diepvq

Hi everyone, Im a new fish owner and I need your help. I started my new tank recently. I followed the instruction on the site, (clean gravel, add declorinator in water, add tetra safestart...) the only thing was that I have 4 goldfish my dad purchased and i put them in the tank. I also tested the pH, temperature and Amonia which showed around a 1 PPM. Within an hour, I noticed 2 of the fish acted weird so i pulled them out. The next morning (about 9 hours) the other two fish in my tank was dead, the two that i pulled out was still alive and looked a lot better. I noticed that the amonia level in my tank was till the same, but the water where the pump was has a lot of foam. I did not clean my tank with soap or any chemicals so I don't know for sure what I need to do to keep the tank clean and cycle. Any advice? thanks.

aquarist48

Hello Diepvq and Welcome to Fish Lore. So hate to hear you're having difficulties and fish loss. From what I've read about Tetra Safe Start (TSS), the chlorine remover should be added 24 hours prior to adding the TSS. Add the TSS then the fish. Do nothing to the tank for 7 to 10 days. No tests no water changes.

Four gold fish in a 20g tank is over stocked. A good rule of thumb for Goldies is 1 gold fish 20g and 10 g for each gold fish added. So for a 20g tank 1 gold fish would be the max. They are such big waste producers. There could have been too much waste produced for the bacteria in the TSS to take control. I'm sure you'll get more responses.

As far as the foam is concerned, I'm not sure what it could be, if it's caused by TSS I don't know. Let's wait for some more responses.

What type of test kit are you using?
Ken

diepvq

So, now since i took all the fish out, should i keep adding fish food to the tank anyways to continue with the cycle? As far as the foam, should i do a partial water change or leave it for now, if i change water, would that affect the cycling?

gremlin

Did you thoroughly rinse the filter and the filter media? Sometimes I think there may be a soap residue from the manufacturer on the equipment, even on the plants and decorations and such. I would do a major water change and thoroughly rinse everything. Then restart. Keep the fish out for now. If the foam is from soap, your cycle may not even start - the soap residue would kill anything in the tank.

diepvq

I discovered why the water was foamy, it was the tetra aquasafe with bio coat, i put it in some clean water and shake it, it become foamy. I also did a 50% water change, so can i continue with the cycle or have to start a new?

nitram79

its suprising ur goldfish died coz they r the toughest fish u can get. dont over clean the tank. try and find a liquid called "cycle"its the best to get a tank started. and buy $1 fish to start off with till uv sorted it out. its always hard with a brand new tank and filters. and dont mix the fish shop water with yours when adding new fish, i have found that can cause dramas. i add a little water from the tank into the bag an float it for a bit, then poor the fish into a net and drop into the tank. i have never lost a fish since doing it that way.

aquarist48

Good morning. I have to respectively disagree with Nitram about adding the product called "Cycle". It doesn't contain the necessary bacteria to sustain your tanks cycle unless you add it for the life of the tank. It uses up the ammonia the tank needs to sustain itself and should you stop using the product then your cycle will crash.

In my opinion (IMO) had the problem with the foam been soap issues all of your fish would have died and not just two of them. Continue feeding the tank with fish food or you could even add a piece of shrimp in a filter media bag or even a net and let it decay to start your cycle.
The Aquarium Nitrogen Cycle
Check out this link concerning your nitrogen cycle. Your tank is cycled when you have 0 ammonia, 0 nitrites and 5-10 nitrates. It gives you 4 ways to cycle your tank. If and when you have questions by all means let us know.
Best of luck,
Ken

nitram79

really? i dont know much about this stuff, just going off what iv done. i used "cycle" when i upgraded my tank and it worked for me, though i wasnt losing any fish from it. do what ken says, he knows more than me ha