Ammonia buildup?

Good news, my Silver Tiger, Red Tiger, Albino Tiger, and 3 Candy Parrots have gone to a better home with much larger tanks. Now, before adding anymore fish I am gonna do my best to figure out this problem. As of now, one 10g has only one small fish, and the other one just has two small Gobies. Hopefully I can figure out the problem soon. Bad news, the 33L only continues to worsen. When I came home this evening my Transparent Knife had passed away. I feel bad as it is fellas, hopefully it won't take long to solve this problem. I'll keep ya updated...
 
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What was the timer period between adding the fish to the setup? Each addition boosts the bio-load, and it wouldn't take much to spike, especially with predators.
 
QUOTE]Aqualung In my (inexperienced) opinion, it seems like the 33 gal. is way overloaded with fish. [/QUOTE]
I agree. You have/had an arowana, 3 knifefish, 4 eels, 3 plecos, as well as the other fish you mentioned, in a 33 gallon tank...way too small. I don't mean to criticize, I would like to help and hear of your success in this hobby.
Everyone is small now, and I plan on going for a nice big tank in the future when they grow
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They are growing now, and should be growing quickly. Large predatory fish generally grow quickly and produce a lot of waste. Plecos are notorious for producing large amounts of waste. Unless you move some of those fish to a new home I am afraid they will not be around when you get a bigger tank.
Think about this when you do buy a larger tank: perhaps you do not have the room/$/time,etc. (right now) to keep all of the fish you would like. Who on these forums does? Be patient and get the absolute largest tank you can, then select which fish you will keep. Or, if you decide you must keep a specific species, revolve your tank/equipment purchases around that/those fish knowing in advance what their adult size will be so you can provide a large enough space for them. I would love to keep an arowana, but I know I do not have the means to care for a four foot predatory fish. I don't mean to lecture, but I am not sure if you have thought about these things. You will be much happier and have much more success if you do.
To solve your problem now, as the others suggested, you need to do large water changes daily. And again, I believe you need to find new homes for some of those fish right now. Good luck and keep us posted. I really hope this works out for you.
 
Ok, I just got back from a 3 day trip and thank the Lord my fish are all alive and active! I was so worried. RHJ, I do understand what you're suggesting to me and the part that sucks is that I only like exotic and oddball fish. Everything else is just boring to me. Unfortunately, I can't afford a 100+ gallon tank that they need. So, the only thing I can do is stop buying more fish...
 
I wouldn't just stop... I would actually return those fish. There are plenty of oddball fish that will fit in smaller tanks, just not the ones that you have. You'll find that if you actually get fish that fit the tanks you currently have, you will be spared headach after headach. Keeping fish really is quite easy and simple, if you're willing to research, have patience, and have some self control.

-Richer
 
Richer is offering some good advice here, in my opinion. It is probably a lot better to give those fish to somebody else, both for their sake and yours. I understand exactly what you mean when you say that the "exotic" types are often difficult to provide adequate accomodations for - when I began keeping fish that was something which always frustrated me. But as people here have already indicated, it is worth the wait if you can just hold off until you have the necessary resources. Some of the fish you mentioned, also some of the more expensive, will not even begin to grow in that tank. You wont have any real way of knowing when they need to move out; the knifefish and arowana particularly. Many times the fish die before experiencing significant growth if they are in that small of an area. I suggest reselling the fish at higher prices for a profit- find someone (or put ads) that is responsible and who is fairly free with money, then put some bucks in your own pocket while taking care of the fish. Also, you could probably find a 55g for a very reasonable price, especially if you look for used products; With that size you could think about some oddballs (like eye-biters, perhaps). Once its all said and done, the extra $$$ on the tank will probably end up saving you money in the future.
 
Both of you are right in every aspect. Hell, if I had the money I'd have multiple 100+ gallon tanks in the house and I would take care of them properly. My problem is I want it all without being able to have it. I admit the majority of those fish shouldn't be in there at all, but I've got so much money invested in them and I like them so much that I just can't get rid of them.

PS - I don't think I'd ever get my money back from selling them, no one around my area likes what I like. I can't hardly find people on **** forums like this one who even share the same interest in fish.
 
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ive been there, trust me - i know what its like. I guess the problem now really is what you are going to do with the situation at hand, not even to worry about the future yet. The fish will die, and soon, so it is important that you return them or do something else with them (besides the toilet). Keeping them around isnt gonna be pretty, and its kind of depressing to see all those fish drop dead.
 
I don't think they will all just die right away. It will take some time...it's not like they're already HUGE. I mean my Plecos are all under 1.5", eels around 4", Arowana about 1.25"...you get the idea. I think I've got some time to figure things out.
 
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