Need help ASAP!

[olenka79]

Hi everyone.
I am having troubles with the water in my tank. It's not clear and very cloudy. I have 29 gal tank and filter for 40 gal tank. Everything was fine before, but I can't fix my problem for 2 weeks already. I have 1 big oscar in there and 1 algie eater. Now my oscar refused to eat, and it's color is not very bright anymore. Can someone help me please? I went to the petsmart and they said it should go away soon - the situation is not lifethreatening. But I am really worried about my oscar. Thank you for your help.

 

[Johnnyr]

Have you tested you water?

My advice would be to get a good testing kit (or at least ammonia and nitrIte) and see what the results are. It may just be a bacterial bloom, but that is usually only common in new tanks....how often are you doing water changes, and what % of the water are you changing at a time?

 

[Penfan66]

How long has your tank been set up?

 

[olenka79]

The tank has been set up for couple of years. I took saples of water to Petsmart - they checked it 4 days ago, and told me I need to change water - chemicals were too high. The suggested that I overfeed the fish, but I give her much less food now than before - so I don't see how that can be a problem. Unless my oscar lost an appetite and doesn't finish it. I changed about 25 % of the water - now 4 days later everything is still the same or maybe even worse.

 

[Johnnyr]

You need to get a test kit to know what the levels are, and do constant water changes to keep the ammonia and nitrItes down. What has changed in the last day/ weeks?

 

[deadxero]

Your issue may relate directly to the size of your tank. A 29 is about half the recomended size for a single Oscar, and many people over-filter even larger tanks with Oscars as they can be quite messy.

Also, do you know anything else about your algea eater? Is it a pleco? If so, common plecos are also suited to much larger tanks.

If you can find nothing else wrong, you may be able to correct your problem by simlply moving the fish to a larger tank.

 

[Coler]

get test kit - good liquid drop, API make a great one. Check ammonia, nitrite and nitrate.

how often do you do water changes ?

one big Oscar is way way way too much fish for a 29 gallon, even with a 40 gallon filter. You need a 75 Gallon and ideally overfiltered tank for one big Oscar on its own, irrespective of the algae eater (common plecostumus ?). They are messy fish with huge appetitites. The probability/likelihood is that the filtration is not coping with the waste and levels of ammonia, nitrite and nitrate are unacceptable; this will eventually kill your fish.

 

[olenka79]

Thank you so much for your responses. I think after I changed 25 % of water - chemical balance of the water in the tank improved. At least when I took second sample to the Petsmart - they weren't too concerned. But I think I will go there and I will get my own testing kit. I also began to think about bigger tank, but I am thinking about 100 gal or something like that. Can I put another fish with my oscar in that tank. It will look empty with only 1 oscar. And also while I have my 29 gal tank - is it OK to change water every week till it gets clear - about 25 % - or is it too much and will cause more stress? And the last question - the fact that my fish doesn't eat anything - does it mean that it's dying already - or there is nothing to freak out about? Thank you

 

[Coler]

in your 29 I would change enough water, using a proper water conditioner (Seachem Prime is great), to keep nitrates below 40 ppm. If you get your own test kit you will be able to monitor your readings and can work out how much is necessary, but with a big Oscar in a 29 you should probably plan on doing maybe 3 changes of 25% per week. This will not stress the fish at all, and certainly is better than leaving him/her in dirty water.

You can have some tankmates with an Oscar in a 100 Gallon tank - maybe a plecostomus, some other South American Cichlids.

What is available to you ? If you can say what you are considering people can offer you some advice.

Fish not eating is almost never a good sign. Again, I think you have so much of a big fish in that tank that your nitrates (or possibly ammonia/nitrite if the biological filter is really overloaded) are probably very high and it is affecting the fish. Water changes are most likely necessary - but unless you get the test kit you are guessing.