New bio-wheel; fish hiding/not eating

T

terelisto

AC Members
Jun 2, 2007
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This is my first post.

I have a 55 gallon freshwater aquarium that has been set up for approx 2.5 months.
I have one danios left from the start up cycle; I added 3 black tetras 4 weeks ago and 8 red eyed tetras 2 weeks ago. I also added a plecostomus 3 or 4 weeks ago.

All was well until 2 weeks ago when I removed my powerhead filter (but left the underground plates) and installed a bio-wheel. I have since re-installed the powerhead (on Tuesday) and have it and the bio-wheel running in the aquarium.

The problem is, after 3 days from installing the bio-wheel, all of the fish (except the plecostomus) started hiding in the lip between the bio-wheel and the top of the aquarium and 2 of the 3 black tetras won't eat.

I did a 20% water change last weekend and I had the water checked on Tuesday. All the levels are fine.

I'm guessing my mistake was taking the powerhead out. The powerhead has been reinstalled for 2 days and I have not seen any improvement. Is there anything else I should try?

Thanks for any help or insight.
 
I had everything but the PH tested. All the levels were fine. I'm not at home right now so I can't tell you the exact temperature but it's in the middle of the acceptable zone on the aquarium Thermometer
 
I'm new to all of this and do not have testing supplies at home so I take a water sample to Petco and they test it for me. They don't give me numbers, they simply show me what color the strip is suppose to be and that my sample matches. When I said the levels were fine, I meant that the color on the test strip matched the 'good' sample color.

From the types of questions I'm getting I'm guessing that you suspect that the problem may have something to do with the levels in my tank. Do you recommend that I purchase testing supplies so I could give exact numbers?
 
Having your own test kit is extremely helpful, and get the liquid kind. I've learned from experience that the paper strips are horribly inaccurate.

Plus, it's more economical to do your own! Think of all the gas you'll save by not having to drive to the store every time you test your tank water. Another tip...You may find that the liquid tests give you more tests per kit than the paper ones...for example the test strips available here only come with 29 tests in a box vs the 130 tests in the liquid kit.
 
Thanks for the recommendation. I'm off to the store to get teting supplies. Once I have official numbers I'll re-post to get your suggestions on what can be done to help my unhappy fish.
 
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