# Huge Crisis Please Help



## newbiefishfanatic (Dec 11, 2008)

I AM IN PANIC MODE. I CAME HOME FROM PETSMART TONIGHT AND ALL MY FISH WERE AT THE BOTTOM OF THE TANK. ALL OF THEM SITTING ON THE BOTTOM BREATHING HEAVILY. 

I HAVE FOUND MY ORANGE DOUBLE SWORDTAIL DEAD AND ONE OF MY LEOPARD DANIOS. THE DANIO WAS COMPLETELY EMPTIED! JUST A SHELL WAS LEFT. 

WTF IS HAPPENING?! I took out the old media because it was covered in crap, and they started swimming around a bit, but some are still lying on the substrate! ammonias 0 nitrites 0 and nitrates 10! WTF! if anyone has any ideas, PLEASE throw them my way.

PS-dead fish had nothing to indicate disease. only weird thing about the danio was he was completely...empty. i had noticed my double swordtail was resting at the bottom earlier today, but i thought he was just resting...stupid me. i have put some salt in the tank, and dont know what else to do...


----------



## Calmer (Mar 9, 2008)

I would say a 25% water change and add an air bubbler. Watch and see if the fish respond positively to this. If you are adding co2 then stop any co2 going into the tank.


----------



## Darkblade48 (Jan 28, 2008)

When in doubt, always do water changes (of course, adjust the water to the right temperature and add the appropriate water conditioner (preferably one that neutralizes both chlorine and chloramine)). 

When you say you took out your old media, do you mean your filter media? It's possible that when you did this, you removed all the beneficial bacteria that were present, and your tank is actually going through a cycle (check those ammonia values again!)


----------



## ameekplec. (May 1, 2008)

are there snails in the tank? Snails will often eat the stomach area first as it's the softest part of the fish.

As said earlier, water change and add an airstone, but if they're at the bottom huffing, I'd suspect something other than low dissolved oxygen.

What is the temperature of the water? Is your heater functioning properly (not dead/stuck on?)

anything added to the tank recently? any changes?


----------



## Prodicus (Nov 3, 2008)

I was a bit puzzled when I saw you were replacing your media.
For bio media, normally you would rinse it in aquarium water.
If you replace it with brand new media, your tank will surely cycle again.
Am I missing something here?



newbiefishfanatic said:


> I AM IN PANIC MODE. I CAME HOME FROM PETSMART TONIGHT AND ALL MY FISH WERE AT THE BOTTOM OF THE TANK. ALL OF THEM SITTING ON THE BOTTOM BREATHING HEAVILY.
> 
> I HAVE FOUND MY ORANGE DOUBLE SWORDTAIL DEAD AND ONE OF MY LEOPARD DANIOS. THE DANIO WAS COMPLETELY EMPTIED! JUST A SHELL WAS LEFT.
> 
> ...


----------



## newbiefishfanatic (Dec 11, 2008)

thank you all for responding. 

i believe it had to do with the dirty filter cartridge. i took them out (there were 2) and the fish are doing much, MUCH better. im not sure what happend though. i will do all the tests again in awhile to see where my params are. 

i onl have one snail in that tank that i have seen, so i guess it was a snail that devoured my leopard danio. still very odd though. ive never seen that before.

luckily, i bought 2 "bubble walls" yesterday and 4 small airstones. i will put them in ASAP.


----------



## Calmer (Mar 9, 2008)

newbiefishfanatic, when you get those aquariums sorted out and become a seasoned fish expert are you going to change your online name? Maybe something like Fishfanatic. I know there are others out there that are asking the same question but are afraid to come forward.


----------



## Katalyst (Jul 29, 2007)

Prodicus said:


> I was a bit puzzled when I saw you were replacing your media.
> For bio media, normally you would rinse it in aquarium water.
> If you replace it with brand new media, your tank will surely cycle again.
> Am I missing something here?


I am wondering the same thing, the 'dirty stuff' on your filter cartridges are what keep your filters cycled. They should be wringed out or rinsed in aquarium water but not thrown away. This may cause your cycle to crash or a have a small bump in it so you may want to keep an eye on your water parameters.


----------



## newbiefishfanatic (Dec 11, 2008)

are you serious? it says on the package to change it once a month. its the blue floss stuff with carbon in it stuck to some plastic...

ill show you...

its not like the aquaclear filters...and im not going to change the bio-wheel...

and i cant clean it off. i tried, its WAY to encrusted with stuff.


----------



## blossom112 (Mar 19, 2008)

Toss it out .....thats fine ..you have the bio-wheel ... thats what i do .
I dont think that filter was the problem ,mine get that dirty when i change them , most comes from having lots plants like you do .
I have learned to give those a good rinse at least 1x a week to get the plant stuff off ,if i dont then i have to replace every 2 weeks .
Do you have a cannister ? you might want to get 1 for each tank as this will help .
Plus i usually run carbon and amm seprately still just put in media bag and drop it in , i think those cartidges dont have enough in them .
Glad to hear everything is better .
funny thing my friend called me in a pannick yesterday her fish were acting funny like that too .... but later they were fine ....


----------



## Katalyst (Jul 29, 2007)

blossom112 said:


> Toss it out .....thats fine ..you have the bio-wheel ... thats what i do .
> I dont think that filter was the problem ,mine get that dirty when i change them , most comes from having lots plants like you do .
> I have learned to give those a good rinse at least 1x a week to get the plant stuff off ,if i dont then i have to replace every 2 weeks .
> Do you have a cannister ? you might want to get 1 for each tank as this will help .
> ...


Whew! You have a biowheel! I didn't know that at the beginning of your post and thought you were throwing out all of your media. When I used to run biowheels I didn't use the filter insert. I stuffed it with aquaclear sponges and small ceramic noodles. Worked like a charm and no filter cartridges to replace. You still however have to wring out the sponge in tank water as tank maintence.

Good call Blossom.


----------



## blossom112 (Mar 19, 2008)

lol kat i thaught the same thing you did tho .........

but the sponges are awesome ......so much better then the filters .....it slipped my mind as i use the sponge for saltwater and have to use the cartridges for fresh cause if i dont ROLMAO i get confused ...........i did this once and had to toss all filters and go get new ones lol

I second the sponges!!!!!!!!!!
maybe next time im out (hopefully today ) ill grab you one ........never have to buy them filters again!!!
I have some ceramics you can grab a handfull too!


I still say that big tank should have a cannister as will go much more smoothly ..........for your new fishy coming!!!!

And from now on QT any new fish .......... a bucket is great for that set it up with a HOB heater and keep them in it for at least 6 to 8 weeks .
If you dont have buckets i have lots them too lol (old salt buckets)


----------



## blossom112 (Mar 19, 2008)

You just remonded me i need to grab a floating thermoter for my bucket QT


----------



## newbiefishfanatic (Dec 11, 2008)

thanks doreen for the advice. i guess i didnt know what i was getting myself into when i started keeping fish. i knew what my dad had taught me, and he kept oranged capped orandas alive for 8 years! tropical fish are a lot harder to deal with....

calmer-i guess i will change my name when the time comes! i am still new, and learning a lot from unfortunate first hand experiences...feeling very stupid the whole way along...

all the fish are better now. i guess it was the dirty cartridge. i have got to go out today and get some of those sponges and stuff doreen told me about. what else should i get...a canister filter? anybody have a suggest of brand?


----------



## aeri (Sep 9, 2007)

eheim pro


----------



## ameekplec. (May 1, 2008)

EHEIM!!

I love my eheims. They are definite workhorses (I have a 2213 on a 10g, 2215s on 20 and 15g tanks, and 2x 2217s on a 75g tank), and I'd recommend them any day. Go with a classic. Don't get it at BA. Get it from Pets and ponds.com Much cheaper and shipping is $7 for orders under $200.


----------



## blossom112 (Mar 19, 2008)

canister .....best get used ........
they are so darn expensive with all the media too ....
I have 1 and lost the darn washer on it so it is now awaiting a washer to either sell or use .....think i will use it cant have too much filtration lol


Hey we are all at risk for the problems you have been having as of lately.


----------



## Cory (May 2, 2008)

I second Katalyst's advice to use AC sponges in the biowheel filters. That's what I do. AC sponges are IMO the best media available. You can use them for a very long time so long as you squeeze them out in tank water every so often. Sometimes it requires you to push them around a bit to make sure they are seated properly in the filter so as not to disrupt the intake propeller, biowheel or general water flow but once you find the right balance it's great. 

Also, I noticed Doreen mentioned lots of live plants. It's a long shot but if you left the lights off on the tank for too long that could have been the problem. When in the dark plants which are normally net producers of o2 become consumers of o2 and can take the oxygen out of the water pretty well. That's one of the reasons why planted tanks require more surface agitation than do unplanted ones. That said, it is a long shot theory. I can't figure out what dirty media might have been doing other than disrupting water flow to a point where it wasn't disturbing the surface of the water enough to allow oxygen into the water. Fish gasping at the bottom of the tank usually indicates high levels of ammonia but you said that was at 0 so Im puzzled. Glad to hear it is cleared up though.


----------



## Zebrapl3co (Mar 29, 2006)

Same here, I was scratching my head when I was reading this post. I agreed with Cory. Plants can actually suffocate your fish by out competing for O2. I once had a black out and the end results where pretty obvious. The real kicker is that fish that can breath air for a short period of time didn't have a problem.

*Never pay again for live sex! | Hot girls doing naughty stuff for free! | Chat for free!*


----------



## newbiefishfanatic (Dec 11, 2008)

wow this has been an interesting thread! thing is though, i only have 2 real, live plants in there. i did not have a cover/light for the tank until a few days ago though. no idea what happened. im just glad everyone other than the double swordtail and danio are alright.

i will work on getting a canister filter. for now, things seem alright. i have been using an HOB for my little 10 gallon, and its doing very well. (other than that insane nitrate spike, fully my fault because of dead snails.)


----------



## Zebrapl3co (Mar 29, 2006)

Nah, 2 plants are OK. I am kind of talking about a fully planted tank like those European style planted tanks.

As for filters. I don't know ... my favourite is still my modified eclipse hood filter. Canister is nice and quiet, but I find maintenance too trouble some and because it's so bloody quiet, especially the expensive eheim. Most of the time, I won't know it stop running and that was my grievances with them. Too bloody nice and quiet. I once lost 1/2 a tank of baby zebra plecos and scores of crystal shrimps because the eheim some how sucks bubbles during water change and stalled. I didn't know until 3 days later when things got really really bad. *urg* still hurts when I think about it.... lost lots of hair on that one.

*Never pay again for live sex! | Hot girls doing naughty stuff for free! | Chat for free!*


----------



## blossom112 (Mar 19, 2008)

Well thanks for the tips on the canisters ........i shall remember to check them after W/C .
I know what you mean by too quiet i keep checking them to be sure their is water coming off the spray bars lol
I dont like the cleaning them tho , i get confused and loose peices lol


I think now with your lights and more info everything should run smoothly for you now ..
just a heads up ......if you are dousing the tank for the live plants it is best not to put your shrimps in that tank  throw them in the other tank ....


----------



## William F (Apr 21, 2009)

Add 2 airpumps with cords with airstone to aquarium and oxygenating tablets. Also, check the heating and thermometer, and set the heater to 24c or just below. I think they might be too hot . Also a gentle siphon, 25-50 percent water change. Do siphoning twice a week, removing, as above, 25 - 50 percent water, because nitrates are a little high. Also, what other fish have you got in there?

PS If you have any, use a CO2-free pH down for the water, as all of this oxygen could increase the alkalinity of the pH. If you have any acid-loving fish, forget the oxygenating tablets.


----------

