Stinkin' fish tank, literally...

[thrifty_sahm]

This is a 10 gallon fresh water. Nothing special. I started it about 2 weeks ago. I just read about cycling. I did not do that. I have feeder fish in there now. 4 small comets, 3 guppies and 3 rosies. Oh, and a cory cat.

The rocks I have were washed, but not rinsed more than 6 hrs or so. I have a out of take waterfall filter. It is a 10 gallon whisper one.

What are your suggestions?

 

[amerpatrt]

Sahm

Sahm,
The stinky tank is what I've gone through too while it's cycling. I think the smell comes partially from the gravel, but I'm not sure. Make sure you read about cycling, testing, and water changes. All are critical in order for you to get your fish through this alive. 10 gallons is pretty small, so things can go wrong really fast with ammonia or nitrite build-up.
Read the Sticky sections in this forum.
~Dawn

 

[kanakaia]

It's sounds like ammonia spiking if it gets real high it'll start stinking testing for it should
tell you if it is. Water changes 50% and cutting back on the feeding should help but thats a heavy bioload you have so the cycle will be a hard one

 

[Kissofthegorami]

water changes, use carbon in the filter. Feeder fish are genetically flawed fish and are usually diseased. You should do a search on goldfish. They actually require a lot of room, they grow to 12". Ten gallons is on the small side. You could get some fancy guppies or a small school of tetras or barbs, a dwarf gourami or betta. Cories like to be in groups.

 

[Dangerdoll]

right, I agree that the tank is goign through a stage in the cycle and with the bio-load you're carrying, it will be a hard one... extremely hard. I would return the Goldies back to the pet store and leave the tank as it is with the guppies and rosies... and maybe return the cory for now until you can get a school of them in cycled water. Note that since you've gone the route of a fishy cycle, you'll need to carry a lot of water changes to get the tank stabilized and optimum to keep fish healthy.

 

[thrifty_sahm]

Thanks everyone, will do a water change today. I am considering getting new rocks too.

 

[happychem]

The stink is from fish waste, I would wager. Not so much the ammonia (you'd have truly obscene amounts before it started to smell) but from the decaying organic matter. Goldies produce tons of waste, they're messy, and if it's just sitting there decaying, building up, well, I think you can imagine how it would smell if you lived in a small cell with just a bucket in the corner, dig?

Don't take that as a slight, I've been massively overstocked before I learned better and I don't think badly of newbies who do. Goldfish need very large tanks, but our society is saturated with images of goldfish bowls and with the notion that fish will only grow to the size of their environment. While technically true, it's in no way a good thing.

Since your tank is still pretty new, consider a more concerted stocking effort. A 10g is a really small tank, so instead of having numerous fish species, try only 2. Maybe guppies and cories or perhaps barbs and cories? Just a suggestion. Since you're fishy cycling, getting rid of some of the fish will make your life much easier, I think that you'll like the end result much better as well with only a couple of species with their populations built up a bit.