Terrie Lee is correct, I don't think you had a cycle yet. You could have started the cycle process with goldfish but a week is nowhere near enough. As opposed to the fishless cycle which can be achieved in one to two weeks, the fish process takes easily a month to two months. The third viable option is Jason's packed full of live plants cycling. He fills the tank min. 75%(almost no swimming space) full of the plants and he puts the fish in too. What happens there is that the plants use up the wastes products and help stabilize the peaks in a cycle. Unfortunately if you don't have enough plants, buying them can be very costly. IMO the fastest and most efficient way is the seed bacterias in a tank with some cheap fish. Get your test kits -Ammonia and Nitrite- for sure. Once you can take readings every day and at different times and still get the desired 0 reading, you're cycled. With straight fish cycling it wont be ready for at the minimum 4 weeks. Then if you add fish, only a couple then test your readings the next day, if OK then on the next day add a couple more keeping an eye on your readings. However if you replace your cycling fish only with the same amount as they were , you should be OK. Your cycle will be a fragile thing, adding too many fish could cause what has been referred to as a mini cycle. These can usually pass after a couple days but can be just as deadly to your fish. I think what people are trying to convey is that it's hard to have an established tank until it's been running well for 6 months or more. Edited June 29, 2008 by Qattarra Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
turtlechick Posted June 30, 2008 Author Report Share Posted June 30, 2008 Oh boy...I really screwed up :-( Now I feel even worse about my little gourami.......well....thanks for the help everyone...I think I understand now......trial and error I guess :-) I'll keep on top of everything from now on!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Qattarra Posted June 30, 2008 Report Share Posted June 30, 2008 Don't feel bad , I can't think of anyone who hasn't gone through this. Before the internet and this site in particular, I lost many fish. It is very rewarding as a hobby, there are many successes ahead of you . Hang in there. Sue Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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