Big Problems!

This is my fifth week with my aquarium and a week ago the guy at my lfs who checked the water said my cycle was finished

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i think it unlikely that your cycle was finished a week ago. get test kits and test your own water ... LFS folks are non reliable. my guess is that you have toxic levels of ammonia and nitrite or both and therein lies your problem.

DO NOT change your filter media as this is where the bacteria you need to complete the cycle are located.

DO continue water changes to mitigate the buildup of excessive ammonia and nitrite and add the equivalent of 0.3 % -- the chloride ion will counteract the nitrogen blockage of oxygen uptake.

liv2padl said:

DO continue water changes to mitigate the buildup of excessive ammonia and nitrite and add the equivalent of 0.3 % -- the chloride ion will counteract the nitrogen blockage of oxygen uptake.

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Could you clarify that last part? I can't understand what you're getting at there, and I doubt Robert will either.

Robert, you definitely need a test kit. Even quick dip strips will be better than nothing for now. In the meantime I would be doing daily water changes, because I suspect that you are either still cycling or going through a mini cycle due to the introduction of new fish. Even if that's not the case, the water changes can only help.

sorry, i meant add salt (NaCl). the chloride ion will mitigate .......

Go buy aquarium salt at your local fishshop and treat according to the directions on the box. Though that won't give you a 0.3% increase in salinity, it should do the trick in reducing nitrite toxicity. Pretty much the salt works since Cl- Ion is lighter in mass than the NO2- ion and diffuses into the fish faster displacing the toxic Nitrite (NO2).

Even if you can't afford test kit, when you take a sample to the lfs watch the test and see the colors of the water yourself, and ask what the levels are specifically in ppm. YOu should have 0ppm ammonia and nitrites and less than 20ppm nitrates. They shouldn't have a problem with you comparing the color of the test water to the bottle to see for yourself, and if they do then they are lying. Tell them you want to see and compare it yourself.

you should be vaccuming the gravel when you do water changes. HOpe they live through this, but l think youshould still test your water again and get the exact readings.

Well if i were you i'd do another waterchange - or even 2. You cant overdo waterchanges - its just not possible.
I recently had a problem with my betta that appeared out of nowhere - even though i have a good maintenance schedule with lots of waterchanges, gravel vacs and a very lightly stocked tank. So i did 50-60% twice a day ... and this might've saved his life. The levels in his tank were perfect but he still got sick...

In your case (seeing you have no test kits) you could always assume there is still ammonia or nitrite - and 2 x 50% waterchanges (or 1x 75%)will defenitely bring those levels down. And if those arent the problem - then the waterchanges will reduce any disease causing bacteria or other pathogens that (for whatever reason) might've accumulated in the water. The cleaner the water the better a fish can fight off any problems with the help of its immune system.

Just make sure to use water conditioner and have the temperature of the new water match the tankwater - but i am sure you knew that.

Hope your guys pull through and keep us posted.

Sorry to sound like a hard ***, but if you dont have 15 bucks for a test kit, then you really shouldnt be keeping fish...When one choses to own a pet, they also chose to take responsibility for its health and well being...A kit is so cheap and worth its weight in gold...Without one, you are flying blind...
Just something to think about