Please help!

Agree Zoom! But we need an ammonia reading as well. Nitrite and nitrate might read fine, and that could be to non-existing cycle here!

 

That's why I said etc etc in my post

 

I have a 2meter tank, capacity round about 900litres.
I have a 4500 l/h pump on the sump filter. I doubt that there are to many fish in my tank as i have less than 20 and they are all still small. I have 2 SD's(medium),Bala Shark(10cm),3 tinfoils(8cm,only 2 left),2 Pleco's,use to be 5 Livingstonii's(4-6cm),3X yellow fin blue Acei's(6-8cm).2X albino shadows(cycle fish) and a baby Oscar(5cm).

i do a 15-20% water change weekly and uses a siphon.

The PH level is @6.5 and nitrate > 3ppm,i just went past 2 LPS's an non of them had a ammonia test kit, will go and get one in Turffontein tomorrow.

I am now more and more sure that my problem started when I added the water from the Pet shop to my tank with the newly bought fish which is the SD’s and the Bala shark. I bought then Friday morning and let them into the tank @ about 11,my fish started dying Friday night.

I have bought a 4ft tank that I want to use from now on to quarantine any new fish for at least 2 weeks before introducing them to the big tank.

 

That is strange. Apart from what has already been pointed out that you have conflicting needs in species here, all seems ok. It could be a bacteria infection. Tell me Hoyt, after adding the bacteria cycling product, did you allow some time to pass or did you introduce the fish immediately?

 

Marco, from page 1....

I am more and more certain that the problem was indeed as you said added from the LFS water!

What we need to establish is what the symptoms are pointing to? Can you give us a complete run down on what happened to the fish that died, before they died?

Regards
G!

 

G, i got that. What i am trying to establish is if the fish and 'cycle' was added together! If not, it serves no purpose does it. If Cycle was added 3 weeks prior to fish being added, no ammonia would've been present for the bacteria to survive on. So that would be like adding fish to an uncycled tank, thus the problem he has now.

 

PH of 6.5 could be the problem with the rift valley fish

i just re-read the whole thread - sounds like osmotic shock to me... you took fish from one PH to a dramaticly diff PH....

from wiki:

 

Whilst that is a possibility Henk, Hoyt hasn't lost the fish he added, but rather the ones that seemed fine for the past 4 weeks? Thats what I am finding confusing, but either way the pH is a seriously a problem.

G!

 

ok.... could be a new strain of bacteria that the shop fish have built up an immune to....

 

That wouldnt explain the death of the livingstoni's, which by the thread seem to have been in the tank before. If cycle was added 3 weeks prior to fish, by the time the fish were then added the bacteria would be useless. In this volume of water, with the small amount of fish, and their size, and taking water changes into consideration,it will take time for an ammonia build up. Then more fish got added, 'stressed fish' and this might have just tipped the scale over on the ammonia levels. This will however improve with WC, until the same thing happens again.

 

Anyone ever thought of adding aquarium salt to the water?

 

I'm wondering if Stormer hasn't got a point about the possible effects of different products mixing. Certain medicines become deadly when mixed, does anyone know if certain dechlors mix. Perhaps we need to understand what chemicals have been added to your tank, and then perhaps find out what the pet store uses.

Seems strange that even the healthy fish would die from shock - would the petshop water make that much of a difference as far as pH goes? I could understand the new fish dying, but not sure about the older acclimatised ones.

 

I agree with Marco here. Spinning and gasping for air, in this setup, ammonia poisoning all over it. Marco many guys make the mistake with the cycle products. I for one HATE them. Nothing better than a couple of Danio's to cycle a tank.

 

Thanks for all the replies guys!

yes i only added fish to the tank about 2 weeks after i put cycle in the tank,that is what the guy from a LPS told me to do.

Big G,

the first sign was when one of the Livingstonii's started spinning around from time to time and it seemed that he was trying to scratch himself against the substrate and rocks.the next minute he was dead.some of the other Livingstonii's seemed to be hyperventelating and was lying on the bottom of the tank.strange thing is yesterday there were 2 of them left and the one seemed to be very sick and this afternoon when i checked on them he was perfect and the one that seemed fine yesterday was dead.the compressicep i just found dead saterday morning.The tinfoil was gasping for air while swimming and this morning i found him upside down still gasping.

i did indeed add salt yesterday morning but then the most damage was done allready.my fish seems fine,only one tinfoil seems to be gasping,will keep a close eye on him...

Should i cycle the tank or what should i do to get the neccesary bacteria back into my tank?

sorry i also made a mistake with the PH,when i tested yesterday i used one of those color tests and the water was blue,i assumed(did chemistry 12 years ago)that blue should be around 6.5.Just checked and with the color i got it will probably be around 8.

 

Could the gasping for air not be attributed to the lack of oxygen in the water. I still believe that the fish from the LPS store had some kind of pathogen in their water that they had become immune to, but your current fish are not, because they have possibly never been exposed to it. The "trying to rub itself" tend to lead me again in that direction, however the gasping for air is also an indication of an ammonia spike, as mentioned, or a lack of oxygen.

Hoyt... do you run any air pumps into this tank? Is the surface water being agitated at all?

 

Agree with you Zoom, your ideas could be spot on. Just a thought though, ammonia has a 'burning' effect on gills and skin. Some fish then tend to 'scratch' to try 'alleviate' the burn. Its so hard to say in cases like this isnt it? But if the situation has improved, i bet its ammonia spike. I agree Pictus, I dont 'trust' cycle. I've heard good things about it, but i dont trust it yet.

 

All seems to be under control this morning; I will still keep a close eye on them. I have plenty oxygen in my tank as my return pump’s outlet is a 1.5 meter pvc pipe with small holes in it and its about 5cm above the water surface and literally spray the water into the tank and this alone creates lots of oxygen. I also have an air pump on the tank.

If it was an ammonia spike how do I go about to reintroduce bacteria?

 

Hi Hoyt. I'm convinced now that this was an ammonia spike. You could try get some cycle, which would be my 2nd choice. If you know someone with a 'clean' tank you can get some bio balls or gravel from them. I'm sure however you do have some babteria in that tank, its probably just not enough yet. You could monitor the tank with test kits and do water changes, but I've always preferred the spike then add fish when normal readings appear route. Maybe someone here has a definite better option for you.

 

How are the fish doing now? Give us an update

 

All is well, since Monday Morning I have had no casualties. My fish all eats good and they look perfect. I am sure it was something in the LPS water that caused the problem.

I have learned a big lesson; always net the fish out and never put water from another source in your tank.