What did I do wrong?

madame loach · 02-02-2007, 12:25 PM

recently my two feather fin catfish died about a week apart. a couple of days before the first one went, he was acting strangely. he was swimming out and about while the lights were still on for a day or two. (he normally hides out till the lights go off). the night before he died he was hanging near the surface, swimming vertically with his mouth at the surface. everyone else in the tank seemed fine. the next morning, i found him floating. it was really upsetting. a couple of hours after i took him out, ALL the fish were hanging at the surface!!!!!! in a panic, i quickly emptied about a third-half of the water in the tank and replaced it with fresh (added de-chlorinator and stresszyme). and did tests for nitrite, nitrate, ammonia and pH. the pH was a bit high (8), but everything was within tolerance. a week or so later the other feather fin catfish did the same. they were such beautiful fish. i bought them when they were tiny, not realizing that they got so big!! they grew to about 5". they were a bit competitive, occasionally tossling for the shadiest spot in the tank, but never very aggressive. can anyone give me a clue as to why the died?? i want to do my best to keep a healthy tank!!

MY TANK: 120 Litre
1 rather large pakistani loach (4"!)
3 small zebra loaches
2 panda cories
4 mollies
4 wagtail platties
2 red eye tetras
7 cardinal tetras
3 glass catfish

gemjunkie · 02-02-2007, 01:04 PM

Have you added anything new latey to the tank? I've had fish do this when the disolved oxygen got too low. What kind of filtration do you have? How are you airating your tank? What temperature are you keeping your tank at? Have you switched foods rescently?

I'm sorry about your fish. I know how it is to have fish for a LONG time and have them suddenly die...

**Fishnut2** · 02-02-2007, 03:21 PM

I agree with Gem, in that it the DO level dropped. When was the last water change before the fish died?

Puffer Pita · 02-02-2007, 05:32 PM

There is no tolerance level for ammonia or nitrites, so I'm not sure what you meant by that.

gemjunkie · 02-02-2007, 07:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Puffer Pita

There is no tolerance level for ammonia or nitrites, so I'm not sure what you meant by that.

What?

It sounds like they knew that already. I'm basing this on my experience with MY bottom dwellers.....

madame loach · 02-03-2007, 06:51 AM

the temperature is at a steady 26 degrees celsius, 78 degrees fahrenheit. i have two pump/filter systems. a jewal that came installed in the tank and a fluval external. the water at the surface is pretty well agitated. do you think maybe i have the temp too high? i changed about a 20 percent of the water maybe a week before. and by the tolerance of ammonia and nitrite i meant the levels were very low. or should there always be absolutely no trace of ammonia and nitrite? thanks for your help!

NewfieFishGuy · 02-03-2007, 07:12 AM

Absolute zero for ammonia and nitrites is what we strive for. How long was that tank set up?

lochness · 02-03-2007, 07:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gemjunkie

What?

It sounds like they knew that already. I'm basing this on my experience with MY bottom dwellers.....

heyas, i'm so sorry for your loss

gem, i believe puffer was referring to the orig poster when he said the lvls of ammonia and nitrite were tolerable - he wasn't saying anything about your post

and readings to ammonia and nitrite should be zero, not low

kay-bee · 02-03-2007, 07:41 AM

Yes, ammonia and nitrite should be consistently non-detectable.

Being the largest fish in the tank, they had the greatest oxygen requirements of all your fish, so I can see why they were lost if the DO level did drop.

By any chance did you add any meds, especially copper-based, to your tank recently (within the last month?). Synodontis eupterus are extremely hardy fish and it's suprising that only they died. They are scaleless, so anything med or chemical harmful to scaleless fish might also be a potential factor. But then again, your smaller cories survived, so it probably wasn't that.

madame loach · 02-03-2007, 09:21 AM

i have had my tank set up for 2 and a half years. no meds in the tank. i have a separate hospital tank. i used an algae killer called eHSA protalon-707 a week or so before. could that be it? hmmmm....

Puffer Pita · 02-03-2007, 10:00 AM

Yup, precisely why I always caution against using chemicals to fix issues that can and should be fixed in more natural ways.

gemjunkie · 02-03-2007, 02:31 PM

I'm was assuming, the tank being up for a long time, with cat fish (of any kind) would have NO nitrites and NO amonia. I've killed a few cats in my time with 'low' amonia, they seem to be VERY intollerant of that more than anything else BESIDES CHEMICALS.

I would never recommend using anything other than some form of common bristlenose to rid a tank of algae, that and some plain old fasioned scrubbing. Algae may look bad but MOST algae doesn't hurt the fish and I've never had a single fish complain that it was in their tank.... :P

02-02-2007, 12:25 PM	#1
madame loach Fishy Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: london, uk Posts: 24	What did I do wrong? recently my two feather fin catfish died about a week apart. a couple of days before the first one went, he was acting strangely. he was swimming out and about while the lights were still on for a day or two. (he normally hides out till the lights go off). the night before he died he was hanging near the surface, swimming vertically with his mouth at the surface. everyone else in the tank seemed fine. the next morning, i found him floating. it was really upsetting. a couple of hours after i took him out, ALL the fish were hanging at the surface!!!!!! in a panic, i quickly emptied about a third-half of the water in the tank and replaced it with fresh (added de-chlorinator and stresszyme). and did tests for nitrite, nitrate, ammonia and pH. the pH was a bit high (8), but everything was within tolerance. a week or so later the other feather fin catfish did the same. they were such beautiful fish. i bought them when they were tiny, not realizing that they got so big!! they grew to about 5". they were a bit competitive, occasionally tossling for the shadiest spot in the tank, but never very aggressive. can anyone give me a clue as to why the died?? i want to do my best to keep a healthy tank!! MY TANK: 120 Litre 1 rather large pakistani loach (4"!) 3 small zebra loaches 2 panda cories 4 mollies 4 wagtail platties 2 red eye tetras 7 cardinal tetras 3 glass catfish Attached Images Last edited by madame loach; 02-02-2007 at 12:35 PM.

02-02-2007, 01:04 PM	#2
gemjunkie Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Spokane WA Posts: 141	Have you added anything new latey to the tank? I've had fish do this when the disolved oxygen got too low. What kind of filtration do you have? How are you airating your tank? What temperature are you keeping your tank at? Have you switched foods rescently? I'm sorry about your fish. I know how it is to have fish for a LONG time and have them suddenly die... __________________ ~gem~ The Crazy Fish Chick in Spokane WA http://www.hua.org/movie.html

02-02-2007, 03:21 PM	#3
Fishnut2 Moderator Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Chicago Posts: 387	I agree with Gem, in that it the DO level dropped. When was the last water change before the fish died? __________________

02-02-2007, 05:32 PM	#4
Puffer Pita Puffer Enthusiast Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Wisconsin Posts: 1,677	There is no tolerance level for ammonia or nitrites, so I'm not sure what you meant by that. __________________ Tina Puffers: Auriglobus silus x2 Colomesus asellus x1 Tetraodon travancoricus x1 Tetraodon biocellatus x2 Tetraodon nigroviridis x1 Tetraodon baileyi x2 Tetraodon lineatus x1 Tetraodon palembangensis x1 The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way in which its animals are treated. - Mohandas Gandhi

02-03-2007, 07:12 AM	#7
NewfieFishGuy Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada Age: 37 Posts: 79	Absolute zero for ammonia and nitrites is what we strive for. How long was that tank set up? __________________ 32g Neon Tetras, Peppered Corys. Ottos

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02-03-2007, 06:51 AM	#6
madame loach Fishy Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: london, uk Posts: 24	the temperature is at a steady 26 degrees celsius, 78 degrees fahrenheit. i have two pump/filter systems. a jewal that came installed in the tank and a fluval external. the water at the surface is pretty well agitated. do you think maybe i have the temp too high? i changed about a 20 percent of the water maybe a week before. and by the tolerance of ammonia and nitrite i meant the levels were very low. or should there always be absolutely no trace of ammonia and nitrite? thanks for your help!

02-03-2007, 07:41 AM	#9
kay-bee Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Tampa, FL Age: 39 Posts: 79	Yes, ammonia and nitrite should be consistently non-detectable. Being the largest fish in the tank, they had the greatest oxygen requirements of all your fish, so I can see why they were lost if the DO level did drop. By any chance did you add any meds, especially copper-based, to your tank recently (within the last month?). Synodontis eupterus are extremely hardy fish and it's suprising that only they died. They are scaleless, so anything med or chemical harmful to scaleless fish might also be a potential factor. But then again, your smaller cories survived, so it probably wasn't that. __________________ 4 african cichlid tanks 4 saltwater aquariums Last edited by kay-bee; 02-03-2007 at 07:47 AM.

02-03-2007, 09:21 AM	#10
madame loach Fishy Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: london, uk Posts: 24	i have had my tank set up for 2 and a half years. no meds in the tank. i have a separate hospital tank. i used an algae killer called eHSA protalon-707 a week or so before. could that be it? hmmmm....

02-03-2007, 10:00 AM	#11
Puffer Pita Puffer Enthusiast Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Wisconsin Posts: 1,677	Yup, precisely why I always caution against using chemicals to fix issues that can and should be fixed in more natural ways. __________________ Tina Puffers: Auriglobus silus x2 Colomesus asellus x1 Tetraodon travancoricus x1 Tetraodon biocellatus x2 Tetraodon nigroviridis x1 Tetraodon baileyi x2 Tetraodon lineatus x1 Tetraodon palembangensis x1 The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way in which its animals are treated. - Mohandas Gandhi

02-03-2007, 02:31 PM	#12
gemjunkie Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Spokane WA Posts: 141	I'm was assuming, the tank being up for a long time, with cat fish (of any kind) would have NO nitrites and NO amonia. I've killed a few cats in my time with 'low' amonia, they seem to be VERY intollerant of that more than anything else BESIDES CHEMICALS. I would never recommend using anything other than some form of common bristlenose to rid a tank of algae, that and some plain old fasioned scrubbing. Algae may look bad but MOST algae doesn't hurt the fish and I've never had a single fish complain that it was in their tank.... :P __________________ ~gem~ The Crazy Fish Chick in Spokane WA http://www.hua.org/movie.html

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