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Thread: One fish out of four having problems...

  1. #1
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    Unhappy One fish out of four having problems...

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    Hello...

    I just started a 10 gal coldwater aquarium this past Fri night with 4 goldfish... 50% water change sun night, two capfuls of nutrafin cycle mon, 20% water change this afternoon followed by adding kosher salt to a concentration of 1.2 grams/liter...

    3 fish doing OK. Added the salt because one fish is lingering at the bottom today, only swims when disturbed or maybe food. Tonight, this one fish is the same. I am observing no visual changes except top fin is laid back and fish is opening and closing mouth continuously.

    Tried 3% salt bath for affected fish in separate container for 10 mins, returned fish to aquarium and same as before. Considering adding a formalin/malachite green med tomorrow afternoon- don't know what else to do, but I'd rather not add the med as the tank is still cycling, of course.
    Don't have a test kit... but with the number of changes I've done and a lack of foaminess, in addition to the fact that the other 3 fish are OK, I am thinking the water is probably not an issue.

    I will probably do another 20% water change tomorrow to reduce the salt anyway.

    Feeding TetraFin Goldfish flakes once or twice a day, leaving no extra food as far as I can tell. Using NovAqua for water conditioner, and only added the Nutrafin Cycle that once. Have a carbon filter w/o bio-wheel. Two 25 watt lights in hood turned on about 12 hrs/day.

    Any help would be greatly appreciated.
    Last edited by benny; 29th Jun 2005 at 13:57. Reason: Easy reading

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    I'm just wondering, as I think your's isn't a planted tank, why do you need 50W of lights for a 10 gallon tank?
    why I don't do garden hybrids and aquarium strains: natural species is a history of Nature, while hybrids are just the whims of Man.
    hexazona · crumenatum · Galleria Botanica

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    No idea... It's what came with the tank. I personally think the lights are too bright and hot but I like being able have them. I should find different bulbs.

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    actually how did they manage to fit 50W into a 10 gallon. what bulb is it?

    the simplest solution is to convert it to a planted tank
    why I don't do garden hybrids and aquarium strains: natural species is a history of Nature, while hybrids are just the whims of Man.
    hexazona · crumenatum · Galleria Botanica

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    Hi dthacher,
    If you on the lights and without adequate cover in the tank you would stress the fish more. You should off it, stop the water change, you are not giving enough time for the fishes to adjust. Do not add any more stuff, instead continue with strong aeration and dim or no lightings. As long as there is no foam you are quite safe. Feed alternately every 1 day to ease on polution.
    As for your carbon filter, remove any form of carbon in it as the carbon will remove most of your medications. Only use carbon when the tank is 'matured'.
    Something about the water & the fishes that calms me down.

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    OK... I'll keep the lights off and no more water changes until foamy/bubbles don't pop... The fish in question died last night. Found him wrapped around the filter intake tube grill this morning. Here's pics:





    Other fish still OK. Will pick up some med in case another fish starts acting the same way. Don't want another death. I have the carbon filter in now although I know I need to take it out if I medicate.

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    I presumed the tank is not cycled yet? have you tested for ammonia, nitrite as well?

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    Yes, the tank is still cycling. I haven't tested the water with kits, just keeping an eye out for foaminess and the smell of ammonia. Trying to control my impulses to change the water too often. Reducing to one feeding a day.

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    Quote Originally Posted by dthatcher
    Yes, the tank is still cycling. I haven't tested the water with kits, just keeping an eye out for foaminess and the smell of ammonia. Trying to control my impulses to change the water too often. Reducing to one feeding a day.

    you cannot smell ammonia in the tank, it is in toxic in low concentrations .

    please go read up on how to cycle the tank.

    foaminess is nothing, its probably a side effect of your gravel.

    I suggest you change water everyday and use antichlorine/chloramine, and get an ammonia/nitrite test kit, what filtration are you using?

    also, cycle or all those bacteria in a bottle may or may not work , they could be outright hoaxes or require special storage in order to stay active. we already know that
    a) they need oxygen
    b) they need a food source.

    so I'm very curious how they manage to keep them in a bottle alive for (however long they sit on the shelf without refrigeration)

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    By the second day I had the tank the whole room smelled like a cat's used litter box- this is the smell I am referring to. This is what made me change the water the first time.
    I have read different pages on how to cycle a tank and most say to do frequent small water changes although I have someone I know telling me that too many water changes prolongs the cycle. So I guess the key is to do small water changes of 20-25% each day, rather than 40-50. Of course this means I can only clean one side of the gravel at a time because if I go over the whole tank I've sucked out almost half the water. Of course I use the water conditioner on the new water going in.
    I have the power filter that came with the tank, with a carbon pad, but no Bio-Wheel.
    On the Nutrafin Cycle, perhaps the bacteria are dormant until they hit the water, I don't know. Seemed to help with the litterbox smell, but that might be coincidental.

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    I've cycled tanks with 20 discus before.

    you're going to have to change water close to 90% a day because you are starting off with too much fish (or rather goldfish cos they poop a lot).

    the story about too much water change prolonging the cycling time is because the quantity of ammonia is reduced when you change water, in this case, you have way too much ammonia, you must change water until the ammonia levels are NOT detectable. (ie: get a test kit)

    don't bother to siphon the gravel (except for remnant food) if its going to be a huge chore. and do not feed the fish more than once every 3-4 days in your case until the tank is cycled.

    how large is your bio filtration? you have an in tank power filter only? (how large?) in that case, where is your bacteria going to stick to? do you have a substrate that is porous in nature? (eg: flourite, onyx, aquaclay?), is there sintered glass in the power filter? (eg: azoo sintered glass, seachem denitrate/matrix, eheim ehfisubstrat, or biohome?)

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    Wow... 90% a day. In that case it will be easy. The only thing I have is 5-15 power filter with a blue pad containing carbon. It was my impression that the bacteria would hold on this... I don't even remember what the gravel is made of. Would you suggest adding something in particular to the tank?

    BTW, thanks for your continued help.

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    what is this 5-15 power filter? is it a brand? how large is it? how many pieces of blue sponge and the dimensions of blue sponge? would you be able to put in some media such as biohome?

    take a pix?

    what kind of gravel are you using?

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    It a Marineland Penguin Mini (not bio-wheel):
    http://www.marineland.com/products/c...uinfilters.asp

    Unfortunately, I paid no attention to the gravel type, throwing the bags away.

    Here are pictures, just click to get full size:







    It occured to me as I was doing this that my filter was in wrong, now corrected:


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    ok: if you're using the marineland penguin, you can remove the carbon sponge in a couple of days (it will probably be exhausted and carbon is generally used to remove medication).

    replace it with some cut up fine filter wool pads, also, where there is space, put in some biohome.

    meanwhile, check for friends/aquarists near your location that can spare you some filter bacteria (ie: a used filter wool pad or something like that), just in case your nutra fin cycle is "dead".


    don't forget the water change and if you can, borrow or buy a nitrite/ammonia test kits

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    OK. I'll probably go out tomorrow and look for all three items. I'll do the major water changes daily, feeding only every 3-4 days, and try to get a test kit, so I can keep an eye on ammonia/nitrates and be sure when the cycling is finished.
    Thanks again, here's hoping for no more fish trouble!

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