# To many fish dieing



## Jim 642 (Nov 2, 2012)

Had Tank about 8 months my parameters Ammonia 0 ppm. Nitrite 0ppm. Nitrate 20 ppm. PH 76. Keep buying fish they don't live long. Some last a few weeks some die in a few days. Had trouble with Panda cats at first but now have 4 Pandas & 1 Julie for 4 or 5 mos. Doing ok. Been buying Guppies had 10 female and 5 male. Now i have 6 females 1 male all within last 3 weeks. Forgot my tank is 38 gal. Had 11 neons now have 6. Thanks for any help you can give me. Jim.


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## CAM (Jan 27, 2013)

How are you acclimating them, Jim?

Is your Ph steady?

Are you matching the temp of new water when doing water changes?


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## Jim 642 (Nov 2, 2012)

Hi Cam. Been putting bag in tank for about 1 hr and putting a little water in bag 10 min apart. PH is steady. Keeping temp about the same. Jim.


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## CAM (Jan 27, 2013)

Sounds reasonable. Maybe try drip acclimating them.

http://www.aquariumforum.com/f2/drip-acclimating-fish-11327.html


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## zwanged (Nov 4, 2012)

Hi Jim,

Which dechlorinator are you using, Prime?

What is your water change schedule?

Are any fish getting stressed/bullied by other fish?

-Zeke


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## coralbandit (Jul 29, 2012)

Cam and Zeke offer good advice.
I too wonder about your water change schedule?
Drip acclimating is the way to go.I even use clean painter bucket(1 or 2 Qts.) inside 5 gallon(as often the LFS doesn't give you aalot of water).I let it drip till small bucket over flows,sometimes many times for sensative fish.
Your basic water quality seems good so possibly check your kH(carbonate hardness) and gH (general hardness).
A list of all in the tank would be helpful also.


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## CAM (Jan 27, 2013)

I started using this recently for drip acclimating. Easy and effective.

Aquarium Acclimation Kit: Reef Gently AccliMate Pro


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## hotwingz (Mar 3, 2013)

How thick is your substrate? You might be getting pockets of toxic gasses that are getting released and not transfered into safe levels.


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## zwanged (Nov 4, 2012)

Jim...just passing this info along from your PM ... doing water changes 30-35% a week sounds about right.

-Zeke


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## Manafel (Sep 4, 2011)

All good advice that everyone is offering... But, are you getting all of these fish from the same store?


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## hotwingz (Mar 3, 2013)

*i/a* this is a good point.


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## Brian757 (Sep 24, 2012)

Valid point. 

A few things to try:
1) Oxygenating the water. Get a bubbler/air stone and get some O2 in the water. 

2) Using a different source for your livestock needs.

3) Describing how your fish are dying. Describe some of their symptoms before death. Are they surfacing a lot? Heavy breathing/gill movement? Loss of appetite?

4) I will always advocate drip-line acclimation. To me it seems like the only best bet. You acclimate them to water temps but also, all the H2O parameters as well and its not too dramatic on the fish, versus other methods.


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## zwanged (Nov 4, 2012)

Yeah along those lines...are there visible signs of disease? Ich (white spot disease) is very common and can easily wipe out an entire tank of fish rapidly. Is your tank temperature stable throughout the day, and what is your heater set at?

-Zeke



Brian757 said:


> Valid point.
> 
> A few things to try:
> 1) Oxygenating the water. Get a bubbler/air stone and get some O2 in the water.
> ...


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## ramadoo (Mar 1, 2013)

Are they gulping for air at the surface? They might not be getting enough oxygen.


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## ionix (Oct 11, 2012)

A few things come to mind..

-disease
-water pollutants (aerosols, heavy metals, and etc.)
-lack of oxygen
-prev. damage from petstore, for instance rough chemicals to keep disease from running rampant.


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## coralbandit (Jul 29, 2012)

All things seem good so two more questions and one suggestion;
1.What filter are you using(this is probably not super important as your water quality seems good)?
2.What temp. is your tank and does it stay constant or due you have flucuations(this could be important)?
Suggestion:Try getting fish somewhere else besides petsmart,they're not really known for the best quality or care as they move loads of fish in and out every week,with their only concern being sell them to you before they die!


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## SueD (Aug 4, 2012)

Re:guppies, they adapt easily to most conditions. However, those from the larger box stores are often not very strong specimens. When you get them to breed in your own tank though, you should find that the fry grow to be much stronger. And you'll soon start wondering what to do with them all.


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## Jim 642 (Nov 2, 2012)

coralbandit said:


> All things seem good so two more questions and one suggestion;
> 1.What filter are you using(this is probably not super important as your water quality seems good)?
> 2.What temp. is your tank and does it stay constant or due you have flucuations(this could be important)?
> Suggestion:Try getting fish somewhere else besides petsmart,they're not really known for the best quality or care as they move loads of fish in and out every week,with their only concern being sell them to you before they die!


I'm using a aqua clear 70. I keep the temp at 76. I live in Catonsville Md that's all i have Pet Smart Pet co Or house of Tropicals Been there for years but the fish i get there i have the same trouble. I have 4 Panda cats & 1 Julie cat for about 4 months and they are doing great. Thanks for your help makes me feel good so many people trying to help me. Jim


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## Jim 642 (Nov 2, 2012)

I have a 38gal tank with sand. Took trip to fish store yesterday to get some plants to try out. I'm new to plants they told me you can't grow plants in sand. Was so disappointed i just left the store thinking did i make a mistake buy using sand. To much trouble to switch back to gravel. I think i can tie some plants to driftwood can someone tell me some easy plants to try. Thanks Jim.


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## Jim 642 (Nov 2, 2012)

Jim 642 said:


> I have a 38gal tank with sand. Took trip to fish store yesterday to get some plants to try out. I'm new to plants they told me you can't grow plants in sand. Was so disappointed i just left the store thinking did i make a mistake buy using sand. To much trouble to switch back to gravel. I think i can tie some plants to driftwood can someone tell me some easy plants to try. Thanks Jim.


Wanted this as new post any way to move it. New at computer and how to use forum sorry.Old man needs help. Thanks Jim.


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## hotwingz (Mar 3, 2013)

What type of sand are you suing? Not all sand is safe for aquariums.


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## SueD (Aug 4, 2012)

But if the sand is OK for aquariums, you can certainly plant many things in it - lots of folks use sand. I don't happen to use it so I can't tell you what will work, but I'm sure others can chime in on some good plants to try. Might be difficult to get stems to take hold, but already rooted plants may work - try some crypts, for example.


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