DAN75

Just set up a tank for my son.
its a jewel rekord 600 with pump,heater and filter built in.
Its been treated with safe start and aqua safe chemicals to help the cycle.
Its been running for 8 days now.
yesterday we bought our first fish.
4 emperor tetras and 5 glowlight danios.
within 8 hours we have lost all the danios and 1 of the tetras.
I have tested the water with a 6 in 1 kit and it passes all the checks.
the last 3 Emperor tetras are very quite and are hiding under plants and logs.

Does this tank need a air pump ?
any help appreciated !

capekate

Hi Dan
sorry to hear you are loosing fish. It is very frustrating when starting out and I wish you the best with the remaining fish. Yes, an air pump is essential in tropical tank because that is where the fish get their oxygen to breathe.
It is possible that by adding that many fish at once, their bio load producing ammonia was too much for the new beneficial bacteria to keep up with.
I would do a 50% water change asap and add some Prime water conditioner that will detoxify the ammonia that may be present in the tank.

Shawnie

welcome to fishlore!! im sorry about the loss of your fish..
when you added the safestart, did you add fish also? the safestart needs ammonia of some source to feed the bacteria so if you added it then waited the 8 days, the bacteria probably died off then adding so many fish at once overwhelmed the tank and sent ammonia through the roof ...the 6 in 1 kit are those the strips?

agabr123

what exactly are your readings?

did you see any strange behavior from any of the fish? laying on the bottom of the tank, swimming trouble, etc?

DAN75

Yes i waited 8 days then added the fish.
the 6 in 1 kit is the strips.
i have now changed 1/3rd of the water and re-applied some aqua safe.

The remaining fish are just staying on the bottom hiding and look to breathing very fast.
could this be ammonia pollution ?

Shawnie

yes im sure it is ammonia...there was nothing in the tank to feed the bacteria so it probably died ...daily water changes and a new test kit will help alot....id get the API liquid master test kit that way you never have to rely on pet stores for your readings...and some prime or stress coat + will save your fishies and make the ammonia non toxic for 24 hours until your next water change...unless you can get some more safestart, thats probably the only way to save and cylcle your tank ....goodluck !!

DAN75

Thanks for the advice i will keep you posted as to what happens.

dancerhas

The best way to save your fish is to do 50% water changes EVERY DAY, without exceptions. And EVERY TIME you change water add the recommended dose of Prime or Stress Coat + to your tank. You will probably have to do this for a month, but if you add more SafeStart it probably won't take that long.

This may sound disheartening, but it will very likely keep your fish from dying. Prime and Stress Coat + are the best water conditioners because they temporarily detoxify ammonia while still making it "edible" for the bacteria that cycle the tank. Other Ammonia removers or conditioners do not make the ammonia available to the bacteria so if they are used, the tank will never cycle.

It was the process and product above that saved our little baby Chinese Algae Eater when ALL of our other fish died of ammonia poisoning. We still have the little guy and he has grown to almost 5 inches.

Good luck with your fish and your cycle.