three danios, now one!

I just purchased three danios today. I am a beginner. My tank has not been cycled. My LFS said that I needed to cycle my tank, they said that I should start with the danios. Are two of my three danios dead because the tank wasn't cycled? If so , how do I cycle my tank and get my fish to not die?

The other fish I was going to add in were :

Two Black Skirt Tetras

1 Neon Orange Dwarf Crayfish

Can fish die from a lack of oxygen? How do you make sure you have enough oxygen in your tank?

 

HI Matt, welcome to the forum!

Yes, you need to cycle your tank and yes, fish can die from lack of oxygen. More likely in your case though they died from ammonia poisoning. What is the size of your tank and what kind of filter are you running on it?

 

I am using a ten gallon tank with a Aqueon QuietFlow 10 I had to put a cut up piece of water bottle to reduce to outflow rate because it was blowing my danios all over the place!

this is what my remaining danio is doing its been doing this for 4 hrs

It is now dead :'(

 

I'm sorry for your loss

Have you heard of a fishless cycle? That might be the better way to go to get your tank ready for fish!

Have you decided what you want to stock it with?

 

I think I'm going to go with the neon dwarf crayfish two black skirt tetras and maybe more zebra danios How do I do a fishless cycle? Has my tank gone through the cycle now that I have had fish excrete waste in my tank?

 

A fish less cycle you put the waste in there yourself (aka drop in fish food and let it sit).

 

Sorry for your loss,
black skirt tetras need 20 gallon min, and so do zebra danios, so you'd need a bigger tank for them, they also need to be in groups of atleast 5+.
is there any other type of fish you'd like?
the crayfish would be ok though...
here's a previous thread on fishlesscycling:https://www.fishlore.com/aquariumfishforum/threads/ammonia-instructions-for-a-fishless-cycle.19627/

 

what fish do you recommend that will go in a ten gallon with the crayfish?

 

Personally I would recommend a fishless cycle. The fish that are hardy enough for cycling usually fall into the category of too big for a 10. (Experts please correct me if I'm wrong!)
Also I would hold off on any sort of invertebrates until after you are cycled as they seem more sensitive.
I did a fishless cycle using Prime as a water conditioner, Dr. Tim's ammonium chloride (dose 10 drops daily) as a clean ammonia source, and seachem stability daily for my beneficial bacteria. It was complete in about 3 weeks.
Read up on the nitrogen cycle and save yourself a lot of heartache and money.

 

The tank is too small for those fish. In fact I've been told 10 gallons is too small for any fish.

 

The tank is too small for those fish. In fact I've been told 10 gallons is too small for any fish.

Hold up! That's not true. A betta is perfect for a 10gal their aren't a lot but there are some. Danios are not good for a 10gal. First because danios need to be in a group of 6+. Second they are very active and a 10gal restricts them from swimming very far.

 

There's actually quite a few fish befitting a 10 gallon. There's a list around here somewhere :3 I remember a small group of guppies, different types of tetra and a single Betta were among the list, along with others. 10 gallon is actually a decent size for starters but not enough to quench the thirst of somebody that wants several species of schooling fish in one tank. This is why my 10 gallon is only for my Betta and I intend to get a 30 gallon or so for some schooling fish.

 

There's actually quite a few fish befitting a 10 gallon. There's a list around here somewhere :3 I remember a small group of guppies, different types of tetra and a single Betta were among the list, along with others. 10 gallon is actually a decent size for starters but not enough to quench the thirst of somebody that wants several species of schooling fish in one tank. This is why my 10 gallon is only for my Betta and I intend to get a 30 gallon or so for some schooling fish.

10gal is for a beginner because it's smaller, but it's harder to take care of. The bigger the tank, the easier it is to keep clean and keep stable. For example if you spill some lets see chemicals in the tank. For a 10gal the chemicals would spread quicker than a 40gal or 20gal.

 

Let's not get sidetracked, please address Matts questions & not each other.

 

The bigger the tank, the easier it is to keep clean and keep stable.

This is very true! And this is also why people recommend that if you're a starter get the biggest tank possible! But people usually shy away from big tanks because of the larger price even though the care is actually easier.

what fish do you recommend that will go in a ten gallon with the crayfish?

I don't think I'd recommend fish in a 10 gallon with a cray. Somebody correct me if I'm wrong but I've heard of cray snapping fish, plus I believe that a 10 gallon is minimum for a crayfish by itself.

 

This is very true! And this is also why people recommend that if you're a starter get the biggest tank possible! But people usually shy away from big tanks because of the larger price even though the care is actually easier.

I don't think I'd recommend fish in a 10 gallon with a cray. Somebody correct me if I'm wrong but I've heard of cray snapping fish, plus I believe that a 10 gallon is minimum for a crayfish by itself.

A 20gal is the minimum for a crayfish. Now a dwarf crayfish you can have 2 in a 10gal. And yes you are right. If you don't feed the crayfish well enough each day they will start to pick your fish off one by one.

 

In that case I'd recommend getting 2 dwarf cray! They're pretty silly little critters and very interesting to watch. I personally would say get 2 because,
1. I wouldn't trust one around fish in case it was cranky or hungry one day.
2. Wouldn't want it to get lonely!

 

In that case I'd recommend getting 2 dwarf cray! They're pretty silly little critters and very interesting to watch. I personally would say get 2 because,
1. I wouldn't trust one around fish in case it was cranky or hungry one day.
2. Wouldn't want it to get lonely!

Lol yes they are silly little creatures. I am thinking about getting two myself, but this isn't about me. I agree that you can get 2 dwarf crayfish, but just make sure each has a cave to themselves.

 

Dwarf crayfish are fine in 10 gallon imo, and will not hurt the other fish, also their are a few species of danios that can be kept in 10g, including; CPDs, emerald dwarf rasboras etc...