Fish tank question

[Sonya]

OK, so I've already killed 4 of DS's fish, I don't want to kill these 4. The same thing that happened last time is happening again. The water is getting cloudy. I bought some stuff that is supposed to clear cloudy tanks but it hasn't done anything. What could be going on? I followed all the instructions that the store gave me. We have an airstone in the bottom, under the gravel. These are just gold fish. I'm not overfeeding.

 

[EsmeraldaX]

How big is the tank?

If I recall right from when I had fish, goldfish need a huge tank because they are really messy.

I'm not sure if that could be it but maybe?

Are you using anything else to treat the water? Could your local water just be cloudy?

 

[RadioNate]

gold fish get dirty quick. It couldbe any number of things. Chances are it's a water problem caused by waste, over crowding or over feeding.

I've got a zillion questions

How big is the tank?
You say you aren't overfeeding but many people do even when they think they aren't. How often/much are you feeding them?
How often are you changing the water?
Do they die right away or after water changes, etc.
Are you declorinating the water and establishing the tank before adding fish.

Of course I just lost an entire tank yesterday so maybe I shouldn't be responding (I actually do know why they died)

 

[Ted and Holly]

Cloudy water is sometimes called "New Tank Syndrome" . It is a bloom of bacteria, feeding on the ammonia and other nutrients in the tank.

This is caused by the filter not being able to handle the biological load in the tank.

What, exactly, is the tank setup?
How big is the tank?
What decorations and gravel is in it?
Do you have a filter?
How many and what type of fish are in it?

Ted

 

[Ted and Holly]

gold fish get dirty quick. It couldbe any number of things. Chances are it's a water problem caused by waste, over crowding or over feeding.

I've got a zillion questions

How big is the tank?
You say you aren't overfeeding but many people do even when they think they aren't. How often/much are you feeding them?
How often are you changing the water?
Do they die right away or after water changes, etc.
Are you declorinating the water and establishing the tank before adding fish.

Of course I just lost an entire tank yesterday so maybe I shouldn't be responding (I actually do know why they died)

Nate, are you on any of the fish boards?

Ted

 

[snappy]

When in doubt, change the water. I have tried many products to clear up the water, but frequent water changes, even every other day seems to be the best fix. Just be sure to declorinate the water after you add. If your fish are dying, check the ph balance, ammonia level. Also, the fewer fish the better, especially in a tank with limited air surface.

 

[Tasha+Scott]

A lot of good advice already mentioned, but I thought I would throw something else at you. It could be the ammonia or pH levels of your water. If you have a Petsmart near you, bring a little glass of water with you from the tank and they will test it for free. If that is the problem they will then show you the chemicals to treat it. Or you can test it yourself, but it will cost more to buy the kit.

 

[Ted and Holly]

A lot of good advice already mentioned, but I thought I would throw something else at you. It could be the ammonia or pH levels of your water. If you have a Petsmart near you, bring a little glass of water with you from the tank and they will test it for free. If that is the problem they will then show you the chemicals to treat it. Or you can test it yourself, but it will cost more to buy the kit.

There is no good chemical to treat ammonia. Ammonia, nitrite and nitrate are direct products of fish waste and bacterial action in the tank.

Ammonia comes pretty much directly from the fish. One (basically) type of bacteria breaks down ammonia into nitrite. Another kind converts the nitrite into nitrate, which is much less toxic to fish. To complete the cycle, you do regular, partial water changes to dilute the nitrate and other disolved solids in the water.

Unless you are keeping specialty fish, or your water is at the extreme left or right of the pH scale, you do not need to adjust your pH at all. Far more beneficial to fish is a stable environment. Messing with the water chemistry can be asking for trouble.

Ted

 

[Tasha+Scott]

Okay, T & H--that may be true. Not going to debate it, but I did want to say that my uncle builds fish tanks and raises fish (he helped build the ones at Epcot) and my grandfather did as well. I also worked at Petsmart for awhile and have had 2 fish tanks of my own. Yes, changing the water usually helps...if you don't remove all of the water. But anyway, there are things out there that can help with pH balance and ammonia. Why sell it if it doesn't help? 9 times out of 10 after testing someone's pH levels it was determined that their pH was the problem and easy enough to fix. But I worked with tropical fish...it may be different for salt water fish. I am just going by my own personal observations, not saying that you are wrong.

 

[jrmasm]

Why sell it if it doesn't help?

 

[Ted and Holly]

Okay, T & H--that may be true. Not going to debate it, but I did want to say that my uncle builds fish tanks and raises fish (he helped build the ones at Epcot) and my grandfather did as well. I also worked at Petsmart for awhile and have had 2 fish tanks of my own. Yes, changing the water usually helps...if you don't remove all of the water. But anyway, there are things out there that can help with pH balance and ammonia. Why sell it if it doesn't help? 9 times out of 10 after testing someone's pH levels it was determined that their pH was the problem and easy enough to fix. But I worked with tropical fish...it may be different for salt water fish. I am just going by my own personal observations, not saying that you are wrong.

Yes, there are many different products out there to do tons of things. But they are not neccessarily solutions, rather patches.

There is NO replacement for properly maintaining the nitrogen cycle, especially in freshwater, where nitrates are not as dangerous to the fish.

I have kept and bred many, many species of freshwater fish. Only a small number of species (Discus, or Rift Lake cichlids) really needed any messing with the hardness or pH of the water.

If your water is between 6.8 and 7.6 (most tap water is), you can acclimate most tropical and goldfish to your water. The trick is to not shock them and keep it stable.

My advice comes from my degree in biology, my years of fishkeeping, and my hours (and hours) of research and interaction on aquarium message boards. You find that the more popular boards have a couple members with PhDs in ichthiology or marine biology, people who work in water treatment, and a diverse collection of hobbyists. A great way to learn a LOT more than you want to about pretty much anything that can and can't be kept in a glass box.

EDIT: I have done 90+% water changes weekly in some tanks with no problems. It is true that regular water changes are one of the most important things you can do. But it helps to understand why.

Ted

 

[Ted and Holly]

It is funny, jrmasm. it seems Snake Oil isn't part of history afterall.

Seriously, advice from pet stores, especially large chains, is always a bit suspect. I am not saying all stores are like this, but wouldn't it be nice to be able to sell a lot of products that may help patch issues, especially at $7 a bottle? And if you fix the issue completely for the customer, they will not have to buy replacement fish, repeatedly.

If you find a pet store that hands out good, reliable advice, hang on to it. The only one I have been able to find over the years is closed.

Ted

 

[PooohBear]

Since we're on the subject of fish...... how long does a typical fresh water fish live ?? is the cause of dead fish usually because of too much chlorine in the water ??

 

[minniepumpernickel]

Since we're on the subject of fish...... how long does a typical fresh water fish live ?? is the cause of dead fish usually because of too much chlorine in the water ??

I had an angel fish live for five years! Thats the oldest one I've ever had. The chlorine will kill the fish, along with awhole host of other things mentioned on here. I've had salt water aquariums too, and they are even more tempermental, but it's a fun hobby.

 

[Ted and Holly]

Since we're on the subject of fish...... how long does a typical fresh water fish live ?? is the cause of dead fish usually because of too much chlorine in the water ??

There is a HUGE range of life spans of fish. Goldfish can live over 20 years! Some large cichlids, like oscars, can live more than 10. Smaller fish, like your typical neon tetras and such are a little shorter lived, but 5 year old fish are not uncommon. There are species of fish (killifish) that live only a few months.

Most of the time, fish die from disease that takes advantage of a stressed fish. Stress can be caused by pretty much anything. Poor filtration, high nutrient levels, unstable temperature, unstable pH, poor nutrition, bullying from other fish, too much or too little disolved oxygen. Drastic water changes with untreated, chlorinated water can shock the fish with clorine levels, pH differences, temperature differences.

When I was breeding fish, aggression was the only thing I needed to pay attention to, because it is more difficult to control.

Ted

 

[minniepumpernickel]

Holly and Ted,
I had a salt water aquarium with a sea anemone, and I managed to keep it alive for a year by feeding it live brine shrimp. It was just so fascinating to be able to watch it. Do you know what there life span is? You seem so knowledgable, thats so cool!

 

[magicmouse2]

My goldfish are doing fine in their pond at the moment and it is totally green! - goldfish are usually quite tolerant of most conditions, they will have to wait for a water change though as it is freezing out there! Cloudy water is most often caused by overfeeding fish. The best way to avoid changing the water so frequently is to install a good air pump and filter system, and carry out partial water changes regularly. Adding so many chemicals to clear the water could be more expensive than buying a filter and pump. I have kept tropical fish for years and goldfish.

 

[PooohBear]

Ugghhh so much to know !!! I have had a 30 gallon tank for a few years now, seems my fish will do really well for maybe a year and then all of a sudden one or 2 will die, then another and another and i'm always left with just one.... so I wait and wait for months and decide that one fish needs friends and the same cycle happens all over again, I wish I could figure out why, I do change my water frequently and my tank is always spotless and yes I do dechlorinate the new water, is there a good web site that explains more about the "ideal" water conditions for fish ??

 

[Ted and Holly]

Holly and Ted,
I had a salt water aquarium with a sea anemone, and I managed to keep it alive for a year by feeding it live brine shrimp. It was just so fascinating to be able to watch it. Do you know what there life span is? You seem so knowledgable, thats so cool!

Although it probably varies by species, it is theoried that anemonies can live over 100 years. Sea anemonies are notoriously hard to keep. A year is not bad for an aquarium specimen. They are a symbiotic organism. Many need to be fed live food, as well as have adequate light for the algae that lives inside them to live.

Ted

 

[PrincessaC]

Speaking of fish... they are so wonderful...I wonder if they can recognize...

I have an african ciclid (who by the way killed all the other ciclids in the tank including the algea eater) He will come up to the corner of the tank whenever I'm sitting at the pc and just float there as if he's just staring at me....as soon as I leave he swims around.. it's very strange... or call me strange..

I also use to have a million bettas (so it seemed) and I started to breed them.. it was a fun hobby! I love to watch them eat live brine shrimp... but I gave all the bettas away...