I'm a fish newbie that is in need of help! My fish and shrimp are dying and I can't figure out why.
My fish enthusiast neighbor gave me an extra 10 gallon tank he had hanging around (complete with all the equipment!) so I could start a tank for my kids. I filled it up in early January and let it sit for a day or so. I had read about fishless vs. fish-in cycles and certainly didn't want to do the latter. After a few days, I used the ammonia test kit he gave me and was surprised to see that there were no traces of ammonia! Fantastic! :shakehead: (Yes, I know better now.)
Went to PetSmart (the best of what's in my area for freshwater fish) and picked up 2 Long-Fin Zebra Danios. I knew they were hardy and figured they'd be a good starter fish while I got the hang of things. I did weekly (bi-weekly if it needed it) PWC, de-chlorinated the water with every change, and the Danios seemed to be doing well. Test results were perfect, so I added 3 more Glofish Danios and a few Ghost Shrimp thinking I was in the clear and kicking serious butt at being a new fish owner with the temperamental 10 gal. The shrimp were molting and growing and my zebras had babies! Sadly, the shrimp thought they were delicious.
Then I noticed they were a little pink around the gills. Did more frequent changes and did lots of testing. Added 1 tablespoon of aquarium salt to the water knowing my shrimp would be happier and hoping it would help the fish, too. The redness improved slightly, but the tips of fins started to turn a little milky. I did more and more testing to try and figure this all out, but nothing ever appeared on the test results. Turns out the test expired a few years ago. Awesome. (Apparently my neighbor hasn't kept freshwater fish for quite some time!) Picked up a new kit and found ammonia was out of control at 2.0 ppm! Did a WC! Thinking I was doing my tank a favor, I also dropped in one of those fizzy tablets that neutralizes the ammonia. Bad idea! It seems to have restarted my cycle.
I left one Saturday morning in late February with five active fish and came home that afternoon to two dead on the substrate. I did a test for clues and found the nitrites were at a deadly 5.0 ppm. Did a 70% WC, but too little too late. The other three fish and one shrimp would soon die as well. SO sad watching them breathe so fast knowing the end was near.
The tank sat empty for a week, excepting one shrimp. Watched test results. Nitrites dropped, ammonia rose slightly and then dropped off completely and I thought I was in the clear. Picked up 3 guppies (2 male and 1 pregnant female) and one berried shrimp to keep my shrimp company. Three days later, they were all dead. No visible signs of disease or stress. No white spots. No red gills. No apparent signs of fin rot.
I've read that Ich (or is it Ick?) needs to find a host within a few days so I have a hard time believing it was that being that the tank was fishless for a week. I think we all know what happened to the poor Danios, but do any of you have any ideas about the Guppies? What am I missing? Is my water diseased? What do I do next? :huh:
My fish enthusiast neighbor gave me an extra 10 gallon tank he had hanging around (complete with all the equipment!) so I could start a tank for my kids. I filled it up in early January and let it sit for a day or so. I had read about fishless vs. fish-in cycles and certainly didn't want to do the latter. After a few days, I used the ammonia test kit he gave me and was surprised to see that there were no traces of ammonia! Fantastic! :shakehead: (Yes, I know better now.)
Went to PetSmart (the best of what's in my area for freshwater fish) and picked up 2 Long-Fin Zebra Danios. I knew they were hardy and figured they'd be a good starter fish while I got the hang of things. I did weekly (bi-weekly if it needed it) PWC, de-chlorinated the water with every change, and the Danios seemed to be doing well. Test results were perfect, so I added 3 more Glofish Danios and a few Ghost Shrimp thinking I was in the clear and kicking serious butt at being a new fish owner with the temperamental 10 gal. The shrimp were molting and growing and my zebras had babies! Sadly, the shrimp thought they were delicious.
Then I noticed they were a little pink around the gills. Did more frequent changes and did lots of testing. Added 1 tablespoon of aquarium salt to the water knowing my shrimp would be happier and hoping it would help the fish, too. The redness improved slightly, but the tips of fins started to turn a little milky. I did more and more testing to try and figure this all out, but nothing ever appeared on the test results. Turns out the test expired a few years ago. Awesome. (Apparently my neighbor hasn't kept freshwater fish for quite some time!) Picked up a new kit and found ammonia was out of control at 2.0 ppm! Did a WC! Thinking I was doing my tank a favor, I also dropped in one of those fizzy tablets that neutralizes the ammonia. Bad idea! It seems to have restarted my cycle.
I left one Saturday morning in late February with five active fish and came home that afternoon to two dead on the substrate. I did a test for clues and found the nitrites were at a deadly 5.0 ppm. Did a 70% WC, but too little too late. The other three fish and one shrimp would soon die as well. SO sad watching them breathe so fast knowing the end was near.
The tank sat empty for a week, excepting one shrimp. Watched test results. Nitrites dropped, ammonia rose slightly and then dropped off completely and I thought I was in the clear. Picked up 3 guppies (2 male and 1 pregnant female) and one berried shrimp to keep my shrimp company. Three days later, they were all dead. No visible signs of disease or stress. No white spots. No red gills. No apparent signs of fin rot.
I've read that Ich (or is it Ick?) needs to find a host within a few days so I have a hard time believing it was that being that the tank was fishless for a week. I think we all know what happened to the poor Danios, but do any of you have any ideas about the Guppies? What am I missing? Is my water diseased? What do I do next? :huh: