Hi all! I am VERY new at fishkeeping and did the stupid thing a lot of people do. I went to the fish store, bought fish and did not know i had to cycle the tank first. I learned the hard way but also it was not too bad. I originally bought 3 male guppies. I named all of three (Max, Spike, and Sunny) and came very attached (mistake). All three went through the cycle together. I changed the water a lot (25% 2-3 times weekly) to keep them from getting poisoned by the ammonia and nitrite levels. It took FOREVER to cycle my tank (i think due to the fact I was using stress coat for a long time...I got some advice that it slows down the cycle. The minute I stopped using it and switched to prime, my tank finally cycled).
So, the past few weeks my fish have been dropping like flies. My tank IS now cycled so I do not understand it. First, sunny blew up like a balloon and died. Then I went and got two more male guppies (Rider and Tiger). Within two weeks one has now popeye. I followed advice of a fish store sales lady (specialty aquarium store) and added Melafix to the tank.
Wow, today the fish are all acting weird and Max died this afternoon...dont know why (he was showing no symptoms). All my fish seem sluggish and listless..just swimming in place at the top of the tank. I went back to the petstore (this time PetSmart)...talked to another girl and she was like "everytime I use Melafix, everything will just die in the tank so I dont like that product". So, I bought Maracyn and Maracyn two. Went home, quarantined popeye fish (Rider) in another tank and gave dosed him both antibiotics. Strangely, he seems the most active and healthy besides his eye. He is the only one eating today. We also figured out there is too much gas in the tank because little bubbles have been forming on everything...and were forming on Max today before he died. the sales lady sold me a new filter (AquaClear powerfilter)because she said it was better and felt there was something wrong with my other filter (Tetra Bio Bag) ...that it was blowing too much gas into the water or something. maybe that is why the popeye happened and then Max just died suddenly.
So, I threw the other filter away and now just put the new filter in. I turned my bubbler off just in case it was too many bubbles for now. I did a MAJOR water change (75%) to get the melafix out of the water.
The two fish left in the original tank (Spike and Tiger) are starting to act a bit more normal again. Siwmming around a bit more than just in one spot. I feel that Spike could be depressed if that is possible since he just lost his best buddy (Max and him were ALWAYS together).
So, what now? I cannot seem to keep these fish alive and I REALLY love them for some weirdo reason. I feel like a failure as a fish keeper. I love Guppies the most because they are so cute to watch and are pretty. I want to keep them for years not weeks or months. Any ideas what i am doing right, wrong? I am about to give up on this hobby because I cannot stand all the death but I think if i get better advice then I will become better at it. Below are my water stats:
ammonia-0ppm
Nitrite- 0 PPM
chlorine- 0ppm
Nitrates- 20 ppm
80 degrees F
pH- goes between 7.6-7.8 ( i know this is a bit high but they have had this the entire time and never had a problem so far. Think it is my tap water)
I use a bubbler and have an Aquaclear power filter
I use plastic plants not real ones and I have gravel
I add about 1 TBSP Aquarium Salt to every 2.5 gallons (this might be too much but it has solved so many issues like everytime they tear their fins they grow back in one day. Before I used the salt I had many more issues)
I use Prime to condition the water. I used to use API stress coat but heard it is not a good one and it kept my tank from cycling for some weird reason
oh, right now my tank is growing A LOT of algae. I am going to get some algae eaters soon but the sales lady told me to wait until these other issues are resolved.
sorry, I have a 10 gallon tank
okay, so i just started my cycle all over again? huh? isnt there good bacteria in the gravel, decor, tank itself?