Help needed... neon tetra on his own...

[Newcomer]

Hi I'm new here... I've kept fish before but not for a long time since I was a teenager and my daughter wanted a tropical tank so I was dead excited to help her set it up! So recently set up a 10 gallon tank with heater filter etc let it run for 7 days after using the tap safe additive and went and got 6 neon tetras to start with from the pet store.

2 of them died the first night :-(
The following day one was on his own and very pale and the others swimming round happily. Within a couple of hours he died and another one had gone pale.
Took my water to the pet store and they tested it and said it was fine and to add some stresszyme which I did.
This morning the next pale one was dead and one of the remaining two was laying on the bottom of the tank a lot.
Raced back to the pet store with another sample of water which they said there was some ammonia but still well within the safe zone and they're very confused. They gave me some Interpet disease away (broad spectrum treatment as no fish displaying symptoms of anything) and ammonia removed in case it's the ammonia although they were confident the level it was is normal for a new aquarium.
Unfortunately by the time I got home he had died so I have used both the treatments but now I have one lonely tetra who seems healthy but quite shy and stressed now he's on his own!

Really don't know what to do as the others went down so quickly I'm worried for this one... don't want to leave him on his own but don't want to introduce new fish if I'm going to have the same issue again?!

The pet store seen at a complete loss what's causing them to die. Please help me!

 

[OrionGirl]

First, neons are not the sturdiest of fish. They're very sensitive to ammonia and not suitable for cycling the tank. Please understand that ANY ammonia will stress and harm them. Your LFS is not being honest with you if they're saying anything else.

Please read up on cycling--your tank is in the process of establishing the bacteria/archae (biofilter) necessary for supporting fish. Running for 7 days without any source of ammonia will not create the biofilter. The product you've been given will not establish the biofilter any faster. The surviving neon might make it through, but you'll need to do water changes and monitor--you might find buying your own test kit helpful for that process.

 

[Newcomer]

Thank you... how much water should I change... I don't want to stress him any more? Now that he is in there what is the best way to resolve the situation?

 

[OrionGirl]

That's where the test kit will come in handy. You want to avoid having the ammonia levels get above .5. Not ideal, but usually survivable. Without a test kit, and just one fish in a 10, I'd start with 50% every other day. You can add some live plants--they will help in a couple of ways. Depending on the lighting, but you probably will be best with lot light plants, such as anubias, java ferns, or guppy grass. Guppy grass would be my first choice, though not something you'll want to keep long term, since it will be fast growing and thus consume ammonia more rapidly.

Once the tank is cycled, adding fish slowly will avoid causing a big spike in ammonia--say 1-2 fish every other week until you get to your final stocking list. With a 10, I'd say 10-12 neons, or 5-6 neons and 5-6 of the smaller cories (pygmy, habrosus, panda...don't go for any that get to be 2-3 inches in size).

 

[Newcomer]

Sorry should have mentioned there are 3 live plants that have been in there since day one. Not sure what they are called but I was advised they were easy ones to grow. Currently the lights are off to try and keep the remaining neon less stressed. Im guessing when I get my ammonia levels to remain at 0 it's safe to put a few more tetra in to keep him company? I think I will go back to the store and get a test kit so I can test it myself daily and start the water changes.

 

[OrionGirl]

Good, the plants will help, but you'll need to turn the lights on. I encourage using a timer, so the lights come on a bit after the main room is lit and go off a bit for the main room goes fully dark, no more than 8 ish hours. The fish will be ok with light, so long as it has hiding places.

 

[Newcomer]

Thank you so much for the help. Really hoping the little guy makes it so he can have some friends join him when the water has stabilised!

 

[Tifftastic]

I agree with the previous suggestions you've been given. Getting a test kit will be really beneficial for you now that you have fish in a new tank. Additionally, I wouldn't add any more of the medication that the pet store gave you, it will likely do more harm than good.

Check out this sticky for additional info on cycling the tank https://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/threads/freshwater-cycling.84598/

It'll give you some good guidelines on when to add fish as well.

 

[FreshyFresh]

Welcome!

As Sheila and Tiff said, #1. you don't have a proper nitrogen cycle going in this tank and #2, Neon tetras are typically pretty fragile because of the way they are mass produced, packaged, shipped and kept at the stores. On top of that, neons do better in cooler water in the ~68-72F range.

Do you know anyone with a healthy, established aquarium? If you do and you can grab some bio media from their filter and place it in your filter, this will be a great kick-start, if not a complete cycle for you.