wooza

hi Guys,
After my tank finished cycling on Tuesday I went to the LFS last night and bought 5 danios. I have 1 zebra, 2 pearl and 2 leopard. I noticed before I went to bed that one of the guys was constantly just below the surface, staying pretty still. I turned down the flow on my spray bar as I thought the current may be too strong. Then when I got up today the little guy looked just as bad. I put some food in for the other guys, came back 10 mins later and he was dead. When I first began my cycle some weeks ago, I put 5 danios in and they all died. So that is when I began the fishless cycle. I thought this would have solved the problem, but it looks like I am going to lose all of them again. What the heck could be causing this? I have done everthing right, ammonia is 0, nitrites 0 and nitrates 10. I did a 50 % water change after the tank cycled and everything seemed hunky dory. Please help!!!!!!

kimb

Did you add conditioner to the water you added? Was the temp o.k? Did you acclimate them for quite a while to the water? What is your pH? All of these could cause the fish shock. If the cycle was only "complete" Tuesday perhaps it was not complete enough..meaning maybe leave it an extra few days to make sure the cycle is stable? Could it be that the one fish was sick? Hang in there, just because the one didn't make, doesn't mean the rest won't. Really sorry for your loss after everything you went through to get there. good luck.

wooza

Yes I added conditioner to the water. My temp is currently 27. I acclimated them for half an hour as instructed by the LFS. But the more I hear about employees at LFS's, the less I trust them. The only reason I added the fish so soon is because I didn't want the bacteria to die off due to lack of ammonia. I will get my bro to check on them now and see how the others are getting on. Thanks for the sympathy.

capekate

Sorry to hear of your troubles with the Danio's. When you acclimate the fish, its not just keeping the bag in the water to adjust them to the water temp in the tank, you must also add a bit of tank water to the bag every 15 minutes to help the fish acclimate to your PH level before adding them to the tank. Just mentioning this in the case that the LFS didnt instruct you on that.
I wish you the best of luck with your remaining Danio's.

aquarist48

Hello...sorry to hear you're having difficulties and fish loss. Anytime I add new fish I check the pH levels in the bag that the fish came in. You can take a fish from a low pH to a high pH without it being fatal. However, you cannot take a fish from a high pH to a low pH without the loss of fish. That is why CapeKate is telling you to add water to the bag about every 15 minutes or so for an hour. Best of luck! Hang in there!

wooza

Hmmm, thanks for the advice guys. The LFS employee did say to add some tank water into the bag, but only once after 15 mins. I will bear that in mind for next time. The little guys are dazzing about all over the place today, and are eating flakes. I think the next 24 hours will be the telling time, as by then last time, I had lost all 5.

aquarist48

Keeping fingers crossed!

wooza

Guys,
The danois appear to be thriving right now. I have also had to add 1 small bala shark, 5 neon tetras, and 2 live bearers due to a pal of mine wanting rid. He was actually considering flushing them so I took them off his hands. I know that the shark grows big, but my 45 should be enough for a while. I plan to get a 75 in the next 4 months. I acclimatised them for well over an hour yesterday and they seem fine today. The shark has eaten all of the fungus that was covering my driftwood. Do you think that is too many fish for a 45?

4 danois, 5 tetras, 2 swordtails and a bala shark.

If it is not too many fish, do you have any suggstions as to some I could add. I want to get 2 more sharks as I have read that they are shoaling fish, but I will wait until I get the 75 for that. Other than that I am not sure, I would like an angel or 2 but the LFS told me they will eat my little fish.

Shawnie

wow you deffinately have upgraded with fish hey ...

unfortuntately, 3 bala's in a 75 gal isnt big enough although bala's love some of their own, they do fine alone as well...I wouldnt get anymore because they are huge gentle giants as they mature...the one you have in your 45 gal, although they grow slow, will need his new tank so his inner organs are not stunted, sooner than later..if you only keep 2 bala's for a 75 gal, that might work..but you wont be able to have more as they wont have room to turn around...they love swimming horizontally back and fourth... ...

once you remove the bala from the 45 gal, you can add some other fish...

as far as angels, its a give or take on if they will eat your neons...some members have ok luck with them, I have not....so thats going to be a gamble ...some members say if the angels grow up with them, they will be fine ..

keep a really close eye on your cycle as that is a ton of fish to add at once to a newly cycled tank....goodluck!

wooza

Thanks shawnie. Looks like I better start putting plans together for the 75 sooner than I expected.
I passed by an LFS today and they have bala's for just £3. Nowhere does it say that they grow so big. I think it is shocking that these stores get away with selling fish to unsuspecting novices. Luckily I found this site before I got any fish and have done a fair bit of research. I also saw a black ghost knife. I thought hey thats cool, it would look so nice in one of my tanks. Then I got home, read about it and found that they are not suitable for community tanks and need big tanks as they grow large. Yet in the LFS it was just in a small tank with angels and gouramis, available for anybody to buy for little over £5. It is shocking.