Cardinal Tetras not doing so well...

Hey I have a 10 gallon that has been cycling for 1 month and week. Before I knew about cycling I threw in 3 corys on the 2nd day of cycling and they are alive and have been doing well all the way up to today, but I added 6 neon tetras on the first week and they ended up dying. They were breathing really fast and just kept breathing faster every day until they all died out. So I waited a month and added 6 cardinal tetras and acclimated them by letting them float in the bag for 30 minutes and then gradually adding more and more water to the bag for a hour and a half. I added them to the tank and at night time I noticed one was breathing very fast again and then it died the next morning. Its the 3rd day now of having them and they are all opening their mouth opened and closed about 2-3 times a second. They all eat normally and school together. I am not sure what is happening here and I don't know my water parameters but I would like to know what are the possible reasons why they are doing this and has anyone had this happen before and know how to treat/fix this? I would have thought that if the cory cats have been doing well the whole month then the cardinals would be okay, but I guess not. Help and advice on helping the cardinals would be appreciated, THANKS! *Temperature is 78 F*

 

Cardinals are sensitive to changes in water chemistry. Not the best fir newly cycled tanks or cycling tanks.

I highly recommend getting a liquid test kit. It is very important to know your parameters.

I suggest in doing a 50% water change with your conditioner. Make sure the water is the same temp as the tank. After the change you may notice a behavior change or hope so.

Please test your water as that can tell you and us more to help.

Daily water changes may be in order with Seachem Prime. Best conditioner for cycling with fish.

 

While it seems that buying a Master Test Kit is essential for you to do, in the short term lets' try to save the fish you have left. Most likely your fish are experiencing spikes in ammonia and/or nitrites. You need to do at least a 50% water change, making sure to dechlorinate the new water with a product like Prime (or what ever water conditioner you have handy) before it enters the tank. You should do another major change every day until you have gotten your water tested clear, either by bringing it to our lfs or by buying the test kit yourself. Good luck to you and the fishies!

 

Hello and welcome to fishlore!!!!

First, when you say your tank has been cycling for a month and a week, how did you know your water parameters were okay? By that I mean, did you test it with a test kit to achieve 0 ammonia, 0 nitites?
Are you familiar with the nitrogen cycle? If not, I highly recommend you reading up on this - https://www.fishlore.com/NitrogenCycle.htm

The tetras are sensitive to water changes, ph changes and will not do as well in a new tank that's not cycled. Unfortunately, that is probably the cause of them dying.
The cory's are a lot hardier and can adapt much better than the tetras.

Hopefully after reading about the nitrogen cycle, this will help!

 

Thanks for all the recommendations guys, I definitely have a lot to learn but I'm on my way there. I did a 50% water change and used API stresscoat as a dechlorinator. The cardinals are still acting the same but hopefully they recover. But I think I might change to Prime instead of stresscoat for it takes out ammonia, nitrates, nitrites, and any other harmful chemicals in tapwater. thanks everyone!