dreday34

I have 1 redtail shark and two angel fish. Normally I run the light in the tank for 12hrs on and 12 off. When the light has been off, It seems that my redtail shark turns pail or loses its color and only hangs out near the heater. Am I doing something wrong Help!

fish_r_friend

what size is your tank?What areyour ammonia,nitrite, nitrate levels?

newbie101

It could just be the light if he seems to be losing color, and when he hangs out near the heater he could be settling down to sleep.
Also it might help if you decreased the hours of light to 10. Too much isn't good for them...

Isabella

I think all fish go pale during the night At least all of my fish do! I remember the first time I saw them pale at night - I got scared and thought they were dying, lol. But after a while I realized they're just sleeping!

beckers4oranges

my redtail does the same thing...dont worry its not bad...but 12 hours is way to much...8-10 is where i try to limit myself to keep the night on in the tank....but if your water is healthy...so are you fish

maybet

My neons go pale at nite too.

not4you

Same thing happens to my RTS and neons. Normally within a few minutes of turning the light on they all look normal.

jbelalca

I'm sure that thats normal, my tiger barbs do the same, at night they don't make any move and look less brightness.

vin

Most fish do turn pale after lights out. IMO, 8-10 hours is too short when you consider the avg daytime hours last anywhere from 10-12 and sometimes 14 hours depending upon the season. Considering that most of these fish are from tropical climates, it makes more sense to keep closer to 12 hours. Just my opinion and I have also read this in several publications.

atmmachine816

thats too much light for angels angels like very subdued light i leave mine on for only 6 hours but thats normal for your rtbs

Jason

Mine also goes pale at night. I dont think they like too much light either. I have my light on for 10-12hrs

dreday34

I WOULD LIKE TO THANK ALL OF YOU GUYS FOR YOUR COMMENTS AND SUGGESTIONS. I HAVE ANOTHER QUESTION.... MY REDTAIL SEEMS 2B HEALTHY, BUT WHEN I PUT FOOD IN THE TANK HE GRABS A PIECE OR TWO AND SPITS IT BACK OUT.... BY THE WAY I HAVE A 29GALLON TANK AND I DO FREQUENT 20% WATER CHANGES. I NOTICE HE/SHE DIGS AROUND IN THE ROCKS QUITE A BIT, AND HAVE READ THAT THEY ARE BOTTOM FEEDERS. COULD IT BE THAT HE/SHE IS EATING THEN? THE READINGS FROM MY WATER TEST KIT IS OK.. DRE'

vin

Sounds like you may be overfeeding. How many times/day do you feed and how much? I was feeding my fish twice a day and they were doing the same thing. I wound up switching to once/day and they now eat everything. I also supplement them once/week with bloodworm instead of the regular flake food and give 1/4 algae tablet as a treat once a week.

But they won't starve if you cut back.

Gunnie

I've never owned a red tailed shark, but I have never heard of a fish dying of starvation when there was food available. *You could try some veggie wafers if he is looking for food on the bottom of the tank. *Variety is always a good thing with any fish. *You may also want to try different brands of foods. *If you can find it locally, I would highly recommend the Omega One brand foods. *When you say frequent water changes, how often do you do this? *

dreday34

I do water changes once or twice or week depending on my test readings... Its kind of like flushing the toilet for my fish... lol! DRE'

EmpPleco

Could u give us test readings? By the way it is sounding, your test results are fluctuating if you do water changes in accordance to your results. These fluctuating numbers could cause your fish to be stressed and thus lose appetite

atmmachine816

no dont do anything thats fine my rtbs didnt eat flake food at all he just at algae and anything on the bottom and he grew FAST and healthy he is perfectly fine mine grew about 4 inches in 3 months

beckers4oranges

i can second that quote because mine is doing the same... they're scavangers and look for food on the bottom of the tank...thus thats why their mouth is below them

so yes...your rtbs is eating food when he is searchin on the bottom