New planted tank... fish are dying.

[Zulaab]

Re: New planted tank... fish are dying.

The 58g I have over time had only a total of 3 deaths in it, and at the time when two died within a few days of each other I figured it was just that fish where new and they could have come from the LFS sick.    The third death was very much my fault for letting a dying airpump die out and not replacing it ASAP and hoping I could wait until the next paycheck for the extra cash to spend on it.   That mistake will not occur again.  I now over O2 all of my tanks to ensure that there is always air in them.

The 58g right now has a hardness of 300+ (tap water), pH of 8.4, Ammonia trace, NO2 = trace, NO3 ~ 20.   If I didn't believe the RAM would be stressed to HELL AND BACK from the change, I would put him/her in there, but I believe it would be dead within hours from stress.   This weekend I am going to do another 50% water change in the QT tank (going to put 50% of the water in bucket with the lone fish and then I am going to clean out the tank making sure that all the surfaces etc are cleaned out then I am going to add 50% water back rainwater / tap water and see how it does.   The Ram is barely eating and VERY skittish - this is both good and bad..  good because the fish is going all over the aquarium when you don't approach it (after a month of sitting on the bottom of the aquarium its a nice change), bad I don't want to stress the little bugger out by netting him and have to move him.

I am really getting to the point I am starting to believe that the fish arrived sick, or at least one of them was very sick and basically gave all of them something to kill off...  I don't think that with all the water changes and all the work I have done to attempt to keep them alive, before I moved to the QT tank did me any good.  I am starting to believe Melafix fixed the problem for the fish but it simply was to late for most of them.

I know I am making Noobie mistakes because it has been 22 yrs since I used to keep Rams, and I am realizing that when I get Rams again I am not going to do it until I have an RO machine in the house to make me water.  My Dad, before he retired, worked for a Catalyst Engineering company and in the Lab I could always go get RO water from the tap.  I would take a 55 liter drum with me to his office and have him fill it up and use it to change out water with in all of my tanks, but more importantly in my Ram and Discus tanks especially.   I used to breed Rams which is why I wanted to get some more now that I had my own house and loved the fish when I was a kid.  

This experience has taught me a few (expensive) lessons.
1.  Cycle your tank 100% with fish that are hardy, I am seriously thinking that I am going to buy 15 feeder guppies next time and run them for a month in one tank and then move them into a small tank so I have them for next time.
2.  Get fish that can handle Houston tap water until I get a reliable source of RO water.  I am thinking that I am going to order a RO machine one of these days that can make me about 50-75 GPD and get myself a 110G drum and put it in the garage and fill it up so I have RO water on tap at all times.

I am still learning and that is the fun part.  I enjoy fish very much, and what I have noticed is that I am very happy sitting in front of them and looking at them for a while.  They do really relax you and make you smile when you are not doing all well.

[Anonapersona]

Re: New planted tank... fish are dying.

Sadly wedensday I had a double death.  The Pleco died and one Ram died.

So... the same day as the water change with rainwater?

In the evening, near bedtime, do you ever notice the sounds of low flying small planes?

I still suspect mosquito sprays are in your rainwater.

[Zulaab]

Re: New planted tank... fish are dying.

The HOA has a contract with someone who is spraying with a truck.  They are for sure not spraying with low level flying (as a pilot in education I am extremely in tune with what goes over my head, even down to knowing how the pipeline patrol planes look like)

Water change was done either Friday or Saturday last week, on Tuesday I wrote I made the water change a couple of days ago, and since I know what I was doing Sunday (was out all day) I know it was either Friday or Saturday I made the change.   The Fish died 4 days after that.   The water upstairs which also got rainwater is fine.. the guppies are running around like its the best place since sliced bread, and all the males are attempting to get the females pregnant..

[Mzungu]

Re: New planted tank... fish are dying.

I'm really sorry about everything.

Just one thing, though - be sure that when you clean out the tank, not to use ANY chemicals whatsoever.  :)

[Zulaab]

Re: New planted tank... fish are dying.

The cleaning of the tank will be done with hot water basically, just a quick rise and dry with paper towel... because two weeks ago it was cleaned with hot water and a lot of knuckle grease.  The only reason I want to clean the tank out is to make sure 110% of all left over food and other gunk in the tank is gone so it does not sit there and make the water even worse.