tim Posted May 5, 2008 Report Share Posted May 5, 2008 Help... i have a community tank containing about 18 mixed cichlids and they are dying all of a sudden. I noticed about a week ago that they were starting to look exhausted or something. As the week went on i lost a hongi followed the next day we lost the other hongi. Yesterday lost a blue dolphin and 2 minutes ago, witnessed the bomb diving death of another blue dolphin. Had the water tested yesterday and all levels came in perfect so WTF!?!? i change the water once every week to 2 weeks. the only thing i have done any different is that i've started putting in 2 tablespoons of rock salt that i got from the supermarket. They are all sitting low and some of them are actually sitting on the bottom and they are all breathing fast and heavily. Anyone got any idea's? bristlenose and sailfin look fine compared to everyone else. help Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wrk21 Posted May 5, 2008 Report Share Posted May 5, 2008 the only thing i have done any different is that i've started putting in 2 tablespoons of rock salt umm i think that may be the problem.......... why are you puting in two t/spoons of rock salt??? and the deaths have only started since you started with the rock salt, thought that would have been sending you a message. water will evaporate but the salt content will remain, so every time you do a water change and had more salt your building up the salt levels. id do a water change and dont add salt.. cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Motorman Posted May 5, 2008 Report Share Posted May 5, 2008 If the only change you have done is add salt then possibly thats is your cause though that amount doesnt seem like much How big is ur tank? Where did you get you water tested and what did they test for? How much water do you change? What filtration have you got on this tank? Wayne if your removing water in a water change then your removing salt as well Though if it is just evaporating and your only topping up the water then yes the salt level is still he same and will only go up if you add more Brad Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
largeheaded1 Posted May 5, 2008 Report Share Posted May 5, 2008 Yea mate I think the guys have pretty much covered it, Id do a water change every few days jus to get it back.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tim Posted May 5, 2008 Author Report Share Posted May 5, 2008 If the only change you have done is add salt then possibly thats is your cause though that amount doesnt seem like muchHow big is ur tank? Where did you get you water tested and what did they test for? How much water do you change? What filtration have you got on this tank? Water was tested at Aquariums & Pet Supplies (the one in the brickworks, southport). They used the standard water testing kit using the colour readers (sorry, havent got into water testing yet so i'm a little uneducated in that department - thats why i get an aquarium to do it) it's a 250ltr tank and i do quarter changes. the filtration is in the hood. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Motorman Posted May 5, 2008 Report Share Posted May 5, 2008 Hi Tim At least U went to another decent shop on the Gold Coast How often are you doing water changes? What temp is your tank running at? This should be taken from a Thermometer and not the heater Also from your Pic I would be running the Therm at the other end of the tank from the Heater Did you change any of the filter media lately? Do you clean it when your doing your water changes? If so how do you clean it? Brad Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tim Posted May 5, 2008 Author Report Share Posted May 5, 2008 Hi TimAt least U went to another decent shop on the Gold Coast How often are you doing water changes? What temp is your tank running at? This should be taken from a Thermometer and not the heater Also from your Pic I would be running the Therm at the other end of the tank from the Heater Did you change any of the filter media lately? Do you clean it when your doing your water changes? If so how do you clean it? Brad Cheers Brad. I do water changes usually every weekend. Sometimes every 2 weekends. Temp is at 26c. That is by a thermometer, not the heater. I haven't changed any of the filtration media since getting the tank (had it for about 5-6 months). And i don't clean it when i do my changes. Tim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Motorman Posted May 5, 2008 Report Share Posted May 5, 2008 HI Tim Well the media in your filter will need a clean The sponges by now wouldnt be doing very wel Plus if your using Carbon it will be long past its use by date I would be getting some new sponges and Carbon for that filter especially seeing your losing fish Dont change the other media including the bioballs and Noodles With 18 fish in there id be doing at least weekly water changes Brad Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tim Posted May 5, 2008 Author Report Share Posted May 5, 2008 ok. so i checked out the sponges and they were filthy!! i gave them a little clean and left the balls in untouched. i accidentally splilled some of the brown stuff from the sponges into the tank when taking them out and now the tank is all murky. this won't do them too much harm will it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
largeheaded1 Posted May 5, 2008 Report Share Posted May 5, 2008 na mate should clear up after a day or so...dont get into a habit of putting it in there tho. I usually have a little bucket to put my filter in STRAIGHT away so I dont spill any, but if i do im normally doing a water change at the time so jus suck the crap up Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HereFishieFishie Posted May 5, 2008 Report Share Posted May 5, 2008 hanging down the bottom half of the tank usually means something in the water isn't agreeing with the fish. My guess is the filters being to dirty. The filter capacity of these tanks imo can be short of what you want to stock a tank at. Keep the filter wool clean, do a few water changes over the next few days. See if that helps. Frenchy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tim Posted May 5, 2008 Author Report Share Posted May 5, 2008 thanks all. i'll keep ya's updated. any more advice, feel free to help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wrk21 Posted May 6, 2008 Report Share Posted May 6, 2008 Wayne if your removing water in a water change then your removing salt as well dont go getting techinial with me... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nitty Posted May 6, 2008 Report Share Posted May 6, 2008 if he is removing 1/4 of the water and adding all the salt then yeah it will be getting salter n salter... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tim Posted May 6, 2008 Author Report Share Posted May 6, 2008 well.... another 3 dead today and no improvement in the others at all. This is fu#ked!! I've been so careful when looking after my fish and now they start dying?!?! This is frustrating and i'm ready to throw in the towel on fish keeping. I took one out about 10 mins ago and opened his gills to see they are very red. can anyone solve this frustrating and sad problem?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bmxican Posted May 6, 2008 Report Share Posted May 6, 2008 if it was the salt tho dont you think the bristlenose and pleco would be affected.. how do the fish look before they die? any strange behaviour? what are they being fed?? those top filters arent really any good for a tank full of cichlids... as the fish grow they create more waste. i think it has got to the point that the amount of waste the fish are producing, has exceeded the amount the bacteria in your filter can handle/ breakdown. this also combined with not cleaning your filter for ages i think is where your problems probably came from. how many fish do you have left mate?? we really need to know your ammonia, nitrite and nitrate levels.. bring me a water sample tomorrow at work.. i mean no offence here but saying that your water was fine on the colour chart isnt much help. Good Luck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tim Posted May 6, 2008 Author Report Share Posted May 6, 2008 if it was the salt tho dont you think the bristlenose and pleco would be affected.. how do the fish look before they die? any strange behaviour? what are they being fed?? how often do you clean your tank? and how much do you change? what type of filtration do you have?? how many litres is your tank?? all these questions and more... how many fish do you have left mate?? we also need to know your ammonia, nitrite and nitrate levels.. bring me a water sample tomorrow at work.. i mean no offence here but saying that your water was fine on the colour chart isnt much help. Good Luck Well I've been asked all those questions, just check out the other replies. Fed morning and night clean the tank (glass) as soon as i notice any alge. quarter changes every week hood filtration (sponges and bio balls) 250ltr tank I think i will come down and get another test done tomorrow. You are at Q Aquariums right? what time you there from? what time do you open? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bmxican Posted May 6, 2008 Report Share Posted May 6, 2008 yeah sorry i realised that after i posted and went back and edited it. yeah im at Q, ill be in tomorrow from 930-530. we open at 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HereFishieFishie Posted May 6, 2008 Report Share Posted May 6, 2008 No chance of chemicals getting into the tank? ie; Garden sprays drifting in, fly spray, using non fish bukets for water changes.... Just seems odd, water was tested, came back with nothing. Red gills, you would think would be an ammonia problem, or something like a very bad case of gill flukes. Where's Winnie or Mal??? Just before you go to Q-store, take some water out for the test, try & use a glass jar. Do a 50% water change. Then take the sample of pre water changed water to the store. If the water is fine, then something has gotten into your tank. Or it I would guess you have a very bad case of gill flukes. Treat for flukes. Gold Coast water is usually pretty good too. There has to be something wrong. Frenchy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bmxican Posted May 7, 2008 Report Share Posted May 7, 2008 i think its that the tank is underfiltered.. the ammonia and nitrite were both on 0 ppm and nitrate was around 20ppm. this is after 50% waterchanges every second day for around the last week. anyway keep us posted Tim. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ryanwatts Posted May 7, 2008 Report Share Posted May 7, 2008 thats very werid. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HereFishieFishie Posted May 7, 2008 Report Share Posted May 7, 2008 If the tank was high in ammonia... at some stage. The fish still could of sustained enough damage to harm the fish to the point where in some cases it is too late. What did you recommend for him to do at the store? Any fish still breathing heavy, hanging in corners....? Frenchy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bmxican Posted May 7, 2008 Report Share Posted May 7, 2008 If the tank was high in ammonia... at some stage. The fish still could of sustained enough damage to harm the fish to the point where in some cases it is too late.What did you recommend for him to do at the store? Frenchy thats pretty much what i said to him today. i think he has had an ammonia spike last week sometime and what damage was done is done the only thing he can do is to get the water perfect and hope the rest pull through.. i recommended no food til friday, 25% waterchanges today, tomorrow and on friday. on friday he will bring me another sample of his water before and after the waterchange and hopefully the nitrate levels have dropped a bit more. i also recommended that he should go into see brad for a fluval 405 asap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tim Posted May 7, 2008 Author Report Share Posted May 7, 2008 Just got home and another 1 dead with 2 not far off. Just did a 25% change - one thing i have noticed over the last week is that there is a lot more sh#t on the bottom than usual. That mean anything? Thanks Mick for your help today, let's hope we are on the right track and we fix this problem. oh and yes, the fish are breathing heavy/fast, hanging low and picking the corners to die in Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AussieCanadian Posted May 7, 2008 Report Share Posted May 7, 2008 I know this seems really dumb but just thought I would ask if Tim is using Chlorine, Chloramine neutreulizer (AquaStar or similar). I know it seems really obvious but hey It has been known to happen to people that just start out. I would also add a Internal filter or a spongey to the system to help create a good filterered environment. Only use tank water to clean filter media, not tap water. Also maybe try a product called Stressguard to help the fishies slim coat and reduce ammonia so it wont spike again if filters are not currently coping. These are just a few ideas I thought of hopefully not too basic at this point Tim. A few of the gents that already replied to this post are much more knowledgable then I. Keep us updated on the tank status Cheers Matt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
