Red Bellied Piranha dieing i need help!

[ZED]

Newbie hi and luv the site..

For the last couple of days my RBP has been laying on the bottom of the tank very weak and gasping...

I have added a better air pump

PH levels are fine

Tank is a good size for the RPB and he has always lived alone (by choice he ate the others)

amonia level is high at 5 dropped from 7

I have done a 70% water change

then the next day 50%

I have been puttin in a medecine that i got from the local pet shop that they say will lower amonia levels but theres no change

RPB is 10yrs old and never been ill or had any problems its been in amazing health

Please help me i cant watch it die!

Zed

[Vassili]

Why are the levels of ammonia so high? Dude just keep up the water changes, teh more the better.

[malawi4me2]

I know you said that the tank size is "good" for a RBP, but how many gallons is it? ("Good" tank sizes seem to be subject to opinion.) Your ammonia levels are WAY too high! A cycled tank should be 0ppm for ammonia and nitrites, and no more than 40ppm (give or take a little) nitrate. Have you had this RBP for 10 years, or is it a new fish to you?

[ZED]

i dont know why the levels are so high it all started when i did a water change. Its dieing slowly and i feel helpless. i have tried everything....

[ZED]

I have had this RBP for 10 years with no probs.. until now.. i'm not sure of the exact size of the tank i'm at work now i got it written down at home as i got a bad memory..

what if i moved the RBP from the tank into another would that help it or will moving it stress it further? but the new water would have a zero amonia i would test etc and make sure the water is perfect.. temp. ph level good etc..

[Fishfirst]

don't move it... your RBP is a tough fish, but ammonia kills
Here is what I'd do...

I would keep doing 25% water changes every 2-4 hours. Until your ammonia is at 0. Then I'd add bio spira to the tank. Every day, check your ammonia, nitrites, and nitrates. For some reason your tank is going through another cycle... Have you cleaned your tank recently? Whats your daily, weekly, monthly, maintenance on the tank? What and how much do you feed? And as for the tank dimentions... how long about is it? 4ft? 6ft? How wide? 1ft? 2 ft? 3 ft? How tall? 1ft? 2 ft? 3 ft? Just estimate please... we need to get a hold of the real problem. How long have you had the tank?

[ZED]

The tank is 3ft across and 1.2 ft down

Ive had the P for 10 years, ****and its been in the current tank for 3 years.

Ive used bio cycle in it which i was advised to by the guy at the aquriam.

I wen to another one today and bought ammo-lock2, which seems to have taken the ammonia rate to about 4ppm

From what I understand amm-lock will make the ammonia non toxic, then the filter will consume the non toxic ammonia and convert it to nitrite then nitrate?
Is this right?

Ive tested the tank for nitrite and nitrate a few hours after i used ammo-lock, and all is fine so far.

What if the tank will contain nitrite or nitrate later on, how do i cure this? Is there something like amm-lock for the two?

Thankyou all very much for your help so far, I appreciate it!

[Fishfirst]

I'd just keep doing water changes... most ammonia removers don't work very well. Also its really bacteria that convert ammonia to nitrite to nitrate... not the "filter" although thats where a lot of this bacteria grows. Just out of curiousity what are you feeding him? Its nice to see a fellow P caretaker on this forum

[ZED]

i feed him white bait i buy a bag of them from the pet shop. is putting in other water really a bad idea? i'm in theory if i set the water up good with water and temps perfect? he will still be ill but have perfect water?

[Fishfirst]

Do partial water changes... "new" water is a lot better than "old" water. Temp really doesn't make a huge difference if you have a heater in the tank and add the new water slowly. I would read up on the Nitrogen cycle... if you've never done a water change I would expect your nitrates to be high too.
He is "ill" because your ammonia is high. partial water changes will take care of the ammonia problem fairly quickly. White bait? is that a fish??? I feed my P's several foods, including raw shrimp, raw catfish, raw pollock, raw tilapia, raw squid, flakes and once in a while a piece of lettuce/Quarentined feeder fish/pinky mouse. I try to stay away from feeders as they are good disease carryers.

[ZED]

I took a sample of the water to the aquariam and they tested it for me, ammomia is on its way down, nitrite and nitrate levels are fine, I cycled the gravel and done another water change to. I bought some melafix also.

My P hasnt eaten while its been unwel (around a week) but has started to look really bloated today? Why is that?

Thankyou!

[ZED]

up!

[Thunderkiss]

Feeder fish of any sort are generally a bad thing. Not a lot of nutritional value there at all. Not only that but they will add to your bioload as well, and is most certainly a contributor to your ammonia problem you are experiencing. Do more water changes. A LOT more.

As stated above, damn near any fish we can eat is extremely good for them as well. Scallops, shrimp, haddock, all fine foods. You may have trouble getting them to eat at first, but when he's hungry enough he will, then once he figures out that it is indeed edible you'll be set. Just be sure to remove any uneaten hunks in a timely fashion.

[Fishfirst]

Bloatedness could be a lot of things right now, is he swimming abnormally? I would keep doing those water changes and see if he just gets better on his own. Usually its a symptom of water quality. I would go with 25% a day until your readings are as follows:
ammonia 0
nitrite 0
nitrate 10-30