MRSkz Posted January 26, 2007 Report Share Posted January 26, 2007 Well seems we all do it, eventualy I suppose. Get complacent and don't clean something enough or think "she'll be right" or just don't think at all and put something in a tank that later comes back to bite us in the tush. It seems it was my turn to do that yesterday and today I woke up to a 4 footer with 95% deaths. My cichlid tank has now been reduced to a dozen electirc yellow and blue zebra babies (the smallest of the small) and the biggest of the big one humbug catfish (fingers crossed he'll make it). I've lost all my Kenyi, Aratus, my Bumblebee's, the larger 4-6cm baby electric yellows and blue zebras, and 2 red tailed sharks. Yesterday I decided to top up the cichlid tank's sand with the sand from the 3 footer that I'd recently stripped. I was having a few die off's in there so moved all the fish to the 2 footer (numbers were suficiantly thinned to do this). I didn't think about the sand making them sick. Also I dropped in a courgette into the tank, from the garden, and I don't remember if I gave it a wash or not. I suppose this will be a costly reminder not to get complacent when keeping fish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gatito Posted January 26, 2007 Report Share Posted January 26, 2007 Oh bugger, i'm sorry for your losses MRSkz. We're all guilty of getting complacent once in a while, it's such a shame when someone learns the hard way Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted January 26, 2007 Report Share Posted January 26, 2007 Sorry to hear that. Some times we just don't think Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Afrikan Posted January 26, 2007 Report Share Posted January 26, 2007 Sorry to hear of your losses I have had to give myself a mental kick at times.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jn Posted January 26, 2007 Report Share Posted January 26, 2007 Oh what a shame any idea what did it? Was the sand altering the pH or something? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpidersWeb Posted January 26, 2007 Report Share Posted January 26, 2007 Sorry for your loss :( It's a good wake up call for me, because I use sand in a lot of my tanks and would have thought that 'she'll be right' too if I needed some in another tank. jn - when the sand compresses the bad bacteria builds up, so when its stirred up it can release some nasty business. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
herefishiefishie Posted January 26, 2007 Report Share Posted January 26, 2007 Sorry to read the bad news.... jn - when the sand compresses the bad bacteria builds up, so when its stirred up it can release some nasty business. Yep, thats most likely it. mrskz, I would be doing some water changes, get water tested.....just incase. Also I dropped in a courgette into the tank, from the garden, and I don't remember if I gave it a wash or not. Should only be a problem if you use pesticides or similar. I guess the moto here is to wash out everything you add to tank. Frenchy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ira Posted January 26, 2007 Report Share Posted January 26, 2007 But, if you don't stir the sand up it works as a denitrator. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MRSkz Posted January 26, 2007 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2007 Oh the tank is stripped down and the fish are moved into a shallow 2 footer (lidded/ no filter) that I had had some GBA's in. The GBA's moved into a 19lt holding tank (they are still maturing) w/out a heater as I'm a bit shy on the smaller one's. I've dupped all the sand and fish but kept the plants, keeping them in with the fish that came from that tank. I'll be setting up the 3 footer (after a good clean out...where I got the bad sand from) in a few days probably just bare bottomed until I'm able to look at restocking it. I don't know that I'll be going with malawi's again though something else has recently taken my eye but I'll have to do some research, and save save save, before doing anything about it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jim r Posted January 26, 2007 Report Share Posted January 26, 2007 Hope the pain subsides quickly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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