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Help needed Uregently!!


mike 65

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My Father and I recently set up a 165 litre tropical tank, his idea was to in future buy discus. He was advised to put Neon tetra's in with them. We set the tank up on the 14 of August and put ten neons in that day, just to get the algae to build up. They all died over night. Two days later we brought 10 more. They all died within a day or two. We continued with this process a few times and more and more died. We purchased 20 more today and have had a few deaths already. Dad has had the water tested and have been told levels are all okay. As far as we know we are doing everything right. The neon's are near the surface of the water as if they are trying to reach air ? They are also breathing quite rapidly. Please, any suggestions and/or answers of what is happening would be apprechiated

It's very disheartening as we have realised that maybe we can not get/keep discus :(

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Hi Mike, where abouts do you live?

Does your water contain chlorine and do you need to use a conditioner where you live?

I know it is a beginner question but whether your tank is cycled or not 10 neons should not die overnight in a 165 litre tank

Unless there was something toxic in your water or in your equipment or tank,maybe even your substrate depending on what you have used

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I live in Kaiapoi, Christchurch. Have removed some water to make water level lower than spray bar to create bubbles for oxygen. Fish seem to have left surface of water to explore bottom. Should I introduce some sort of bubbling device.

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Whenever the water surface is broken it will let gases in and out so an air stone driven by an air pump will always introduce more oxygen into the water

Which definately is a benefit as you have stated the fish are swimming near the water surface maybe for oxygen

But yes the spray bar above the water level will do the same thing

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If they are all gasping it is an oxygen/poison issue.. If your water parameters are fine then it must be an oxygen issue, neons are not good at high temps (hence being a waste of money to put in with discus), what temp is your tank at? And how are you measuring it?

Neons do tend to just drop dead gradually for no apparent reason but the whole lot shouldn't overnight.

Flosty was faster :)

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I would add an airline if you have a pump, in the meantime the spray bar above the surface of the water will increase the amount of oxygen in the tank. The disturbance on the top of the water will encourage the fish to drop lower into the tank anyway.

Two questions - are you using tap or well water and what is the tank temperature as the higher the temp, the less oxygen. Discus like higher temps than neons, in my experience can cope with.

The other thing that may be causing issues is a large difference in pH levels between the shop and your tank.

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The temp is not too high for neons but will be too low for the discus. I wonder what the shop tested the water for and I wonder what the difference is between the shop and the tanks readings.

Certainly sounds like some sort of poisoning or lack of oxygen in the water. My fish normally only come up like that when the tank temp is really high or if there is an ammonia spike.

Are they still down the bottom or have they come back up? If you do have an airline then adding it is the best thing you can do.

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It sounds like a chlorine issue to me too.

I would say the best way to solve the problem is to use a water conditioner to dose the tank and then when changing water.

Otherwise agitating the water in a bucket with an airpump for a hour or two will help disapate the chlorine.

Or letting the water stand for a long while (I think it is four plus hours) before adding it to the tank

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All sorts of stuff was added in the water after the quakes - the tap ph at my place moved around a bit and the chlorine levels are very variable, to the point that I've been double dosing the chlorine remover just in case. Something like that would be my pick (the spray bar would have helped get rid of any chlorine etc too)

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Just wondering, have you been acclimatizing the fish before popping them in the tank? Just wondering since no one else has asked yet, and that could affect how well fish adjust. Btw I think for some fishstores, if your fish die overnight and you're doing everything right: ie acclimatizing the fish, water parameters are fine etc, they MAY replace your fish for you if you ask, but of course that is up to the individual store to decide if they will, but it wouldn't hurt to ask nicely.

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