2 dead in 10 minutes...could use some help

[Derrick]

Not sure what happened one gold fish was dead but i seen him a few minutes before and  he was fine eating than pooped..than as i was checking the others my female guppy is floating around but not dead yet.

I added a moss ball, an underwater plant and 5 guppies today. 3 female 2 male.

any ideas why? ammonia spike. how do i tell?

[Jonathan Kadish NYC AA Chair]

I assume you do not have an API test kit? If you have no way of telling you should probably do a 1/3 to 1/2 water change and stop feeding until you get a test kit. A little more information would be helpful. Did you cycle your system?

[Derrick]

No API test kit i ordered one and its in the mail. woke up this morning to 2 more dead. I took your advice and did a 1/3 change and have not fed them today. the rest of them seem to be doing better. 

I have not cycled i guess im doing that now, at first i wasn't sure what cycling was (figured it was getting the fish used to the water but i was wrong.) I guess i am doing a fish cycle. I know they produce ammonia through their poop and exhales, the ammonia is turned into nitrite from bacteria in the air, then its turned into nitrogen, the whole thing takes around 6 weeks.

Im assuming i added to many fish yesterday and the ammonia spiked. how long till it starts to go back to normal? Don't want anymore dead fish it is making my girlfriend sad.

while cycling should i be running my grow bed or could that be harming my fish as well?

[George]

Definitely pump to grow bed(s).  The goal is to establish nitrifying bacteria in the grow beds.  It might help you to read some of the helpful info on this site.  Everything you need to know about cycling is here and you can use the search feature.  Good luck.

[Jonathan Kadish NYC AA Chair]

Do a water change each day until you get your test kit... and then maybe some time there after. If your ammonia levels are more than 2ppm keep changing the water each day until your bacteria kick in after about 3-4 weeks. Your fish can go a week or more without food so feed very cautiously.

Most people take 2 or 3 weeks to cycle their system with out fish... so you are in for a bit of a ride. Good luck to your fish!

[Derrick]

Got a test kit and here is what it said...I also posted in System Cycling but i Didn't want to leave you guys hanging so ill post them here too.

Nitrate: 20 - 40

Nitrite: 3.0

Hardness: 300

Alkalinity: 300+

PH: 8.4+

[Citizen Peng]

the water does not look good to me. ph is far too high. you should be able to tell by taking a close look at the water and smelling it. if you can smell odor from the water, it means the water is no good. goldfish tends to soil the water fairly quickly. I am keeping one hundred small fingerlings in a 10 litre container (they are too small, so I am keeping them separate from the AP system). I change the water daily to keep the water free of fish waste, and they grow well. I have tried once by leaving the water unchanged for one more day, and the result was shocking. The water turned muddy, green, and smelly. Luckily no fish died. You may try this: if your fish tank is dark in color, or you are unable to see clearly into the water, wipe your finger against the walls of the fish tank to see if any, or how much algae is growing. too much algae is no good at all. 

[Derrick]

there is an odor but no algae at all,,not even slime on the tank walls yet. the water does look a little greenish but no where near cloudy but its not sparkling clear either. Ill change the water tomorrow and see what happens... disappointed in myself poor little fish :/

[Citizen Peng]

also, we shouldn't assume all the fish are healthy. goldfish tend to suffer from "white spot" desease, which would kill them in the end. i have had the problem in the beginning, and there is nothing you could do but see it as a process of natural selection. now all my fish are strong and healthy. i just take the loss as part of the life.

[Derrick]

My biggest gold fish has white spots on his fins, tail, body and head..I looked for information but didn't find anything i figured it was just his coloring...Is it contagious? to the other fish i mean.

[James Sweetman]

Derrick

How big is you system? Is it a good idea to mix cool water species (gold fish) with warm water species (guppies)? Goldfish may be a hardier species to start with. If you can send me a picture of the white spots on the tail, I maybe able to help. James.