Are My Danios Sick?

[tomm10]

Yesterday I came home from work to find out my power was out and had been for about 3.5 hours. After worrying about where I was going to watch the Red Sox game I was most concerned about the 4 Zebra Danios in my new 10g tank.

When I had left in the morning the ammonia level was at .5, the highest so far. the danios were all still alive but not lively. They didn't appear to have difficulty breathing but they were hanging out at the surface almost exclusively.

Powered stayed out for 11.5 hours until it came on at 2am! Surprisingly, rather than continue to sleep I was compelled to get up and check on $3.96 worth of fish :) the ammonia levels had climbed to 1.0 and the temp had dropped to about 64. I let the filter pump for about 30 minutes and then fed them some flake food (I hadn't since the morning). They were slow to take to it but eventually did and perked up.

The part that concerns me is that their color was faded a bit and theirs gill areas seemed a bit red. I may be panicking for no reason as their gills may be a bit red anyway and I never noticed. Their color came back significantly by the morning when I fed them some frozen brine shrimp.

I'm trying to avoid water changes in an effort to keep the tank stable. This is the advice of my LFS. I'm a litle worried now that the redness in the gills may be from too much ammonia in the water.

Thoughts? Thanks

Tom

[tomm10]

I'm trying to avoid water changes in an effort to keep the tank stable. This is the advice of my LFS.

I should clarify that I'm trying to avoid water changes while the tank is cycling.

Tom

[Cearbhaill]

I'll take a shot since no one else has...

I'd be doing some water changes.
From what I've read the bacteria you are trying to culture are relatively adherent to whatever they are growing on and will not be lost by changing water.
The fish need the relief IMO.

Edit: removed incorrect info :cool:

[OrionGirl]

Water changes during a fishy cycle are not a bad thing. This is the easiest way to prevent ammonia levels from becoming excessive, and will not slow down the cycling process. As long as the fish are in the tank, they are producing ammonia, even if you can not detect it with your kit. Keep in mind that the test kits we use do NOT detect all the ammonia that is present--they just are not that accurate. So, doing water changes to prevent harm to the fish will not starve the bacteria.

The danios are likely stressed by the ammonia, the lowered O2 levels, and the drop in temperature. The ammonia limits their ability of get O2 from the water, and when the water is motionless, the available O2 declines, making it even harder. The lower temp reduces their metabolism, making them sluggish and reducing hunger as well.

My advice: do the water changes. Keep ammonia below 1.0, and nitrates below 0.5. If there's a power outage, either use a battery powered bubbler, or use a large jar to scoop out some water and pour it back in to keep the O2 stable. Wrapping a blanket around the tank will help keep the tamp from dropping as quickly.

Edit: Salt will help with high nitrites, but not with ammonia.

[fishfood]

I would agree that you need to do some water changes. Ammonia levels that high can permanently kill or damage your fish, especially if the levels keep climbing. Check it everyday and do water changes accordingly.