i dont know what im doing

A

ana

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Jul 18, 2005
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Ok i heard that a tank should have salt in it to keep the fish healthy. and i was wondering if i can put just regular cooking salt in it... if now what should i do... I have a 10 gal. tank with 3f guppies and 2 males, a glass fish, some other kind and a pleco... what do yall think i should do... i dont really know what im doing and just a couple of days ago my two chinese algae eaters died like 2 days after i took it out of my 10 gal tank to put it in a smaller fish bowl because they were being i guess too aggressive and territorial...then like yesterday my guppy died for no reason... it looked like it was pregnant, but she was fat for a long time... she was very active and she ate alot... i dont know why she could have died and my guppies are acting weird, they are rubbing against objects and the rocks... i researched it and i think it said that it was a parasite... what should i do...PLEASE SOMEONE HELP ME!!!!
:huh:
 
What are your water parameters: ammonia, nitrite, nitrate? How long has the tank been set up? Is it cycled? Flashing (rubbing against things) can be symptoms of several different things... including needing a water change (irritation). How often do you clean the tank? Do you dechlorinate the water?

What kind of pleco is it? I think a 10 gallon is too small for almost all species of pleco but I could be mistaken. Sounds like the tank may be a bit overstocked (don't glass cats get 4 to 6 inches?). Did the fish bowl have a filter or anything for the algae eaters?

As for salt, I personally do not use it except as a medicinal treatment.
 
ok to answer the questions i have a filter thing and i havent check the ph and nitrate or whatever, i dont know how to and i dont have the equippment for that... and i do change the water... its supposed to be 1/3 of the water right... and um.. i do dechlorinate the water...so back to my question, can i use just regular salt in the tank???? will it kill them...
 
salt is not necessary unless you are treating a disease. It sounds like your tank is not cycled. You need to buy test kits for amonia and nitrite at the very least. Any readings of these above 0 are toxic to fish. Look up the cycling articles in the stickys at the top of the page. In the meantime you will need to be changing 50% or more of the water daily to keep the fish alive :o The fish are most likely rubbing on things due to water quality problems
 
salt will not be alright with the pleco and possibly the cat in there so you need to be careful. I'm going to take a stab and say your tank is overstocked as well. What other kind of catfish is in there? There are lots of catfish (most) that will not do well long-term in a 10 gallon tank. I'm leaning toward the parameters being off for the tank. How long have you had these fish in there? How long has this tank been set up? How often do you change the water. I would suggest going out and getting a test kit so you know what the parameters are and this way you can rule out faulty water conditions before medicating for something you may not need to.
 
How old is the tank? Why do you want to add salt? It isn't necessary for most freshwater tanks unless you're treating for disease. You need to test the water.
 
1. If this is a new setup, don't add salt...the fish won't benefit from it. It is very effective at killing parasites, however. Only use it if you are sure your fish are infected with parasites. Your fish are more than likely suffering from ammonia toxicity..which can in turn stress and weaken their immune systems making them vulnerable to diseases(parasites, bacteria, fungus) if the ammonia. itself, doesn't kill them first.
2. Buy some test kits or take a water sample to your fish store and have them test it for you. You would be better buying your own as you'll need to have your water tested frequently. You need to have the pH, ammonia and nitrites tested.
3. Get rid of the pleco as they are very big producers of waste and will easily outgrow that tank soon.
4. Do daily water changes on the tank while it cycles to reduce toxic ammonia and nitrite levels. This will increase the fishes' chances of survival. 25%-30 is usually enough, but 50% may be necessary. You'll need to test the water daily.
5. When the tank finally cycles and ammonia and nitrite levels are at 0, begin doing weekly 30-50% water changes and clean your filters as needed.
 
Ana,
Slappy has some great advice. I would also like to add one thing: you may be overfeeding your fish as well. If the guppy was eating a lot and was fat, there may have been an internal blockage that caused it to die. A general rule of thumb, until you get used to the fish you own, is to think of their stomach as the same size of their eyeball. Only feed them that much. The food will expand once it soaks up some water.
 
Hey, thanks you guys for yalls help... um i got the tester and i think its a good one... let me see... it tests the pH, Nitrate, Nitrite, Hardness, and Alkalinity... i dont have the ammonia strips but i think that im going to get it as soon as i have money for it... well i tested the water today and wow it was bad... the nitrite and nitrate levels were good... but the hardness was at 300 ppm's... the alkalinity was way high it wasnt even on the chart...and the pH was more than 8.4... so what should i do... i went to look for a pH decreaser but wal-mart didnt carry it... and i couldnt find a hardness adjuster so what do yall recommend i do? Thanks in advance....
 
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