THEFATCATFISH Posted November 27, 2007 Share Posted November 27, 2007 The lamp is fine, I have sold many of these in the past and never had a complaint. Also used in a lot of displays myself. Do you actually have a thermometer in there? Risky to rely on the heater thermostat. As to actually buying water, shame your not local I have a few drums of water I have made up using peat/mullberry/tea/indian almond leaves and even have a wee bit of wood soakin in with 'em..... You'd be welcome to come grab a few buckets full. I have spawned quite a few tetra using it in the past.... me own special brew lol. That said you want your fish able to handle pretty much tapwater, no sense making a tank like that any more of a pain in the a$$ than it has to be. in future buy your fish 1 by 1!!! That way if they die its only one down. Once they survive bring the school up to number. Filter staying on 24 hours a day yea? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Katie Posted November 28, 2007 Author Share Posted November 28, 2007 Just a bit of harmless algae/bacteria on the heater no problem. I don't agree that removing all the water is going to solve this. Most important, HOW DO THE FISH DIE? I mean do they go to the top or bottom? Do they gasp or do death spirals? As I noticed they tend to or at least want to lay on the bottom of the tank, but as the current produced by pump is quite strong (is it ok?), they can't really lay still. Then, when they swim the might turn/twirl upsidedown at times... I already have nitrite, ammonia, and ph kits, none of them revealed anything out of the ordinary. test were done just before letting the fish in. Do you actually have a thermometer in there? Sure do in future buy your fish 1 by 1!!! Sound advice, but is a single cardinal tetra ok by itself without company. I mean, given the problem is eliminated, wont' it get overstessed and die? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oakes Posted November 28, 2007 Share Posted November 28, 2007 Keep testing the water regularly, ammonia/nitrite levels can fluctuate until the tank is fully cycled and stable. A single cardinal certainly wont be very happy, but unlikely to die in the short term without contributing factors. Initially i would be adding something as little hardier as previously suggested (eg. a platy or something). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Th0mas Posted November 29, 2007 Share Posted November 29, 2007 Looking from the photo, the way the tank is designed with the filter on top does create a very strong current for a small tank. Most small fish (especially tetra) dislike strong current, so they'll be stressed as soon as they get into the tank. I also have similar tank and had to slow down the water flow to keep the fish happy. Secondly the ornament is way out of proportion for the tank. Tetra like to school in open area. Please take some time to research around the fish's preference before introducing into the setup you have. Based on the photo, your setup more suitable for small catfish (bristlenose, otocinclus which they love hiding spots, but also prefers live green plants) than tetra (they need the room to swim). In theory, it's always better to setup the tank the way it is suited for the fish to avoid problem. After all, it is the fish and not human that lives in it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gerrymanning Posted December 3, 2007 Share Posted December 3, 2007 Looking from the photo, the way the tank is designed with the filter on top does create a very strong current for a small tank. Most small fish (especially tetra) dislike strong current, so they'll be stressed as soon as they get into the tank. I also have similar tank and had to slow down the water flow to keep the fish happy. Secondly the ornament is way out of proportion for the tank. Tetra like to school in open area. Please take some time to research around the fish's preference before introducing into the setup you have. Based on the photo, your setup more suitable for small catfish (bristlenose, otocinclus which they love hiding spots, but also prefers live green plants) than tetra (they need the room to swim). In theory, it's always better to setup the tank the way it is suited for the fish to avoid problem. After all, it is the fish and not human that lives in it. wow what are read i thin k i have learnt a lot. the most important thing i can see , being a newbie is that maybe the tank has not cycle or if it has then there has been a build up of certain chemicals, after loosing a lot of my fish and becoming sick from it i have realised that when cycling fish need to be introduced slowly and we must keep an eye on the clcling process, i have stuffed up by cleaning my filter under the tap, replacing too much water and added too many so called remedies, i have lost the star of my tank, which was a 3 yrear old Msobo, but i start again and now i have more tanks and will ensure they are cycled correctly, try usung cheap goldfish to get it all going then add fish bit by bit, am i wrong, if i am please explain?: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ozarowana Posted December 4, 2007 Share Posted December 4, 2007 IME playing around with pH for beginners is a no no.... especially lowering pH. No one should mess with it unless they fully understanding the buffering capacity of their local water source. Just leave it as is. Also what type of dechlorinator are you using... what's the name of it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Katie Posted December 5, 2007 Author Share Posted December 5, 2007 IME playing around with pH for beginners is a no no.... especially lowering pH. No one should mess with it unless they fully understanding the buffering capacity of their local water source. Just leave it as is. Also what type of dechlorinator are you using... what's the name of it? Stress Coat by API Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CICHLID KANE Posted December 10, 2007 Share Posted December 10, 2007 Just what to do.............. I would do as per what gerrymanning said, and add a gold fish. They are tough enough to break a tank in so its nice and loose for the REAL FISH. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeWs Fish Posted December 10, 2007 Share Posted December 10, 2007 Test your ammonia again - it should be 0 Test your nitrite (did you before)? - it should be 0 Test your nitrates - it should be > 0 If all of the above is true, your tank is fully cycled. If any one of the above is false, the tank isn't cycled properly. If your tank is properly cycled, start looking at things like current, oyxgen , temperature, pH . Take all the artifical ornaments out of the tank. if you need decoration in there get some anubias on driftwood or somthing. Did you accidently drop any chemicals in the tank at all? Did you LFS tell you to OD on the water conditioner? Too much can be poisionous.... Lots of different factors. Start with basics (cycling) and eliminate each one. eventually you will find the problem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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