Hello, I started my new tank about 5 weeks ago. Brother bought my daughter 2 goldfish from a fair and brought them home to her. I put them in a one gallon tank, only because I wanted to set up my new 28 gallon tank and let it cycle for at least a week or so. Well one of the fish became sick and had black on his fins. I moved them to the new tank and did water changes every week (just small ones maybe 10%). He did get better but my tank became cloudy instantly. I should have researched before starting this tank but it happened so quick. I don't want any animal to die!!! Needless to say, the same stupid brother decided to then bring me 5 more fish plus 2 snails . Now I know I'm going to need a bigger tank, which I will get. But for now it's 5 weeks and still cloudy. I picked up a test kit, all levels are good but the ammonia. Forgot to mention the lady I bought the tank from supplied me with live bacteria from her tank. I've been researching and asking pet shops and they say just to let it be stop my daily water changes and stop feeding my fish. Umm I'm Italian lol we like to feed !!! I don't over feed they get flakes once a day and worms at night. I don't see much food sinking to the bottom. Please help. I know what I did wrong already but that's not gonna fix my problem. I need to know what to do now not what I could have done. My ammonia is 0.50 and it's a goldfish tank!!
I would suggest that the most important thing to do would be to start testing your water frequently if you're not already, and do water changes accordingly, daily changes of 50+% would not be unheard of
You don't say in what form you were given the live bacteria (water, filter media, substrate etc.)
Feeding less will lower the amounts of waste/ammonia produced by the fish, which should help keep things safer too.
And yes, start saving for a much bigger tank now.. goldfish, especially comets which these are probably, will take a lot of space being active fish and growing to a significant length... and then having the nerve to want to swim around too
HTH
You don't say in what form you were given the live bacteria (water, filter media, substrate etc.)
Feeding less will lower the amounts of waste/ammonia produced by the fish, which should help keep things safer too.
And yes, start saving for a much bigger tank now.. goldfish, especially comets which these are probably, will take a lot of space being active fish and growing to a significant length... and then having the nerve to want to swim around too
HTH
I did leave
Thank you this is all I do is try and fix this tank lol I am devoted and a animal lover
out that I have a external bio filter and a air pump. I have only done small water changes, maybe 20% at the most. Yes I am going to def get a larger tank. So I should buy live bacteria and add it as if it is a completly new tank?
Thank you this is all I do is try and fix this tank lol I am devoted and a animal lover
There's a lot of debate as to whether 'live bacteria' has any benefit at all.
You should be able to keep nitrogen compound levels at a safe level with lower feeding and large water changes.
say if you have ammonia of .5, a 75% water change should take that level down to 12.5%. The advice given to you, I expect, is due to building up of the bacterial colony, which should build up predominantly on hard surfaces in the aquarium, not the water.
If you want my optinion, the best option would be to find a place to rehome the goldfish, before there is significant emotional attachment, to someone with a decent sized pond... and then cycle the tank the old-fashioned way and then populate the tank with specifically chosen, suitable fish.
You should be able to keep nitrogen compound levels at a safe level with lower feeding and large water changes.
say if you have ammonia of .5, a 75% water change should take that level down to 12.5%. The advice given to you, I expect, is due to building up of the bacterial colony, which should build up predominantly on hard surfaces in the aquarium, not the water.
If you want my optinion, the best option would be to find a place to rehome the goldfish, before there is significant emotional attachment, to someone with a decent sized pond... and then cycle the tank the old-fashioned way and then populate the tank with specifically chosen, suitable fish.
Thanks Dougall. I'm not one to give up and my daughter is already attached and has given all the fish names, so I have to give it all I can. Do you think if I purchase a larger filter, say for a 50 gal tank, that would make a difference? I purchased the tank with complete set up from Craigslist. I'm unsure just how good the filter is working. I can imagine it's the correct size for the tank. I also read somewhere that providing extra oxygen to the tank it will speed up the new tank syndrome. Thanks again Dougall I appreciate any advise
having the temperature higher will speed up the bacterial colony needed to be cycled, unfortunately you have temperate water fish so that's not really the best option.
I expect that at some point in the future, you can expect to need a 6 foot long tank, so keep that in mind.
A larger filter will help with water movement, and keeping detritus etc out of the water, but (IMHO) not do as much for bacterial filtration.
Really, the best thing to do (Getting a bigger filter if you think it will help) is water changes.
Personally, my favorite way to kickstart the bacterial cycle is to use bacterial media (Say ceramic rings) from an established filter (If this is an option, be sure to trust the donor 100% as you don't want to add any possible parasites or disease) and as such I use 90% canister filters on my tanks; if you were close I imagine I could spare some filter rings if needed.
I expect that at some point in the future, you can expect to need a 6 foot long tank, so keep that in mind.
A larger filter will help with water movement, and keeping detritus etc out of the water, but (IMHO) not do as much for bacterial filtration.
Really, the best thing to do (Getting a bigger filter if you think it will help) is water changes.
Personally, my favorite way to kickstart the bacterial cycle is to use bacterial media (Say ceramic rings) from an established filter (If this is an option, be sure to trust the donor 100% as you don't want to add any possible parasites or disease) and as such I use 90% canister filters on my tanks; if you were close I imagine I could spare some filter rings if needed.
myswtsins
Global Moderator
I agree with everything suggested. I understand the attachment but rehoming some fish would be better than killing them right?
Are you familiar with the nitrogen cycle in aquariums? If not, google it real quick, you'll find tons of results. What kind of test kit are you using and what are the exact results please?
Are all 7 of these fish goldfish? If they are you would need an extremely large tank to house them giving that each goldfish needs a min of 30g each. If they are long bodied goldfish I would suggest even more water to fish.
Oversizing your filter is essential in goldfish care. They are incredible messy eaters and have poor digestion so what comes out is almost as full of nutrients as the food was originally. Those nutrients pollute the water. So you need a large amount of bio-media for the bio colony to grow on and a high water turnover rate to keep the poo and junk moving to the filters.
But right NOW getting a bigger filter isn't going to solve your immediate problem. Cause your immediate problem is ammonia poisoning. Daily large (50-75%) water changes will help. You can also buy some Ammo-Lock that binds with ammonia making it non-lethal.
Are you familiar with the nitrogen cycle in aquariums? If not, google it real quick, you'll find tons of results. What kind of test kit are you using and what are the exact results please?
Are all 7 of these fish goldfish? If they are you would need an extremely large tank to house them giving that each goldfish needs a min of 30g each. If they are long bodied goldfish I would suggest even more water to fish.
Oversizing your filter is essential in goldfish care. They are incredible messy eaters and have poor digestion so what comes out is almost as full of nutrients as the food was originally. Those nutrients pollute the water. So you need a large amount of bio-media for the bio colony to grow on and a high water turnover rate to keep the poo and junk moving to the filters.
But right NOW getting a bigger filter isn't going to solve your immediate problem. Cause your immediate problem is ammonia poisoning. Daily large (50-75%) water changes will help. You can also buy some Ammo-Lock that binds with ammonia making it non-lethal.
The woman I actually bought the tank from provided me with live bacteria from her tank. Which I had placed in my filter up until Monday because I read that they could be the cause of my cloudy water. This is all brand new to me so please excuse my ignorance. What is a canister filer?
a canister is just a different sort of filter, in this case will usually sit under the tank, so the only equipment actually on the tank are a couple of hoses to handle moving of water to and from the filter.
cloudy water, can be bacterial, if it's free floating in the water, it will clear up by itself but the problem with avoiding water changes is the ammonia and nitrite.
If you use city water, and do daily water changes, using something like prime that will condition the water and bind the ammonia should be very helpful to prevent problems with the fish.
as noted above, if you have well water, and don't need to treat for chlorine/chloramine ammo-lock
cloudy water, can be bacterial, if it's free floating in the water, it will clear up by itself but the problem with avoiding water changes is the ammonia and nitrite.
If you use city water, and do daily water changes, using something like prime that will condition the water and bind the ammonia should be very helpful to prevent problems with the fish.
as noted above, if you have well water, and don't need to treat for chlorine/chloramine ammo-lock
Yes myswtsins I'm familiar with it. I am using the ap test kit not strips. All my levels are at 0 besides the ammonia which isn't crazy high but it's not at zero. I will invest in a new filter today and also do a 50% water change. QUOTE="myswtsins, post: 2939367, member: 87644"]I agree with everything suggested. I understand the attachment but rehoming some fish would be better than killing them right?
Are you familiar with the nitrogen cycle in aquariums? If not, google it real quick, you'll find tons of results. What kind of test kit are you using and what are the exact results please?
Are all 7 of these fish goldfish? If they are you would need an extremely large tank to house them giving that each goldfish needs a min of 30g each. If they are long bodied goldfish I would suggest even more water to fish.
Oversizing your filter is essential in goldfish care. They are incredible messy eaters and have poor digestion so what comes out is almost as full of nutrients as the food was originally. Those nutrients pollute the water. So you need a large amount of bio-media for the bio colony to grow on and a high water turnover rate to keep the poo and junk moving to the filters.
But right NOW getting a bigger filter isn't going to solve your immediate problem. Cause your immediate problem is ammonia poisoning. Daily large (50-75%) water changes will help. You can also buy some Ammo-Lock that binds with ammonia making it non-lethal.[/QUOTE]
Are you familiar with the nitrogen cycle in aquariums? If not, google it real quick, you'll find tons of results. What kind of test kit are you using and what are the exact results please?
Are all 7 of these fish goldfish? If they are you would need an extremely large tank to house them giving that each goldfish needs a min of 30g each. If they are long bodied goldfish I would suggest even more water to fish.
Oversizing your filter is essential in goldfish care. They are incredible messy eaters and have poor digestion so what comes out is almost as full of nutrients as the food was originally. Those nutrients pollute the water. So you need a large amount of bio-media for the bio colony to grow on and a high water turnover rate to keep the poo and junk moving to the filters.
But right NOW getting a bigger filter isn't going to solve your immediate problem. Cause your immediate problem is ammonia poisoning. Daily large (50-75%) water changes will help. You can also buy some Ammo-Lock that binds with ammonia making it non-lethal.[/QUOTE]