3 Month Tank – Fish Dying
>subject = Tank of Death
Problem = My tank is 3 months old, is a 10 gallon freshwater, has an under gravel filter as well as a "Millennium 1000" inwater filter. Within the first 2 months, I went through around 10 fish, all of which seemed to die within 2 weeks of purchase.

I started out with painted glassfish, a spotted puffer, and a swordtail molly. I bought several puffers over the first 2 months and had none which lasted over 2 weeks. Most commonly, they would most often turn very pale in color and become extremely lethargic, just laying on the bottom of the tank. (The tank was actually brackish at this time, with a salinity of around 1.008 I fed them a mixture of a few flakes as well as frozen brine shrimp) When the fish was disturbed and forced to move, the spots would return and the puffer would appear fine. Following this pale phase, the fish would start to turn black before dying a day or so later. This was a constant for all 3 puffers. The painted glassfish passed away at about the same time as the puffers. I'm not sure what exactly happened. They were perfectly fine at one point, but I woke up the next day to find both of them stuck to the filter and quite deceased. The swordtail molly actually survived, stayed healthy and gave birth, but was given away after I got my next batch of fish.

After I returned from spring break, I figured that it was time to try again, so I bought a fresh batch of fish. This time I went with 2 rainbow celebes, 3 guppies, a Chinese Algae eater, and a Dragonfish. Within 2 days of purchase, both the Chinese Algae eater and the Dragonfish were dead. I took the fish back to Petco and they did a water sample test which showed that everything was fine in my tank. I replace the two dead fish with 2 African gobbies, but one died within 3 days and now the last one is dying. As I speak, I have the goby quarantined and its just laying on its side in the bottom of the glass. When I came back from class I thought it was dead because it was floating stomach up in the tank, but when I tried to scoop it out it swam down to the bottom of the tank, upside down. (????) It’s just laying at the bottom opening and closing its mouth. It does swallow food, but then spits it back out a second later and goes back to its lethargic state. For the fish diet I’m feeding them "Wardley Total Color Flakes for all Freshwater Fish".

So, that is my dilemma in a somewhat large nutshell. The fish that swim in the middle and upper levels of the tank are doing fine. It seems that the bottom feeders are the ones that don’t do so well. There are no visible parasites, and I change the water as it evaporates out. There is a heater which keeps the water at around 78, and also a fluorescent light in order to provide optimum "sunlight". The only thing I think I’m missing are live plants.

I appreciate any help you can give me in this situation.
>Size = 10
>Age = 3
>Type = Community
>Number = 7
>Change = 4-10-98
>Percent = 10
>Primary = Under gravel filter
>Secondary = Millennium 1000
>Media = 4-4-98

You seem to be having a great deal of trouble with a tank that shouldn't be doing that. In general, my response is that the tank has not had time to age properly, let me explain, it takes approximately six weeks to mature a biological filter, and I wonder if that has ever happened. You mention the tank is 3 months old, but it seems that the water has been replaced and the fish replaced at least one full time (When you changed fish and water from brackish to fresh). I would suggest that the tank really started again when you did that. Before, if the tank was only three months now, I guess that it was possibly ammonia or nitrite that caused the fish to die (puffers are not your most hardy fish to start with, so ammonia and nitrite could possibly cause the death and the problems you recount.

Personally, I would do a number of things.

1) get a test kit - ammonia is OK, but if you are strapped for cash, make sure you have a nitrite test kit.

2) Use Cycle -my favorite for biological filter inoculation - add the right bacteria to the mix to make the reduction of ammonia and nitritre more powerful and more rapidly.

3) Use less fish in the beginning and get good advice for starter fish, the ones you seem to have chosen are more delicate and can often have difficulty in weathering the ammonia and nitrite storm.

Hope that has been of at least a little help. If you need more information on the nitrogen cycle, check the Basic Aquarium Guide on my website.

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Rapid BioFilter Initiation
>subject = bio-filter
Problem = I recently had to strip down my tank due to a fungus and bacterial infection - I suspect the cambomba I introduced into the tank. I was afraid of keeping any of my bio-filtration material alive because of re-introducing the fungus and bacterial infections (I'm fairly sure it was a bacterial infection because one of my goldfish died, and when I did a three point check on the corpse it had a fairly hard stomach).

Well, I heard a rumor on a mailing list that a woman had fully cycled a 5 gallon tank in less than two weeks. She did this by raising the temperature up to 82-90 degrees fahrenheit, aerating the water with a large air stone, and letting some fish food rot in the tank.

I have started her experiment four days ago, and although the fish food has completely broken down (into almost imperceptible bits) there is a high amount of amomonia in my 5 gallon tank. However, none of the ammonia has seemed to go away - nor is the nitrite level perceptible.

Have I already answered my own question about the validity of her experiment? Or should I add some Cycle to this 5 gallon tank. Furthermore, will the temperature level (82-90) facilitate the growth the bacteria? Should I add more fish food for the rotting?

I need to have my bacterial filter on line as soon as possible, because as now, I have my two (4-5 inch) goldfish in a competely uncycled tank - with only a ton of zeolite and carbon keeping the ammonia and nitrite at check.
>Size = 30
>Age = near zero
>Type = Goldfish
>Number = 2
>Change = zero
>Percent = 10&
>Primary = Magnum H.O.T. + BioWheel
>Secondary = Aquaclear Quickfilter w/ micron cartridge + foam inserts
>Media = 5 days

The fact that you are not seeing any nitrite yet is not surpising, since it is normal that it takes at least 10 days to show after a filter is initiated. Ammonia in the tank will also inhibit the growth and replication of any nitrobacter bacteria, so the break down of the nitrite that is there will not occur until the ammonia is fully deleted as fast as it is produced.

In a standard aquarium start-up, the ammonia that is manufactured comes from two sources, fish waste of course, (and also decay of excess fish food as in your experiment) but more surprisingly, ammonia is produced in greater quantity by the fish respiration itself. As they breathe, they give off ammonia directly. In fact this seems to be the largest contributor. I personally recommend (as does the actual manufacturer of Cycle) that an aquarium be started, fish added and not fed for at least two to three days (actually the manufacturer, being an aquaculturalist actually suggests 7 days, but what hobbyist could withstand the temptation?)

Nitrosomonas takes ammonia and breaks it down to nitrite, it generally takes about ten days for the population to grow geometrically from 1 unit to the concentration needed to eliminate all ammonia as soon as it is produced. You see both nitrosomonas and nitrobacter replicate quite slowly in comparison with most other bacteria, taking anywhere between 8 - 24 hours per cycle, depending on water type. Since they grow geometrically, doubling (for clarity's sake) every time (we do ignore any loss through death of parents, etc.) so near the end of the periof the doubling can be in the trillions of bacteria per cycle, rather than 1 -> 2 ->4 ->8 etc.

The concept of raising the temperature, up to a certain point is valid, since the warmer the bugs are kept, the faster they reproduce, although there is a certain upper limit. Secondarily, but still vital in the equation, is the oxygen carrying capacity of the water. The hotter the water, the less oxygen it can carry, even with strong aeration, although this should help admirably in the temperature range you describe. Simply put, if the bugs are going through replication as fast as possible, it is vital to supply enough oxygen to them for their needs.

Your lady's experiment seems a little fast, we are talking only 33% of the general time required in ideal conditions for the maturation of a biological filter. It seems to me too fast unless there is some serious help. Remember, there has been questions raised in the literature whether nitrosomonas and nitrobacter are the actual bacteria doing the job in uninoculated aquariums. I personally have some doubts about that, but in certain cases the supposition that the bacteria you think are there in nature may not be active in the tank, and other less effective ones are actually performing the job.

Which brings me to Cycle, I know from personal experience the bacteria we say are in the preparation are there, and in at least the concentrations we state. That number is the toughest number we can give, since this is what we will offer at the end of the expiry date, not what is put in the bottle. Not only that, our research has created a team that works together best in the ratios we provide, and is not generally found in nature. Nitrosomonas and nitrobacter are there, at least 10 billion individuals per ml, the rest are ancillary, and create a symbiosis to make the environment for these lithotrophs as perfect as possible, further heightening their utility.

I can't really make your decision for you, but I will suggest the following. If your Lady did in fact cycle the tank in that short a time simply by heat and aeration, there is no reason to think that you can copy the results. Not because you are in any way doing it wrong, but she had to have perfect water conditions, by luck there had to be nitrosomonas and nitrobacter or other nitrifying bacteria strains and all other conditions had to be right for the growth and procreation of the proper bacteria with no bias toward the many other species in the aquarium just as naturally as nitrosomonas and nitrobacter.

There is no guarantee that your water has the right nutrients (besides ammonia) for the bacteria to thrive, especially nitrobacter, so even if you repeat identical procedures, unless you use her water with the proper ingredients, chances are your results will be very different,m and scattered wildly each replication.

I suggest Cycle for a few simple reasons, the bacteria you want into the aquarium, reliably and in high concentrations. These have a better chance, in the initial phase, to grab the proper locations for them, and to replicate and work optimally. You don't have that kind of assurance with natural seeding. Cycle adds the bacteria needed for the Biology to be proper in the aquarium situation, natural seeding allows whatever is in the air, in cysts in the water supply and feces from the fish to gain a foothold, good or bad. Cycle adds beneficial bacteria that can begin to control the ecology and make the aquarium a healthy place, actually outrcompeting "bad" strains and getting rid of them.

Sorry for taking so long to help you, but I thought you might want a little bit of background to help make your decision, rather than simply telling you my "professional" opinion, always remember, this is a hobby, not a science, so there are many ways to do the same thing. As in the experiment you mentioned, if it worked for her, then it was right for her, but you must also take all the information and make your own judgement as well. The more you progress, the more important it will be to melt a thousand opinions and come out with the route that is best for you and your fish.

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Ammonia Level too high
Problem: My aquarium worked perfectly for the first 2 months. However, for the past 2 months, I have had 2 continuous problems:
>1. Not able to reduce the amonia level (much too high). This is forcing me to change some of the water at least once a week. ( I do add cycle once a week)
>Size: 20
>Age: 4
>Type: Angel fish, red sword, neons, cat fish and others
>Number: 15
>Change: weekly
>Percent: 20%
>Primary: biolife (Hagen)
>Secondary: none
>Media: n/a

I will try to answer your points at the actual place you asked them.
Watch out for your ammonia levels being too high, often with Cycle in the tank the action of the fish will tell you whether your test kit is accurate or you are calibrating the results correctly. Ammonia test kits mease Total Ammonia Nitrogen (TAN) in an aquarium, depending on your pH and temperature, ammonia may or may not be toxic. At lower pH the ammonia is ionized and is not toxic, the higher the pH the more unionized ammonia is there and it is toxic to fish. The temperature is also a factor in this toxicity as well.

It is the case that a lot of the test kits show inaccurate levels of ammonia, they may be out of date or misread. Whatever the case, depending on the levels you are getting, look at the fish, are they under stress, if they are not and you are reading high levels, chances are either the ammonia is non-toxic, or the test kit is inaccurate for whatever reason.

Measure your tap water, or are you using a chlorine remover to remove chloramine, if this is a substance in your water, when you break the chloramine bond, ammonia is one of the by-products. You might want to put new water into a storage receptacle and aerate it for at least 24 hours to remove any traces of ammonia before adding it to the aquarium. Filtering it with Amrid will also help greatly in this case.

You might also reduce the amount of feed you are introducing. Ammonia cames from a number of places, the gills give it off during the respiration process it is true, but the rest comes from wastes and excess food. If you have any food left over after two minutes with none hitting the bottom, you have overfed. Do not feed bottomfish, since they graze on bacterial floc and other semi digested wastes. They rarely will eat fish food directly or by choice. As such, unless the species is what you are keeping, ignore them at feeding time.

By reducing the input of organic material, there is less to decay and create the ammonia concentration. Basically, with the respiratory exception noted above, ammonia will be a direct result of the organic material you place into the closed system.

>2. Excessive algae growth. I do not belive that there is too much direct light on the aquarium. The aquarium light is on for 12 hours a day and I have very recently reduced tha to 6 hours.

If there is any direct light on the aquarium, there is too much. Direct sunlight will cause an algal bloom. I suggest that only artificial light ever enter the aquarium for this reason. Cutting back to 6 hours only is probably one good way of reducing algae build-up,.

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Heavy Cycling
Problem: I am having problems keeping my tank from heavy cycling. I would like some advice on water changing technique and other possible things to make my tank a success
>Size: 55
>Age: 1
>Type: Gold Fish
>Number: 8
>Change: today
>Percent: 33
>Primary: Aqua Clear 300
>Secondary: Sea Storm 60
>Media: today

The aquarium will cycle naturally, usually in about six weeks if left to nature. To speed the process, I would recommend Cycle to add the right bacteria in large quantities. Nitrosomonas and Nitrobacter are both in the bottle in dormant form and you will find that regular inoculation will speed the natural process. Reduction of food is also a good way to keep the ammonia down in the initial stages. If you feed too much, the toxin level will increase. In a new tank it is a good idea to only feed once a day (actually in any tank) as much as the fish will eat in 2 minutes with nothing hitting the bottom.

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Does Ammonia Remover affect pH
Problem: Tank is cycling... ammonia levels are remaining high after a week. I've cut feedings to absolute minimum. I have a box of Fluval Ammonia Absorber. If I add the suggested amount (10 tblspns) to the middle basket of my filter will it affect the pH or other water qualities?
My pH is currently about 8
>Size: 55
>Age: 1
>Type: Asstd. African cichlids
>Number: 6
>Change: weekly
>Percent: 10%
>Primary: Fluval 303
>Secondary: none
>Media: n/a

Adding ammonia remover has not changed pH to my knowledge. You seem to be doing the right thing with minimal feeding, so the wastes are not a factor. To hurry the Nitrogen Cycle even more I suggest using Cycle to naturally increase the bacterial population. Ammonia remover will remove some ammonia, but it will fill to capacity without any notice. The live bacteria nitrosomonas and nitrobacter in Cycle are the bacteria that naturally eliminate ammonia and nitrite, so inoculating your tank with these will lessen the damage and quicken the entire process.

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Dosing Cycle
My ammonia level finally dropped! Now, of course, the nitrites are up; but it's really a relief to know the cycle is almost finished. Speaking of "Cycle," I added a bunch when I first started the tank. After almost two weeks, I had no measurable ammonia. I thought the stuff was a miracle. I thought the bacteria were in place and working. That's what I thought until day 15, when the ammonia started going up fast. All the nitrogen cycle charts I've looked at show ammonia peaking at about day 10. I wondered if adding the Cycle delayed my peak. Maybe I should have waited a week or so before I added it. There probably wasn't much for the bacteria to eat that first week.

In general, the directions for the Cycle read to add the proper dose for the aquarium at first, then add a second dose in 7 days. Again add the double dose in the next seven days so you do a double dose three times then go back to the normal dose on a weekly basis. The reason for weekly dosage is to ensure the proper bacteria are available at all times. The bacteria level is highly predated, and bacterial populations shift on a regular basis. Due to this Cycle is recommended on a weekly basis to ensure that the right bacteria are available at all times.

You are correct about the ideal Nitrogen Cycle having the spike foir ammonia at 10 days, but this is an ideal. Feeding, organics in the water, dead fish, etc. can all change the timing and make it not so neat. Also remember that ammonia present in the system has the effect of inhibiting nitrobacter, the strain that uses nitrite and creates the final by-product nitrate.

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Tank is Cycling
Problem: Tank is cycling... ammonia levels are remaining high after a week. I've cut feedings to absolute minimum. I have a box of Fluval Ammonia Absorber. If I add the suggested amount (10 tblspns) to the middle basket of my filter will it affect the pH or other water qualities?
My pH is currently about 8
>Size: 55
>Age: 1
>Type: Asstd. African cichlids
>Number: 6
>Change: weekly
>Percent: 10%
>Primary: Fluval 303
>Secondary: none
>Media: n/a

Adding ammonia remover has not changed pH to my knowledge. You seem to be doing the right thing with minimal feeding, so the wastes are not a factor. To hurry the Nitrogen Cycle even more I suggest using Cycle to naturally increase the bacterial population. Ammonia remover will remove some ammonia, but it will fill to capacity without any notice. The live bacteria nitrosomonas and nitrobacter in Cycle are the bacteria that naturally eliminate ammonia and nbitrite, so inoculating your tank with these will lessen the damagfe and quicken the entire process.

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Is a hood needed for Oscars?
Steve, I have a 30 gallon tank for my oscar. My question is do I need to have a hood for my tank? I have a stand that won't allow the hood to fit. Will it cause problems for the oscar if he is in a open aquarium???

I would trend to recommend that you find a cover for the tank in some way, even if it is a sliding glass top. Although oscars are not active jumpers, all cichlids have been known to jump and it is never a pleasant sight to see your favorite fish on the floor and stiff after he tried to jump his way to freedom. Even a sudden fright could have the fish swim up and out, so I would recommend finding some form of covering to stop a disaster before it has a chance to occur.

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UG As additional filtration
>subject = Water Turnover
Problem = Hi, I have a 75 gal. freshwater tank run with a Fluval 403. I wish to aid this unit's bio-filtration. I was considering an undergravel filter with power heads, but I sometimes worry about the chiclids digging too much - at least the wild ones. I have used clip on filters on my old 30 gal., and a friend used one on a 55. I am even considering a combination of the 3 types. My question is what filter configuration would you suggest, and how many times should it turn my water over?
>Size = 75
>Age = new, about to set-up
>Type = Chiclid/Community
>Number = green terrors(2), plus dithers(4-5),targets(3), and scavengers(2)
>Change = date
>Percent = ??%
>Primary = Main Filter - Fluval 403 canister
>Secondary = Additional Filtration - that's the question(smile)
>Media = date

This is a really hard one, since in freshwater I tend to use Undergravel filters for Biological filtration. I also have African Cichlids, so know intimately the problems they cause with UG filtration.

I would still tend to use an UG, since they have the singular weakness (with the exception of EvenFlow), of passing water through the path of least resistance, the water passes most often through the gravel right around the riser stem, so even when they dig, as long as there is a 3 - 6 inch undisturbed area right around the riser, most of the biology will not be disturbed.

Surprising - yes - but that is a fact of water, even when the plates are open further away, the finding I see is that water still passes most through the area of greatest suction. Evenflo UG are the only filters made to use the Powerhead exclusively, and they have been designed to pass water under the plate evenly throughout their entire surface area.

But let us discuss a different approach, you can also use the Power Filter, in a slightly different way that you understand, but let us look at the strengths of the two filters, outside power filter and canister. I would employ the AquaClear to remove dirt and debris, it is essentially a mechanical filter, other power filters use gimmicks which supposedly turn their machines into biological powerhouses, but testing at H.A.R.S. (the Hagen Aquatic Research Station) show no differences in biological efficiency in the aquarium between wheels and the AquaClear, in fact units without wheels actually seemed to work better!, the real difference was in turbidity though, AquaClears had cleaner water as measured by turbidity meters than any other filter.

Let us suppose that you add an Aquaclear, with cichlids that is a very reasonable way to make currents in the tank and eliminate the problems of digging. The fish themselves will help the filter by rooting around and sending waste into the water to siphoned off from both the Aquaclear and the Fluval. But in the long run, the Aquaclear is better at getting the debris in the water and it will fill faster - water movement is higher and there still is quite a bit of media. The biological filter will establish on both foam and carbon (or BioMax if you really push for biology add that to the very top of the chamber filling in where the Amrid often is used). This waste removal is Aquaclear (and any clip-on filter's) forte. So why bother with the Fluval - the answer is simple, the water flow is less, but the filter material is much more massive - I would treat this as my biology - the Aquaclear keeps the water much cleaner that without, so the Fluval has much less waste to deal with. As such, it becomes that much more powerful a biological filter, and it requires less attention to media, allowing it to get that much more \seasoned and effective.

As you can see, I danced a bit on what is best, but I have always found that if you use the filters to what they are best adapted to work, the power filter as the primary mechanical - no matter what all the hype in the market, and the Fluval designed to provide the best biological, I think you will find an noticeable difference. The fact that Power heads or Aquaclear both will provide a much stronger water movement for the fish is also a major advantage,

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Set-Up Problems - New Tank Syndrome
>subject = New Aquarium Problem
Problem = I just recently started a new aquarium and I am aware of the fact that there are bacterias that will transform the ammonia to nitrite and then to nitrate but how long does it take. After four days my aquarium was so cloudy that I couldn't see the fish. I change about 10 percent of the water everyday to see if it will clear up but so far it just looks more dirtier. It got to a point where I was afraid the fish might die so I removed it and placed it in a smaller container. Do you know if this is natural or could it be the food that is making the water cloudy (I am feeding my fish sinking pellets because my filter just pushes the flake food to the bottom of the tank.). Am I suppose to wait longer or should I just start all over again?
>Size = 10
>Age = 4 days
>Type = Goldfish (Oranda)
>Number = 1
>Primary = Main Filter: a power filter that hangs on the side of the aquarium

The best thing I can do is to mention for you to read the basic aquarium guide, it is found under the product manuals in the P.I.L.L.. This was a manual I wrote quite a long time ago, and is still very current. If you want to see the other website I am webmaster for, try www.hagen.com, either way the Basic Aquarium Guide is on both. There is lot more Hagen specific information on the hagen web, but there is also a lot of general information as well.

As for your actual problems, read about the Nitrogen Cycle, it takes at least 10 days, and usually a lot longer to grow a wild population of nitrifying bacteria to eliminate ammonia production before it becomes toxic. Then it takes at least another three weeks before the populations of nitrobacter grow to remove all the nitrite from the water as fast as the nitrosomonas create it from ammonia.

Believe it or not, the bacteria that remove ammonia/nitrate have nothing to do with the nitrifying bacteria, I suggest that you click on the fish information page and look at the sections on cloudy water. You will find that your problem falls under "New Tank Syndrome", where there is commonly an explosion of bacteria in the water column that thrive on organic nutrients that have entered the tank with you're new water. I recommend there, and continue to suggest you stop feeding your tank for three days and the cloud should clear, I also suggest that it is relatively harmless, much less dangerous than keeping the fish in a smaller container without filtration or the possibility of diluting the rapidly concentrationg ammoni levels.

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Upgrading from Fresh to salt
>subject = Type of filter
Problem = I am getting ready to set up my fish tank again. I have a 55 gallon acrylic tank - it has two rectangular parts connected by two horizontal columns. I am planning to start with freshwater tropical fish, but would eventually like to 'upgrade' to marine fish. What type of filter is best? I was recently told that I should treat each rectangular part as a separate fish tank and put two filters on - one on each side. However when I bought the tank, the salesman only sold me one filter. I did have some problems with sick fish. What should I do?
>Size = 55
>Age =
>Type = Community

If you plan to upgrade to marine fish, you will need to change most of the decorations, the gavel and the filter media, but as long as the filter is adequate, you should be able to keep that and the heater. The canopy is probably specific to the tank, so that will be kept as well.

As far as filtration, it really is a function of what you want to keep. You don't mention the filter you have now, so I have to shoot in the dark and guess. If the filter is a power filter that clips onto the back directly, I would tend to add an undergravel filter with powerheads, If at all possible I would direct the jet of the powerhead through one of the cloumns to keep water movement strong in all areas. If the filter is like a Fluval, a canister filter with hoses, make the input and the output go into different tanks, that should make the water flow consistent throughout the tank. If those don't work for you, I would agree with adding separate filtration in each tank. But you should really ensure there is flow through the horizontal tubes, that way you don't have to worry about heat differentials in the aquariums where one is heated and the other cools - a sure way to expose the fish to disease.

If you plan to add marine fish, and need to purchase a new filter as well, consider strongly a set-up that includes a Fluval style canister. It will allow strong biological filtration and can usually be installed at any time. For marine FISH, I prefer to use both a canister and undergravel filter with powerheads, and a protein skimmer (doesn't work in fresh - so don't get one until you go to salt) If you want a reef, you should add a trickle system (Wet/dry) remove the Undergravel and add plenty of extra lighting.

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Shells in a Fresh Water Aquarium
>subject = tank deco
Problem = As a new goldfish owner I'd like to ask a question before I do thing rather than ask for remedies to problems arising from my lack of knowledge. The question is quite simple: can I put sea-shells in a goldfish tank? Some say it's bad for the fish (calcium being washed out), soem say it is okay provided the shells are boiled first. What is your suggestion?

P.S. Well, it is not a tank but a bowl. I know I shouldn't be keeping my fish in bowl but I did not buy my tank yet and I have been presented with the fish for X-mas. I am definatey going to buy one soon.

What you are going to get is my personal opinion, and since this is a hobby, not a science, take that for what it is worth.

I personally would never put shells in any fresh water aquarium, they have the tendency to release carbonates into the water and make it harder, now if I was keeping African Cichlids that do like hard water, that would not be a problem, but then I also add dolomite in the substrate as well.

That is the first reason I don't add shells, a second one is that there are sharper edges on shells, and for goldfish which root around in the substrate and mouth much of the material at the bottom, small sharp pieces of shell can harm mouth tissues. Again, I work with the motto better safe than sorry.

Finally, the last reason that I don't add shells is the possibility of adding foreign organic material, bacteria or diseases into the bowl. That is the reason for boiling the shells beforehand, and I would recommend that before adding anything that had life in it or on it once (including driftwood, river rocks, etc.) since that can help to loosen attached organic debris and hopefully kill harmful disease bacteria or other parasites.

I know that may not be the positive reaction you were hoping for, but as a long term aquarist, I have found that it is much safer to keep with safe, non-toxic and inert materials whenever possible, you just don't know what is being added by other materials, and what kinds of exotic organisms you may be adding into your ecosystem.

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Expertise and answers
Indeed, I have been told by some that sea-shells release carbonates. On the other hand I have seen aquarium with sea-shells. But then, just to be on the safe side, I will not put the shells in. I very much appreciate your advice. Thank you once again for taking time to reply.

Would it be too much to ask if I could come back to you for some more some more help in the future? I have only recently started my "fish-farm" and I need all the help I can get. Of course I am looking for reading matter on goldfish, but that is not easily available in Poland, hence my ??

You are more than welcome to access my experience as you require it, that is why I have my page on the web, and have tried to answer every question asked, even those I don't know are told clearly my ignorance, as I believe that it is much better to deflect a question elsewhere if I don't know the answer rather than try to inflate my ego and offer false or damaging responses. SO, if you need it, and I have information pertinent to the problem, feel free. If I don't know, be aware that I will let you know, so that I don't cause any damage from ignorance.

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New 10 Gallon Tank
I received a 10gal aquarium for my birthday. It is a plastic type with the top molded onto the sides. It came with an undergravel filter powered by an air pump. Would this be enough filtration for a community tank?

If not, I'm not sure how to add outside filtration. The tank has openings in the top through which some hoses could be routed (for a canister type filter?), but the holes are only about 1.25" wide. I have a heater in one opening. If you do recommend additional filtration would you be so kind as to recommend a specific type?

PS: I love your WEB site!
Size = 10
Age = 2 months
Type = Community
Number = 10
Change = 1 a week ago
Percent = 20%
Primary = Undergravel
Thank you so much for your quick and informative response. After sending my message to you I did some more research in the WEB and discovered that I am probably having problems with the quality of my water because I did not cycle my tank. I will be purchasing some test kits soon so that I will know more about the water. I will also take to heart your recommendation about feeding the fish: I definitely have been overfeeding them! I will consider the Pro "MINI" Power Head in the near future once I have stabilized my tank.

The tank that I received is a Wal-Mart special; it is an acrylic tank with a molded top. I hope some day to have a large tank (55gal or so) but have no regrets at this point starting out with a 10gal. So far my mistakes have been relatively inexpensive ;) .

As far as your biases are concerned, they do not bother me at all. You were honest about them and I appreciate that. I visited the rchagen.com site and enjoyed my stay.

Thanks for your good words about my site, I appreciate them. Now to your question. Depenfing on the aquarium and especially the fish and airpump, you could be fine. I am not sure what type of tank is a ten gallon plastic tank, I am not really familiar with any other than the Tropiquarium which is an acrylic, and powered by a Fluval 2 internal filter. That might be a way to solve a lack of filtration, move to one of the internal filters like the FLuval, Trio, or QuickFilter. I apologize for recommending Hagen products - they are the ones I know best.

Canister filters on 10 gallon tanks are usually overpowered, Fluval 103 (the smallest of the canister Fluvals) pump about 110 galons per hour, the same output as a normal outside filter, and are an excellent choice for the well heeled, but not practical unless the budget is unlimited. I would tend to match the fish to the filtration, smaller community types such as livebearers and tetras should do fine in the tank as it is set up now if you follow a few practical pointers - the most important is to realize the majority of problems aquarists have are self caused. By overfeeding, the aquarist overloads the system and creates massive pollution. I highly recommend feeding no more than once a day - and as much food as the fish will entirely consume in two minutes with nothing hitting the bottom. That may sound cruel, you may feel the fish will starve, but I assure you, my three African Cichlids have been fed about once every three days for well over a year and are probably the most hardy fish you will ever see, without hollow bellies or other problem.

It is a matter of physiology, remember fish are poikilothermic (cold blooded) and do not require any energy to heat their body. Since 85% of the calories you burn are used to heat your body, if you feed as you would eat, you have overfed by at least 85% of energy requirements. Another thing to understand clearly is that fish never know when their next meal will be, so they will eat as if starved whenever food is available. They have no homeostatic control (such as receptors monitoring blood sugar level in our bodies) to tell them they are full. They will simply eat until they pop. So feed sparingly and you will probably be fine with your present filtration. If you must change, I would suggest a Pro "MINI" Power Head (from Hagen - sorry for the plug) in place of the air pump to powerize the undergravel filter. Otherwise look into either the Fluval Internals or on the upper end the Trio for great filtration power without having to modify the aquarium. If a cord can pass into the aquarium, there is not other modification required.

Back to

New 46 Gallon Tank Filtration
>subject = Filtration for new tank
Problem = Dear Steve, If you would answer questions with the speed and efficiency of some outfits, I wouldn’t keep bugging you. ;-) (Yesterday I received an e-mail answer to a question that I had e-mailed to Epson the first week of November about one of my printers. They make great printers, but their e-mail response time leaves a little to be desired, don’t you agree?)

Anyway, I have been most impressed with both your responses and your honesty. I am sure that I have been influenced by your recommendations. Now I have a couple of more questions since my wife and I just purchased a new 46G aquarium yesterday.

1) I am not sure what size filter to use, but I intend to use one of the Fluval canisters. I believe that the 303 would be the better size since the information that I have says that the 203 pumps 111g.p.h and is adequate for tanks up to 40G.

2) I am considering using an AquaClear powerhead Model 402 in reverse flow mode for my undergravel filter system. I am concerned, however, about pumping unfiltered water _into_ my undergravel filter. Can the water be filtered before it goes into the undergravel filter. Or would it be better to just run the powerhead in normal (forward) mode?

3) Can I attach the Magnum Power Kleen (Marineland) to my Fluval, or does Fluval make a similar product?

Once again, thanks so much for taking the time to respond to this newbie’s questions.
>Size = 46

Let's hit each paragraph as it was presented, that way I won't get confused (easy with my 4 year old son beside me)and miss something.

1) I also want answers within a timely period, so I know others want and deserve the same consideration. I aggree, a month or more is too much. Hope this response time is within proper parameters for the industry ( :-) )

2) A 46 gallon is an odd size for me, I would guess you are talking about a 48" x 12" x 18" or 20" ( for me this is a 48, or a 36 x 16 x 20 which for me is a 50. Makes no real difference except when you need to medicate, I use (length x width x height) x 232 to find the actual gallonage.

3) I of course am biased and agree a Fluval is one of the best filters on the market. I have had intimate experience with them for better than a decade and know of no more reliable system available. I also suggest that you move up to the 303 or 403, to give you a much more useful amount of filtration volume for better filtration as well.

4)One of the advantages of answering from P.I.L.L. is that you are asking my opinion and not making follow any corporate lines (although to be honest with you I am the one who usually makes those for the salemen in the field). I was a major proponent of the reverse flow when it was first suggested and implemented, but over the years I have changed my opinion. I do like reverse flow for some reasons, but there are better ways to do undergravel, if you let me digress for a few minutes.

Old style thinking with most of the UG filters on the market looks at the UG filter simply as a plate that water passes through, with the water passing evenly through everywhere. A few years back we needed to replace the Biozonics style filter - our deluxe filter - because it was getting too expensive to manufacture and bring it to market for a fair price. As such we gave it to the engineers responsible for powerheads and other technically advanced materials. They took three years to come with a suitable replacement, basically because they found the assumptions on UG filtration were simply working on false premises. Water follows the path of least resistance, so it basically passed close to the riser stem and very little flow was happening anywhere else under the plate. For this reason, the reverse flow is great, since it passes water under the gravel plate and then creates an even pressure underneath to force its way up.

The real problem with the reverse flow function of the PowerHead 402 is that its reverse current is about 1/2 of the forward or conventional flow. This, to me, as an aquarist, is a tremendous drop in efficiency. The new filters made by our engineers and introduced about 4 years ago were tuned for the PowerHead, rather than the air pump like all previous units before. the Evenflow systems make all water flow evenly through the entire surface of the plate and thus use the entire flow in conventional mode > without any loss. This has basically eliminated the need for reverse flow in my mind.

Sorry for the digression. The question you had was if you could filter the water before it goes into the gravel layer. Well, if you really think about it, the water is unfiltered when it is run conventionally and that has rarely caused a problem for anyone. I have never worried about it, but if you must put some form of pre-filtration, Identify the inlet for reverse flow, it is a grid behind the powerhead, a small inlet that you could - if you desire - cover with an AquaClear sponge, but you will sacrifice some of the water flow by the blockage.

5) I believe you can add a Magnum attachment such as the BioWheel, but I would suggest the addition of a "Power Clean" vacuum attachment is a waste of time. I know, I have my biases here, but I would tend to do my gravel cleaning in the old fashioed way where the dirty water is passed to a bucket, rather than allowing the dirt to fill the filter material fast and require it to be changed much more often and expensively than simply discarding dirt with the regular water change. It also sort of forces better aquarium management by requiring water removal and replacement rather than relying on the filter material to hold and rot material that is better discarded. (My personal opinion) I have always tried to use the filter media to its best advantage, rather than force rapid and expensive replacement. When you deal with a Magnum, it uses a cartridge style that needs replacement so often, they don't care how dirty it gets, its got to be discarded so often the added gimick just makes it seem like an advantage.

6) I have tried the basic aquarium guide link you mentioned, and I also found it broken, why I have no idea since it has not gotten a problem before, but maybe no-one is looking at probably one of the best free references there is - uh oh, now my real bias is there since I wrote it - but I fixed that link just now, so go back to it and look it over again. If you get others following, - my son is not allowing me to really search it out right now, please let me know, but the only problem is that all references need a .html extension, and the one that was there was .htm ( you need to type in the URL with the html extension and you should be able to get through it if it is a bad link. But, thank you so very much for the notification

Thank you so much for all of your _timely_help. Unfortunately I can't seem to find a reliable dealer here in my local town; that is why I am bombarding you with these questions. I am confident that once I get my aquarium up and running that my questions will be less frequent. If I am taking too much time away from your 4 year old son I understand. (We have 5 children :-) ). Just drop me a note and I will ration my questions. ;-)

My 46 gallon tank is a "Euro" tank made by Perfecto. It measures 36" x 12" x 19H" with the front glass curving out about 4".

I am quite confused about the undergravel filter business. (Reverse flow, normal flow, no UGF, etc.) But, I know that if I ask enough questions I will be able to make an informed decision. I came across an interesting idea (http://www.dalecombp.com/filters/undergravel.html ) of hooking up part of the return flow from the canister to the UGF. This seems to make a lot of sense to me. Do you care to comment on this arrangement? If so, would it work with a Fluval 303, or would it require the larger 403?

I appreciated your "digression" about the problems with hooking up a power head to an older style UGF. I have, unfortunately, been unable to locate the Evenflow undergravel filter in any on-line retail company's catalog. Are you aware of any place that I can order one? If I can locate one, which powerhead would work for this size UGF?

Back to

Nitrate
>subject = nitrate
Problem = I have a 70 gallon tank that stays around 70 nitrate. The tank only has a two biowheel top filter with beeds and charcoal. The tank is a fresh water community tank with an additional airstone. The nitrate stays around 50, never lower. Once in a while I have a fish die from internal infections. The angle ship do really well. The neons are o.k.

My 30 gallon tank has a 303 fluval and a top biowheel, corner shape tank. It does not have a nitrate problem. I was thinking of getting another fluval. Would it be best to take the 303 to the 70 gallon tank and get a smaller fluval for the 30, or get another 303 or 403 for the 70 gallon tank. What do you think?

The 30 gallon tank has plenty of water flow. The fish do well but can too much water flow hurt?

Can you give me some prices too. I would like to order direct.
>Size = 70
>Age = 1 year
>Type = Community
>Number = 30 - 40
>neon to angle fish
>Percent = this time only10 gallons three weeks almost 50
>Primary = Bio wheel

There are a number of questions in the message, I hope I will cover them all, but if I miss one, feel free to e-mail back for clarification.

1) Nitrate can be eliminated by live plants, regular water changes and anaerobic bacterial action. The Fluval with the BioWheel may be allowing some of the water to be treated anaerobically, but I tend to doubt that. Unless you are leaving the filter for very long periods of time and the flow diminishes, you are probably not anaerobic. Just be aware what is occuring in your tank to produce the nitrate. Fish breath out ammonia (literally) and can tend to concentrate ammonia released through decay and other processes as well in the water column. Benefical bacteria take ammonia and reduce it first to nitrite then to nitrate. The end product, nitrate builds up because it cannot be eliminated in most North American set-ups in any way other than water change since there is no real reliable way to anaerobically deal with it, and most NA tanks do not use living plants.

My suggestion with your larger aquarium is probably the best way is to purchase the filter for your new tank, so that there is as little disturbance to present systems as possible. This would allow the biofilter in the Fluval to gradually come up to spec while your smaller system is allowed to work without any problems. You don't need two systems crashing at once, at least this way, you can season the new filter in the larger tank then if you must, switch them. This would allow you to buy a smaller filter for the 30 although I would tend to stay with at least a 303, the size of the canister makes all the difference.

As far as fast flowing water, the fish normally like this unless it is so powerful that it blows them out. I have never found that a Fluval, with its operating spray bar will cause that kind of current. As long as the suction is gentle enough for the fish to get away, the amount of water filtered is always better to be high than low.

As far as pricing, I do not sell on the net, and I know that Hagen is not dealing directly with consumers. Their philosophy is to support the local independent pet retailer so they do not have a methodology to buy direct.

In case you missed it, their web site is

www.rchagen.com

I do have one more question, what size of fluval should I purchase for the 70 gallon tank?

Looking over your earlier message about the 70, and assuming you are going to continue to use the Marineland filters, I would say a Fluval 303 would be adequate, but would tend to move up to the 403 in case the biologicla load increases or if you intend to use the Marineland filter(s) in other tanks. A 70 is right in the grey area, I would always opt for the maximum filtration, but then real life economics can burst that bubble. I know, I told you either or, it depends..... but, It Depends!

Anyway, Hope that gives you a little to work with.

Back to

Tropiquarium Light Timer Instructions
Problem: I just purchased a Tropiquarium 68 and I can not understand how the programmable light timer/clock is to be set, yes i have read the instructions, however they make no sense. Any help would be appreciated, such as instructions that make sense.

PS What do I have to do to get the fish feeder unit, it did not come with the Tropiquarium. ( I purchased this unit new )

First things last, the fish food timer is an optional unit that is sold separately in most independent pet dealers. It is called the "NutraMatic" and comes in two sizes. Use the smaller hopper as that is what the Tropiquarium was designed to handle. The "Jumbo" unit will not rotate to my knowledge.

As promised, first thing last - the programmable clock. The first thing is to pop the cover and insert the batteries, this is not an insult to your intelligence, rather simply the first step. You will see the numbers light and be able to switch the light on and off with the manual switch. You will also find a set of instructions for setting the system inside.

Once you can open and close the lights, the next job is to set the clock.

Press the Adjust button for a few seconds, the hours will flash.

Use the Set button to change the hours until you reach the right one.

Use the Mode button to change the display to flashing minutes

Use the Set button to change the minutes to the desired time.

Press the Aut/Man button to stop setting the time when you are finished.

Next change the setting to auto with the Auto/Man button.

Once Aut shows in the right top corner, move your finger to Mode and press through the cycle. You will have the following icons show above the time, to the full left side you see a clear bulb with what appears to be rays emitted. This is the ON icon, to the right of this will next appear the OFF icon, a fully filled bulb.

The last settings shown are both icons showing with Aut on the right side. This is how the clock should appear normally when the light timer is activated. If both the icons are not shown, then the system will not turn on and off since it doesn't know both those important peices of data. I find this is where most people find they have problems.

The other possibility is to have no icons showing and MAN displayed at the top right corner. This is where the clock can be set - and the setting must be this to manually control the lighting.

Cycle to the ON setting.

Press the adjust button and get the display flashing for the ON time setting. Set this just the same way you did with the clock. Then shut the timer setting off by pressing the Aut/Man switch again.

Press the Mode button once more to get to the OFF icon on the screen only. Press the Adjust button and set the off timer setting. Once again move to the Aut/Man button to finish the process.

With the clock, on and off settings correct, use the Aut/Man button to select Aut and ensure both the icons are visible in this setting. When that is the case the timer is set and everything should go properly.

Back to

AquaClear in Salt Water Set-up
Problem: I want to set up a tropical marine aquarium. I have an aquaclear 300, but a friend told me that I shouldn't use it for a salt water tank. Is this true, and if so what filter set up do you recomend.
>Size: 55
>Age: 0
>Type: N.A.
>Number: 0
>Change: 0
>Percent: 0

The answer is difficult to respond. As far as an AquaClear 300 working in salt water, there is no problem with that, AquaClear filters work equally well in both fresh and salt water, although do not use Amrid in salt, it recharges in brine so thus is pretty useless.

Your friend would be right if he said that the AquaClear 300 is not enough to use in salt water, you will need at least some other filtration as well. Some would argue that all this might require would be a protein skimmer. If you are just keeping fish the addition of an UG Filter with power heads should be considered. If the 55 is going to house a reef, then a trickle style filter is important. Other possibilities in addition to the AquaClear 300 would be a Fluval.

Hope that helps you out, the real answer is that AquaClear 300 will work in salt water, but you probably need more filtration to be successful with either fish, invertebrates or a reef.

Back to

Aquarium Set-Up with Fluval
Problem: I am interested in setting up a new 45 gal tank. 36x12x24 With a Fluval 303 would I need to have a UGF as a secondary filter with reverse flow? The Aquarium manufactures like All-Glass are offering a corner compartmental overflow & underflow arrangement on their tanks. Would the extra investment in this option be worthwhile?
>Size: 45
>Age: 0
>Type: Community
>Number: 15
>Change: weekly
>Percent: 25
>Primary: Canister
>Secondary: UGF with reverse flow power head
>Media: n/a

Your set-up sounds good for most cases, although I would tend to use the Power Head in conventional flow, since the amount of flow is greater by about 2 times. For standard community fish (small) the reverse flow would eliminate strong currents that many medium fish like to swim against.

Using the Fluval with the spray bar, any lack of surface agitation caused by the lack of conventional output in the Power Heads would be compensated by the Spray bar breaking the surface tension. If you were not using the Fluval, then I would strongly suggest conventional flow for surface agitation. Hope this doesn't confuse you, it is just that reverse flow creates minimal currents since all the water is pumped down the stem, so there is not a lot of surface agitation to release carbon dioxide and add oxygen back to the water that can be used by the biological layer in the gravel. Using the Fluval overcomes that problem and will replenish oxygen adequately.

Have you considered or seen the Evenflow UG plates. They are the only ones designed to work exclusively with Power Heads, they overcome the problems of path of least resistance, the basic reason reverse flow is incorporated, but do not suffer from the flow restrictions of the reverse flow mechanisms. Look into them if you want full forward flow but total bottom coverage in the biological bed.

Filtration is always beneficial, so I cannot judge whether the extra expense for overflow boxes is really worthwhile. If you have the Fluval and UG filter running, a third filter might not be required, and even if later you feel you are underfiltered, there are Trio's, extra Fluvals and even AquaClear filters that can be added for a minimal expense to the aquarium when required.

Back to

Using Sand in an Aquarium
Problem: I need some information on what is becoming a item that disappeared from the market. I am trying to track down aquarium sand from Hagen. Do you have any information on where I can find sand. I realize that very one has moved to gravel, I would like to remain a sand person.

Aquarium sand is normally only used in Marine aquariums since it is quite dangerous. The problem is that it goes quite anaerobic and can release toxic gasses into the aquarium as nitrate is reduced. The main problem with sand is that it packs. I must admit that I have been taught for many years (34) that sand is not desirable in the aquarium, it will pack and cake and will often cause more problems than it could possible solve.

In almost every book you read, sand is not recommended. In my experience Hagen has only sold coral sand for marine systems. There was some decorative sand at one time many years ago but it was discontinued due to lack of interest.

I know this may not be what you wanted to hear, but at least you know a bit more of the reasons.

Back to

Nitrite Level too High
>subject = NO-level to high
Problem = Even after daily water change my nitrite level is too high. The discus chimes are wide open and some discus show a red mouth. Furthermore the discuss show black stripes on there body, which disappear after waterchange.

I have this problem sice about 3 weeks. During this period I change the water nearly every day. I removed all my plants and stones out of the water but cannot get a constant water quality.

My water temperature is 30 degree C and I use tap-water for water change.

Recently I give them medicin from Germany to recover, but don't see any improvement
>Size = 200 liter
>Age = 3
>Type = discus
>Number = 20 average age about 5-8 month
>Change = daily
>Percent = 30

I guess from your address that you are in Taiwan, and I have no idea what the water supply variations by season may be, but here is Canada, we are in the middle of spring, and we have severe run-off and lots of rain. With this type of condition, the municipal water has extra chlorine added to make sure it is safe to drink and the normal Nitrate and Nitrite levels rise to dangerous levels. I cannot compare the conditions there, to here, but wonder if the problem is not due directly to the actual water that is being used to do the water changes.

Why did you remove the plants, they require nitrate to live and are an excellent way to naturally reduce nitrate levels and stabilize the water condiotions over time. From your comments you also removed the place for bacteria to do their beneficial role of reducing ammonia and nitrite to natrate. Of course you will have trouble with stable water conditions, all the areas that provide it seem to have been suddenly removed.

Discus do not like to be in a bare tank, they need places to swim behind and through and these are now gone, regular water changes are good, but check your water for chlorine, ammonia, nitrite and nitrate. You may be adding more with the change than is in the water. This is rare, but it has occured in the past.

Back to

My Fish are Dying!!
>subject = My fish are dying!!
Problem = I am having problems with fish dying. I set my tank up on January 3 and introduced fish a week later. A male betta died two weeks later with most of his fins rotted off. I had treated the tank with a "complete remedy" but did not seem to help him. Last Wednesday, (the 11th), I scraped the sides of the tank, vacuumed the gravel and topped up the water (which had sat for 2 days).

The next morning, all four neon tetras were dead and the following morning the Bala shark was dead. On Feb 14, I visited the pet store and explained my problem. They suggested a 5-in-1 water treatment and to increase the water temperature to 78* from 74*. I bought 4 black tetras, a red-tail shark, two guppies (male & female) and a beautiful male betta and some live plants. I removed about 1/4 of the water from the tank, introduced the fish slowly and everything seemed fine.

All fish seemed to be healthy although the red-tail shark and a male swordtail did seem to be chasing the betta around. Last night, the betta seemed to hiding in the floating plants and this morning, he was dead. The female guppy has died tonight. All other fish appear to be fine. I am so frustrated (and becoming broke!). Any suggestions?

When I used the "complete remedy" which was for fungal and bacterial infections, I removed the carbon filter, then changed it 10 days later according to the instructions on the bottle. Also did a 1/3 of tank water change at that time.
>Size = 10
>Age = 1 1/2
>Type = Community
>Number = 9
>Change = Feb 14
>Percent = 25%
>Primary = Outside of tank Charcoal
>Secondary = none
>Media = sorry, don't know what media means

Primarily, it sounds like you are having trouble initiating the aquarium and making the water safe for the fish to live in. The first thing you should do is ask your pet store to do a full set of tests, including ammonia, nitrite and pH. This would give you a snapshot of the water that the fish are being put in. My best guess is that the water has either a high concentration of ammonia or nitrite, considering the age of the aquarium it is probably nitrite and will take a few more days for the bacteria to populate to the point where they are able to handle all the nitrite produced by the nitrosomonas bacteria that eliminate ammonia to nitrite on its way to nitrate.

Deaths early in an aquariums life are most often due to water and the changes occurring as it matures. I suggest you look at the Product Manuals area of my website (below the columns), and look at the Basic Aquarium Guide, with especial attention to the nitrogen cycle parts. The same manual is on the Hagen web as well, so you are welcome to look that over as well.

In general, fish will kill themselves in the first 4 weeks or more as they will produce a large quantity of ammonia, generally from respiration but also due to decay of excess food etc. Dead fish also decay quite rapidly and will quickly create a high enough concentration of ammonia that will kill the surviors as well when the bioloigical filter is not fully established.

I suggest Cycle right at the beginning to get the Nitrogen Cycle initiated more rapidly and to help alleviate the ammonia and nitrite problems within the aquarium. Other illnesses will occasionally occur, but when antibiotics are used, they also impair the biological beds and the ammonia problem compounds. This happens from increased ammonia production from stress and impaired bacterial reduction of the ammonia, so the end result is a large build-up that kills.

I would allow a few fish to stay in the tank at all times, ensure the filter and its media are kept clean, but not disturbed if not required. When you were told to remove the carbon (the stuff in the filter is called the media - by the way) this was to ensure that it did not actively remove the medication, if it was not already exhausted and de-activated, it could have been easily replaced.

I know I have rambled a bit, and hope that some of the questions you had were answered, get the water tested first, if you want me to comment after, no problem at all, but also tell me what the filter is that you have, it may be a power filter like an AquaClear, Dynaflo, etc, but it would help to give me that information. 5 in 1 water treatment - as far as I know is an Aquarium Pharmaceuticals product that is a tablet. It is for conditioning water. I do have a preferance, but will not comment as of now. If it is what I think it is, it is designed to make tap water safe, and should be added every time new water is drawn from the tap, but it does not provide disease remedy. I may be wrong, but a more liberal use of brand names would give me a better chance of figuring out what is going on in your aquarium.

Thank you for your prompt reply to my letter. I bought testing kits and the results were as follows:

pH: higher than 7.6 (water was very blue)

ammonia: between 1 and 2 ppm (water was quite yellow)

nitrites: less than .1 (water was barely pink)

I used the Marine Enterprises, Inc "Fresh Water Analysis Center" testing kit.

I was able to lower the pH. It is between 6.8 and 7.0.

I am unable to make much difference in the ammonia reading. This is where I need your help as I am getting conflicting advice. The lady at the pet store (whose advice, based on past experience, I have always received somewhat skeptically) where I usually deal does not have any of the ammonia-removing products you mention on the web-site. She has told me that Wardley ChlorOut will get rid of the ammonia. She said to add it to the water, remove the carbon from my filter (a Whisper Power Filter 2) then add the carbon filter back 24 hours later. The instructions on the bottle say nothing about this, and seems to me is meant to be used if chloramine has been added to our water. I don't think is the case judging from what you have described in your reference to chloramine.

This is what I have done:

On Monday night, I vacuumed the gravel well and siphoned off about 1/3 ofthe water. I added the correct amount of Chlor-Out to fresh tap water and also added four 5-in-1 Water Conditioner tablets (by Aquarium Pharmaceuticals) and 2 drops of pHDown. I removed the filter and installed a new one (with carbon) 12 hours later.

Tonight, the ammonia seems to still be about 1ppm.

My questions:

1. Will ChlorOut remove ammonia from water if it is not from chloramine but from organic sources?

2. Is it necessary to remove the carbon filter when adding chlorine-removing products to your water? I do not see this in your suggestions nor is it on the bottle instructions.

3. The lady at the pet store said my water should never be above 72*F yet the books I have both seem to set the temperatures for 75*-81* for the types of fish I have (or had).

There is another pet store about 10 miles away that is well-stocked with aquarium supplies and I am sure would have any products that you might suggest.

Thank you again for your help. I am somewhat more hopeful that I may yet be a successful aquarist.

1) Chlorine removers cannot do anything to ammonia. The higher dosage for chloramine releases ammonia into the water, it does not do anything to remove it. Chloramine is a compound put in municipal water for one of two reasons (usually) It either must travel quite a distance and the gaseous chlorine would dissipate before delivery (Edmonton to St Albert), or the treated water is stored for long time (over 3 days) usually in an underground reservoir (Ottawa). In most other cases chlorine is added to make water "potable" (fit for human consumption). Chlorine as mentioned is a gas - if left uncovered or aerated it will normally dissipate in 24 - 48 hours if left standing. Chloramine is a compound that never dissipates. It is made by bubbling chlorine gas through ammonia pellets and producing a liquid compound that can be eliminated by at least a double dose of chlorine remover (I use up to 4 times personally when dealing with the problem). When the chlorine-ammonia bond is broken the chlorine is eliminated immediately (well, within a couple of minutes) but the ammonia is released into the tank and must be eliminated by other means. So the simple answer is that unless the product has other agents to eliminate ammonia, it will stay in the tank until it dissipates by the bacterial action within the aquarium.

1a) All ammonia is inorganic, it can be either tocxic or nontoxic, but that is a factor of pH and unless you ask again I won't go into that chemistry yet. The ammonia sources within the tank are respiration, decay and chloramine breakdown, but whatever the source, the ammonia itself is virtually the same. Don't try to distinguish from the source, it is all the same problem.

2 Should you remove the carbon when using a chlorine remover - NO. Carbon electrostatically removes particles and suspended dyes and medications from the water over time. Chlorine removers should be deployed BEFORE the water is added to the tank - ideally in the bucket so it is already long gone before the water is added to the tank. Carbon thus has nothing it can remove. It does take out dyes and medications such as antibiotics, so proper dosage levels are drastically affected when carbon is available to capture the medication with the carbon matrix. As such, it should be removed during medication only. With the Whisper filter, you are a bit more hadcuffed with the amounts and types of the filter media than Hagen's AquaClear (Sorry, my biases are showing), but you still should remove the carbon when you treat with a medication such as a dye (malachite green for ICH, or antibiotics - TC, EM, etc.) Otherwise, leave the carbon in for the duration of its activity, between 2 weeks and 1 month. After a month is is probalbly not removing any more dyes or liquid impurities and with any cartridgre filter must be replaced.

3. Go with the books. I use the Baensch Aquarium Atlas for most of my species specific information. 72 will tend to cause a lot of ICH (white spot) on tropical fish where their native environments are normally between 76 - 80 degrees F Discus like it closer to 90. 72 and below are really only suitable for goldfish, bettas can tolerate it and some tetras will survive, but all but the goldfish will be healthier, happier and more active at higher temnperatures.

I probably went over an awful lot of ground here that may be a bit confusing, but hopefully I hit the majority of your questions with at least a partial answer.

Back to

Overfeeding rather than overcleaning
>subject = Cloudy water
Problem = The water in our aquarium has turned cloudy 2 or 3 times. We have changed about 1/3 to 1/2 of the water each time using a gravel cleaning siphon. We have been using distilled water because our tap water is at times very heavily chlorinated.

Have we changed water too often? Are we making a mistake using the distilled water? Tonight I read about CYCLE in the Hagen product manual I found thanks to your site. Do you recommend using this product and will it help our problem?
>Size = 10
>Age = 11 days
>Type = Goldfish
>Number = 4
>Change = Jan 4
>Percent = 60
>Primary = AquaClear 150
>Secondary =
>Media = Added AMRID tonight

Chances are better that you are overfeeding rather than overcleaning. When water goes cloudy - a milky color rather than greenish tinge - the chances are that the water is carrying an excess of organics. When this occurs, there is a population explosion of bacteria in the water column that makes the water cloudy as the concentrations of bacteria make a haze to the eye.

I generally recommend the following, stop feeding the tank for three days. This allows the bacteria to use up the excess nutrients and then they die back naturally. Then cut back on the feeding you are doing. This should be done as much as the fish will eat in TWO minutes with no food hitting the bottom. Anything left uneaten after two minutes is an overfeeding and the amount should be reduced the next time you feed.

As far as Cycle is concerned, I highly recommend it, all the tests I have seen show that it provides the bacteria necessary to break down ammonia and nitrite and is a very beneficial addition to the aquarium. I use it regularly and have it tested even more often,

Back to

Algae
Problem: Thanks for the informative page. I have just set up my old tropical tank(heated) for gold fish (unheated). The tank has a partial UGF, A SECCI filter with a foam insert and a corner filter with bio beads and activated charcoal. Under gravel filters get really dirty and probably are not needed for gold fish. What do you suggest I replace the gravel at the bottom with? After this change would the two remaining filters be OK. The tank is the standard 3 foot tank. I currently have 4 fish and will probably increase to 8. By the way from a temperature perspective I am in South Africa.

Oh, also how do I prevent/control algae formation in the tank. Is there an equivalent of an a tropical algae eater which will survive in a nonheated tank??

Sorry for the delay in response, in Montreal we are in week two of a major ice storm, Power is fluctuating and prioritization sometimes delays the stuff I like to do in favor of finding firewood or the next warm meal. It is getting back to normal, but delays are inevitable.

As far as your fish are concerned, South Africa is much warmer than Montreal, at least everywhere where I went on my one trip there, so I would not be very worried about a real coolwater fish for eating algae. Ask your local pet retailer, they would have a good idea of the best available fish. I would tend to use a plecostomus, but again a local expert is better informed for your particular area.

One of the best ways to control algae is a combination of proper light durations - ensuring that no direct sunlight hits the tank - and reduced feeding. remember, the only source of many of the nutrients that the algae needs to grow are added to the tank by the feeding regime. So, when you feed only as much as the fish will totally consume in two minutes with nothing hitting the bottom. I would feed no more than once a day.

Back to

Green Water

>subject = Green Water
Problem = My tank is 6 months old...all went well for about 3 months and I developed green water. Have done a complete water change and still no luck. I have a 25 gallon tank (an Eclipse model) with standard components to which I have also added a reverse-flow under gravel filter.

Until recently, I was using strictly artificial plants. 11 fish occupied the aquarium: 4 serpae tetras, 3 black tetras, 2 cory cats, 1 gourami and 1 plecostomus. The aquarium sits on a stand that puts it 10 inches off the floor. It sits against a wall, but is within 1 foot of a north-facing window.

PH is fine and ammonia is fine. I haven't checked for nitrite or nitrate levels.

I'm now down to the tetras and 1 cory cat (8 fish).

I am 13. Can you help me?
>Size = 25
>Age = 6 months
>Type = Community
>Number = 8
>Change = 10/31/97
>Percent = 100%
>Primary = Main Filter is a filter pad & wheel.
>Secondary = A reverse-flow power head.
>Media = 10/31/97

Green water is almost always a result of light, generally it is the result of some sunlight striking the aquarium directly. Other possibilities is that the lighting you are using is too long. Green water is normally an algae bloom that is so intense that the algae cells are so populous that they go free floating.

Another possibility is that the food you are using is too much and that the extra wasted part is decaying and adding too much phosphate to the aquarium water, again promoting an algal bloom.

I would rarely try to eliminate the problem with a full water change and scrubbing, since you will eliminate your active biological filter, one of the possible explanations for the loss of your fish. I would be checking nitrite as well as pH and ammonia, since it runs a different and later course than ammonia. If the tank is efficiently eliminating ammonia, changing it to nitrite, then the nitrobacter bacteria will only have begun to kick in after the ammonia is totally gone.

Generally, when I was faced with this problem, instead of a complete water change, I would find a Diatom filter (preferably one made by Vortex) to rent and use it to remove the algae floating in the aquarium as well as remving most of all the dirt in there as well. I found this will clear the tank and often removes the organics that were contributing to the bloom. Then I eliminate any sunlight shining into the aquarium, and cut of the fluorescent lighting (the last time I encountered this problem was when a client had a tank in his office, it ran fluorescent lighting 24 hourts a day - and caused the bloom that way. So cutting down ambient light to a reasonable 4 - 8 hours only with no sunlight is the next step after cleaning the aquarium with a diatom.

Finally, I used a Pond Block by Jungle to keep the algae down until the whole thing rebalanced. For quite a while they were unavailable, and I think they still are in Canada, but I used this as the mildest form of algicide, it seemed they only dissolved as fast as they were needed in an aquarium, although they are listed for about 250 gallons of water in a pond.

Hope this possible course of action works for you, the other, natural method would be to use something like Turtle Clean (by Hagen) to slowly and naturally eliminate the problem through competitive exclusion. If you want more information on that - try www.rchagen.com in the fish area under the Total Care information.

Back to

Keeping Goldfish in hard water
>subject = Water Hardness
Problem = My dad bought me an aquarium for my sixth birthday. I want to get some fish, but the pet shop told me our water was too hard. Do you think I should soften the water before putting in goldfish. Two pet shops have told me two different things. If I need to how do I soften the water. How many fish should I put in a 10 gallon tank.
>Size = 10
>Age = New
>Type = Goldfish
>Number = Nine yet
>Change = N/A
>Percent = ??%
>Primary = Hagen Aqua Clear A595
>Secondary = None
>Media = N/A

The water must be very hard for a pet store to tell you that you can't keep goldfish. They are usually quite hardy. You should also find out what your pH is. This is a test for how much acid or alkalinity is in the water, and more often that is more important. It should be in the range of 6.5 - 7.5 for the best results. Many water supplies are more like 7.8, and the fish will survive fine in it as well. Over time, as the water ages, the pH will tend to drop due to bacterial action, so don't worry too much as long as the pH is not much higher than 7.8.

You can soften water naturally with peat, although it also tend to acidify (drop pH). I would guess that you have hard alkaline water, the two factors often are combined. It also turns the water brown, not always the desired result. There are other fish that do really well, although they are more aggressive - like African cichlids. The problem is that they grow large as well.

I have found that goldfish do well in almost all waters, the hardness might just cause some fraying of tails, so if you are really worried, you might want to use some distilled water occasionally. You can buy it from a drug store normally, and you should never use it exclusively, maybe adding half to the water you use for changes. This will dilute the hardness, and may acidify the pH but not give you the problems of pure distilled water which is very acid and has been stripped of trace elements and electrolytes require for fish to survive.

Always remember, this is a hobby, not as much of a science as many people would have you believe. As such, you will hear a lot of opinions. You asked mine, and I will give that to you as well, but always remember, it is only an opinion, hopefully informed in most cases, but still up to you to believe or not.

You ask how many fish to add. I prefer to reply with fish inches. Let us say you wish to add small goldfish, about 1" in length (don't include the tails). You should be able to start with about 10" maximum, or ten fish. In the very beginning, I would add only a few, probably no more than 4" to let the water age naturally. The fish breathe, and when they do, they add ammonia to the water which if allowed to concentrate will kill them. That is the reason you want to be very patient and add only a few fish at first.

When the tank has aged - about a month to two months after you started the aquarium, you can add more, maybe bringing the total population to 10". When it is fully aged, with proper filtration, I would never recommend more that 2"/gallon (my rule of thumb) or 20" of fish in all.

Oh, and one more thing, do not overfeed your fish. That has always been the biggest mistake for new fishkeepers. Never feed more food that the fish can eat in TWO minutes - without any hitting the bottom. Anything left over will rot, and it will cause pollution and environmental problems that can lead to disease. If you feed lightly as much as they can eat preferably once ( but possibly twice) a day, the fish will be healthier and their environment will be optimal.

Best of luck with your new hobby, I have enjoyed fish for many years, but I only started when I was 10,

Back to

Goldfish and Cichlid Diseases
Problem: I have some fish with problums.Can you help ? I have 3 different tanks -- 1 tank is agressive,1 community and the other is goldfish....Well first things first in my goldfish tank one of my fish has on one side of it it seems that it scales are lifting up and there are what look like red open wounds under them. I have taken it out of the tank to inspect it further on one side the fish is very smooth and on the side that Im telling you about it is very rough !

Now, in my agressive tank I have a albino convict and in just the last few days I have found large white spots on it. Now I would think that it may be ick but the spots are large and the last time I came up with ick they were little white spots....

Last but not least in the last tank I had a angle fish that came up with hole in head .. Now that is the only fish that has showed any signs of this but is it not a parisite and shouldn't the other fish in the tank have it too ?

Diseases are always hard to diagnose from afar, but I will try to help you as much as possible.

1) Goldfish - generally, when the scales raise there is some form of parasite involved. As such I would be lookibng for a goldfish specific remedy for parasites. Often, I will start with adding aquarium salt to goldfish tanks as the oldest time general remedy - and it seems to disinfect the aquarium and control a number of parasites.

Otherwise, I will admit to relative ignorance about assorted carp - goldfish and koi are coolwater fish, and not one of my strongest suits. Please understand that I try to help as much as possible, but when I don't know, I orefer to show my ignorance and hope you can find more knowledgeable experts in the field that won't hurt your chances with wild guesses or erroneous speculation.

2) Again, there are lots of things that go on where a single look could be more informative than a million words, but it almost sounds as if the fish in question - the cichlid is suffering from a fungus infection. Fungus might look like what you describe, since it normally is seen as white patches that are often puffy. For fungus, I generally recommend cleaning the aquarium to remove excess organic wastes that are offering plenty of nutrition to the fungus. After the cause is removed (poor or neglected water conditions) I generally treat with EM tablets. Using erythromycin is often the best way to counteract the damage, but you must look for the conditions that caused the affliction in the first place.

3) Your angel may well have hexamites - a parasite that attacks the lateral line. It causes holes in the openings to the sensitive receptors along the lateral line, but most often appears localized to the head. For this problem I generally have used a product called Hex-A-Ex. Depending on who supplies it, it could have only german instructions, but recently there have been translations into english for the American and Canadian hobbyist. You are correct that this can be contagious, and is again often an indication that the water is polluted. Often the discus and larger cichlids like oscars that show it have been fed on things like beefheart or other foods that have a high polution value. Again, improved water conditions are the first order of business, increasing the temperatue for discus and Angels makes them more comfortable and then adding the proper dosages of Hex-A-Ex.

Back to

Preventing Diseases before they occur
Thank you Steve you may have been more help than you know .. I will try the salt in the carp tank ! as far as the poor water condition goes I'm not sure what I could do more?I do regular water changes . I almost go over board on filtation with under gravel,power heads and outside filters... If you can think of any other thing that im not doing that would cause any of these conditions that would cause a fungs or other bad condition please let me know.

P.S. you know more then me about those trash fish but hey the kids like them the best :)

I always walk a very fine line when I reply to questions of the type you asked, basically because I don't get every disease in the book, and there is a very great amount I do not know. So it is really difficult to respond to disease troubles, and then of course there is always the chance that I will offend someone wiuth my answer.

In the long run, I have tried to cure problems before they start, and that is to relieve as much stress in the environment. Hence, the comments about water conditions and solving the root of the problem, not the symptom.

You seem to be doing everything you can to keep water conditions at their peak, so I wouldn't have a lot of ideas in that vein. The only other thing I could suggest is to start to use a product I promote in my "professional" area. With that preamble, I must recommend a product it was my responsibility to evaluate a decade ago, and have watched help improve the conditons for uncounted fish. The product is Cycle. The concentration is amazing for Nitrosomonas and Nitrobacter, so toxins like ammonia and nitrite don't stand a chance. Since this is not a commercial site (really neither is the Hagen web), I won't go into the features here, but do suggest you visit the

www.hagen.com

website for lots of fish information. Its nowhere close to completion, but it will be of use to anyone interested in fish, and it will get better over the next couple of months as well. It covers the entire range of pet products delivered to the marketplace.

Sorry for the commercial, but look into Cycle, its the only thing that looks like it is missing in your set-ups, and although you can do nitrfying and denitrifying totally naturally, I prefer the insurance policy of knowing the bacteria I add with Cycle are the most concentrated, the most effective and the best way to biologically improve the overal aquatic conditions in any aquatic system.

Once again, I apologize if I sound like an advertyisement, it is not meant to be offensive in any way, just the excitement for a truly unique product that really does work.

Back to

Water Hardness
Thanks for your e-mail, it is very helpful. When the pet shop tested our water for hardness they used a kit with various droppers, one was supposed to make the water go purple. They had to keep putting in drops, up to 30-35 drops. Do you think this should be OK. The pH and ammonia were fine. They also told me I should test the pH regularly, one said every week. I agree that this is supposed to be fun, its getting more like a science lesson every time my dad takes me into the pet store. Still he is very patient with it all (and he's helping me send this e-mail, have to keep on his good side, he has the Visa card).

We have everything else set up and I want to get my fishes.

Once again, I must put in the rider that what I say only comes from experience and opinion, I do agree that it gets to be pure science if you let it, but it can also be pure fun too. Hardness has always been the lowest on my list of important features (remember - this is only my opinion) and personally I rarely even tested for it during my career. Only when I was interested in keeping guppies with flowing tails did I have a problem with it - its like swimming through cement for them, and it can rip their tails. Otherwise I did ignore it. I made sure I always did the maintenance, so the rest of the water characteristics stayed level and correct. In almost every case I can remember, this was all that was needed.

Others have different opinions, and they have reasons that work due to their experience. I can only say, you have to get off the fence and make a decision either to add fish and see what happens (sorry, my solution) or take steps to lower the hardness (again I think I mentioned doing a partial water change and adding distilled water to dilute the hardness. I think though that you should know there may be a different way to deal with it, but here we get back into science. There are two types of hardness actually. The first you can do something about is called carbonate hardness. It can be lessened with the use of a water softening pillow placed in the filter - this product is made by Aquarium Pharmaceuticals and can be recharged in its packing solution after you have exhausted it.

A second type of hardness is often called general hardness, and it includes carbonate hardness within the test, the difference between the two results (Carbonate and General) gives you a reading on how much hardness cannot be removed by resins. If there is a high carbonate hardness, and not much difference between the carbonate and general readings, you can do something to soften it, but if you have low carbonate and high general, then there isn't a lot you can do but live with the water and keep the other parameters as high as possible.

Back to

Keeping Goldfish in a bowl
>subject = New fish......
Problem = My problem isn't really a problem, is just that I have inherited three goldfish ( well thats what I think they are ) from a friend who is leaving the country and I don't really know anything about looking after them. So really I'm after a little bit of general advice. The fish live in two separate bowls, they don't have any aeration system, I have been told to clean out the bowls and wash the gravel every 2 weeks or if it is looking too cloudy.
>Size = see above.
>Age = don't know
>Type = ??????????
>Number = 3
>Change = yesterday
>Percent = 100%
>Primary = none
>Secondary = none
>Media = n.a.

Your request is very difficult, not because it is hard, but it is a problem to tell you step by step everything to do, most of it is already in the literature, and just needs to be explained. That really is the difficult part.

Most of the products I will talk about can be further explained there if you want to browse the Hagen site (www.rchagen.com), so I hope you forgive me if I am relatively brief with their explanation. I also suggest that you read the Basic Aquarium Guide which gives a good starting point about keeping fish.

Fish naturally poison themselves with their wastes and their respiration, both of which create ammonia concentrations in the water. In the case of a bowl, the replacement of the water is required to dilute/eliminate the ammonia and its by-products nitrite and nitrate before they can kill the fish. That is the basic reason that you should change the water every week and rinse the gravel. Since there is no filtration, the food you feed will also foul the water and create lots of ammonia as it decays so the gravel must be rinsed as well.

The problem with this method is that the water you add back to the bowl could also kill the fish. The reason that this may occur is simple. The water that comes from the tap may have chlorine or chloramine added if it is from a municipal water supply. These chemicals are added to make the water "potable" for humans, and are there to kill bacteria and other micro-organisms that can cause disease to humans. Problem is that they also kill fish by reacting with the gills and literally burning them (scientific term oxidize).

As such you must use a water conditioner to make the tap water safe for fish and other natural inhabitants of the aquarium (beneficial bacteria). I suggest AquaPlus a new Hagen product that is the top of the class in making water safe for fish. You have the toughest case since there is a complete change every week. I do however suggest that you fill a couple of 2 liter soda bottles with water at all times, condition it and allow it to sit for at least 24 hours before you change the bowl. The conditioner removes all traces of chlorine, AquaPlus also removes harmful metallic ions and makes the water much easier for the fish to live in.

The other important factor is to feed very minimally. I know that the fish will look like they are starving even after feeding five minutes beforehand. But remember they are Poikilothermic (cold blooded) and need no energy to expend in heating their bodies. I suggest a feeding every two days as much as they can eat in two minutes with none hitting the bottom and none left over. If there is some left over, reduce the amount you feed the next time. Too many aquarists kill their fish with kindness but more particularly overfeeding. They don't need as much as you think they do, and too much will simply rot and kill them as it decays.

I know that won't answer all your questions, but I am more than willing to answer more specific ones. I do suggest you visit the Hagen Web, it has lots of information on your needs for fish.

Back to

Controlling Phosphates
>subject = Phosphates
Problem = Problems with Phosphates around 2.0 ppm. The tank is not subjected to sunlight and the light is on for 5-6 hours a day. Feed my goldfishes twice a day/small portions of Wardley Gold which is lower in L-phosphates, and clean my gravel with siphon once a week. I have a pair of Nubia plants that are doing well and it does not contain any other organics. I have used Brite & Clear which used Aluminum Sulfate to bring down the level of phosphates...and it worked, but after I stopped using it, phosphates are on a comeback.
>Size = 20
>Age = 3 months
>Type = Community
>Number = 3
>Change = 4/25/9
>Percent = 20
>Primary = Marineland Eclipse Unit
>Secondary = Undergravel w/ air pump
>Media = 4/25/97

Generally I have used less food to control phosphates, but a newer technology is beginning to take hold. It exploits the concept of competitve exclusion. In this case I would probably suggest the Bio-Care Turtle Clean product distributed by Hagen. This is a super concentrated bacterial preparation that, over time, will build a potent bacterial population that works on wastes as a primary purpose. The idea is that by using the product on a weekly basis, the beneficial bacteria become the dominant ones in the aquarium. As dominant, they compete and then outcompete for the various elements they require for life. One of these is phosphate, so they incorporate it directly into the bio-mass, removing it from the environment by binding it within their population.

It is a longterm solution, and requires a slow build-up of bacteria to the point where they become dominant. When this occurs, however, algae is less capable in the competition and is often the loser in the battle. The result is lower phosphate and natural algae control.

Back to

Green Water
Problem: For six months the tank remained relatively clear. after this period, the water gradually became green and very cloudy. Two weeks ago, we did a complete water change using 5 gallons of bottled water and 5 gallons of tap water. We cleaned the gravel and acccesories but did not replace anything. We also added the whisper junior filter at this time. Within ten days, the green, cloudy water had returned. The tank is located on a kitchen counter with a solid wall behind the tank. It has always been in this location. The fish are fed sparingly. What can be done?
>Size: 10
>Age: 9
>Type: Red tail shark
>sword-tail
>tetra albino
>strawberry and blueberry fish
>Number: 5
>Change: week
>Percent: 25%
>Primary: screen filters (under gravel)
>Secondary: whisper junior
>Media: n/a

Green water usually means a couple of things, but primarily that the conditions are perfect for growing algae, since that is normally what green water is, a bloom of algae. If your aquarium is receiving ANY sunlight directly, that is probably the cause. Your tank is 9 months old, so this is the first time that the sun may be hitting the tank when it is seasoned with plenty of organic material to provide the raw ingredients to algae to grow and thrive.

First thing, ensure that no light is hitting the aquarium from the sun. If it is, you will probably have the problem recurr on a regular basis. If it hits a side, then use a background to block the light. I must admit that I have also heard of this problem and had to treat it in an office that ran its fluorescent lighting 24 hours a day, in other words a brightly lit area could have the problem even if direct sunlight is not striking the water.

Secondly, watch what you are feeding your fish, be sure to feed the fish only as much as they can eat in two minutes with nothing hitting the bottom. If there is anything left over at all, the tank is overfed and should be cut back in food offerings. If you are feeding quite often, you migh want to cut back to the feeding regime above, but only feed once a day. Remember a good source of phosphate for the algae (something that causes algae blooms in lakes) is fish food, so every milligram of waste is adding to your problem.

The immediate solution is to use a diatom filter on the aquarium to remove the algae from the tank and then to reduce the nutrients for the bloom by reduction and more efficient digestion by the fish. Fish have short digestive tracts and as such when fed often, undigested food is simply forced from the intestines by the new addition. Another reason I only recommend single feedings (actually my Africans get fed about twice a week) and the entire ecosystem seems to do much better that way.

A different cause is can be the actual water supply, although in Canada right now we haven't begun to see the results of Spring, with 6 feet of snow around my driveway, a spring melt and runoff always brings problems to aquarists. The snow melt brings with it lots of dead organic material into the reservoirs (dog feces, dead animals that were frozen during the winter, and even car wastes that were frozen as well). Municipalities treat with extra doses of chemicals to make it safe for human consumption, but the general water quality for fish deteriorates dramatically. I try to stay away from water changes whenever the spring melt or a strong rainstorm occurs, I know that a lot of organic material (the stuff of algal blooms) and extra chemicals are added that can often harm my tank come in with and water change.

Finally, once you have controlled your bloom as effectively as possible, you could try one of two approaches. If you live in US, you can use the Pond Block by Jungle. It is useful for ponds, but the old formula in the states is also effective when placed in an aquarium. I used to use that method for years. It is as much a preventative as a cure, although if you do not expect an overnight miracle it will gradually bring it under control with a relatively gentle algicide.

I have moved onto a different approach personally, and hope that it will work for you as well. A new set of products, BioCare Waste Control and Turtle Clean have been introduced by Hagen to clean up aquarium wastes and the environment of turtles. One of the things that Turtle Clean is designed to do is to clear water clouds, both green and milky. It is biological and takes time, but it is all natural bacteria that simply outcompete with algae for the limited nutrients in the aquarium When (for instance) a phosphate molecule is available, if there are a lot of algae, they will incorporate this into their structure.

Waste Control and Turtle Clean are so concentrated that over time (weekly addition) the populations of beneficial bacteria build to such an extent that when a phosphate molecule is free, it is outcompeted for by bacteria and incorporated into the bacterial biomass, and away from the algae. Studies have shown that when a bacterial population reaches the correct size it will outcompete weaker species that in this case are usually undesirable.

At any rate, sorry for the longwinded explanation, hope that somewhere in there you do find the answer that works for you.

Back to

Bad Odor from tank
Problem: setup tank 4 - 5 days ago.for the last two days the tank has had a really bad smell to it.the smell fills the air in the room. Have made a major water change,cleaned out filters,added wardley complete conditioner.has been four hours and there is not a notable improvement. Hope you have some insight on this problem.
>Size: 55
>Age: 1 week
>Type: oscar,jack dempsey/assorted smaller trop.and feeders
>Number: 17not counting feeders
>Change: major 3/8
>Percent: 75%
>Primary: aquaclear500 (2)
>Secondary: none
>Media: n/a

The tank you have could easily show a bad odor as the tank is quite overcrowded for an initial set-up. I would not be surprised if you have a high concentration of ammonia from the amonut of wastes being generated by the inhabitants where there is not an adequate biological filter to remove them. In general, the very highest amount of fish you should have is 1 inch of fish per gallon.

In addition, I would not add any fish food for a few days to keep the ammonia production as low as possible. It would seem that the odor production is the result of starting the aquarium and loading it with a lot of fish, many of which will beocme food quite shortly. As the fish are eating, probably overfed, the short digestive tract of the piscevores loses efficiency and allows undigested food to be expelled. This will add to the ammonia production by decaying. Again another cause of odors.

In general, the best way to start a tank - according to microbiologists, is to start with a few fish and not feed them for the first week. This allows the natural ammonia production of the gills to provide food for the bacterial component of the aquarium, while not permitting the concentration to build up to deadly levels, at least in most cases.

The use of Cycle Bacterial Aquarium Supplement will add the correct bacteria and they will make the smells less over a bit of time, but a simple water change, if there is a lot of organic waste in the water may not get rid of the detritus that is causing the odor, it will reduce the ammonia concentration and lessen the danger to the fish, however.

Back to

Cloudy Water
Problem: My aquarium keeps getting cloudy. I don't understand, I've never had this problem setting it up before. (10 yrs old) In Virginia now - only thing different>Size: 50
>Age: 1
>Type: small mix
>Number: 3
>Change: new
>Percent:
>Primary: jet pump through rocks
>Secondary: wisper filter -also another suction type - total of three

Cloudy water usually means there are excess organics in the water. This can come in with the water supply in the case of a new and sterile aquarium, and as such will cause a burst in the growth of heterotrophic bacteria to the point where they become so population dense that they appear as a milky cloud to the naked eye.

I usually recommend stopping feeding for three days to allow the bacteria to naturally control themselves by using the organics up so the population starves and drops. If it is a new tank this should give you the fresh start towards clear water. The filtration surely seems adequate, just too much organic matter entering the system. In an older aquarium when the cloud suddenly appears, I then again recommend the cessation of feed for three days to allow everything to get back into balance, then return to feeding regime that is about 1/2 of the previous amount. Too many aquarists overfeed their fish, and cuttiong the amount in half often does the trick.

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Cloudy Water - II
Problem: I've been changing my water every week about 20 percent and the water in the tank is always clouded. if I use the water cleares it works only for 2 or 3 days. I feed my fish once a day. I've never had a clear tank since august when I bought it.
>Size: 20
>Age: 6 months
>Type: red pacu
>Number: 2
>Change: weakly
>Percent: 25%
>Primary: wet/dry filter, aquaclear power filter for 20 gallons
>Secondary: undergravel filter
>Media: 2 weeks ago

Cloudy water usually means there are excess organics in the water. This can come in with the water supply in the case of a new and sterile aquarium, and as such will cause a burst in the growth of heterotrophic bacteria to the point where they become so population dense that they appear as a milky cloud to the naked eye.

I usually recommend stopping feeding for three days to allow the bacteria to naturally control themselves by using the organics up so the population starves and drops. If it is a new tank this should give you the fresh start towards clear water. The filtration surely seems adequate, just too much organic matter entering the system. In an older aquarium when the cloud suddenly appears, I then again recommend the cessation of feed for three days to allow everything to get back into balance, then return to feeding regime that is about 1/2 of the previous amount. too many aquarists overfeed their fish, and cuttiong the amount in half often does the trick.

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New Tank Syndrome
Problem: It still very cloudy,even I have used 2 pads of actived carbon to purify the water. and the bad odour is coming out too.
>Size: 48x36x24
>Age: new
>Type: 3.5 " Chinese goldfish Oranda
>Number: 9
>Change: New set up
>Percent: 10%
>Primary: one for 200Gal wet/dry system
>Secondary: with dls pre-filter
>Media: 2 pads of activated carbon & 2 bottles of cycle added in

A new aquarium can cloud up for a number of reasons, often the water placed in the aquarium is carrying a number of organics which will allow a population explosion of heterotrophic bacteria for as long as the "food" is available. When there are enough bacteria, they will appear as a milky cloud to the human eye. What they really are is billions of bacteria suddenly going wild since the inhibition to growth (chlorine) has been done.

This is termed "new tank syndrome" and usually dissapears after about three days when the organics have been used up and the population of heterotrophs dies back due to lack of food. If the tank is overfed during this time, it can become a relatively permanent problem. I usually recommend not feeding the aquarium for three days to let the bacteria naturally eliminate the organics and then die back.

The Cycle is a biological preparation of lithotrophs which use ammonia and nitrite as food sources, they do not clear aquariums, rather they eliminate the poisons created by the fish and decay. I would not feed the aquarium for a few (3) days to let it stabilize, then feed quite sparingly for the first month to allow the nitrogen cycle to establish. This will minimize stress due to ammonia and nitrite since less will be produced.

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Cloudy Eyes – Losing Scales
Problem: large tank with two large, healthy, well-established fish, catfish and cichlid/jack dempsey. Bought oscar and tinfoil barb large enough to add without being harrassed by other fish. Oscar adjusted perfectly, but the barb has developed cloudy eyes and started to lose her lovely shiny scales. At first she had a great appetite and appeared to be adjusting well, but now she shows no interest in food. other fish not yet attacking her -- she is lively still. Came home from aquarium with small red patch on her side, almost looked like a scrape.>Size: 55
>Age: 72 months
>Type: red tailed tinfoil barb, catfish (very large -- alpha fish); jack dempsey; very small tiger oscar
>Number: 4
>Change: 48 months for a complete change; 24 moths, 50% change; (evaporation is such that we add about 10% new every week)
>Percent: 50%
>Primary: whisper "C"
>Secondary: none
>Media: five days ago

The exact cause of the problem is still a mystery to me, but I do have a few comments about the set-up that might lead you to a solution.

In my estimation, a full water change should never be done, and a change rate of 50% every two years is very low. In general the better aquarium maintenance routine involves weekly or bi-weekly water changes, but if you have been successful for so long a monthly change would probably suffice, although your fish load has been relatively low.

If we look at the fish you have kept and the ones you added, the only one that really requires good to excellent conditions is the barb, they like clean fast moving water with lots of swimming room, cichlids like the dempsey and oscar are able to tolerate fairly tough conditions and the catfish is used to being down and dirty.

When a water change is only done as rarely as you do it, there is a good chance there will be a concentration of nitrate built-up over time. When only evaporation is replaced, all the minerals and other elements in the water other than h2o also remain behind as the pure water evaporates. This is the reasoning behind doing regular, more evenly separated water changes.

My guess, and that is what it must be, is that the hardness in the water is high, the clouded eyes can be a result of hitting something, or a reaction to poorer water conditions than the Barb can tolerate. The loss of shininess also could be a result of ongoing stress over water conditions that will eventually overtax the immune system and allow sores and wounds to progress.

The best thing I think you could do would be to do a few water changes, 10% on a daily basis to get the water back into shape without radically changing the environment. I would also tend to treat with erythromycin to keep fungus or some bacterial problems at bay, but probably the real cure is to use a more regular water maintnenace program that takes into account the residue from evaporation as well as the evaporation itself.

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Conditioning New water for tropical fish
Problem: How can I condition tap water for use with warm water tropical fish?
>Size: 25
>Age: 1
>Type: 1-Painted Platy, 1-Sunset Platy, 1-White Platy, 3-Tetra
>Number: 6
>Change: Jan 2
>Percent: 50%
>Primary: Fluval 303
>Secondary: none
>Media: New

I suggest the use of a tap water conditioner such as Aqua-Plus, a new product put onto the market by Hagen, but there are quite a number of water conditioners available that will do the job.

The problem is simple, Municipal water supplies are made safe for human consumption by adding chemicals that kill or incapacitate bacteria. These same chemicals are deadly to fish as well. In addition, copper pipes and other sources of metallic ions create water that can prove stressful to fish because of metallic ions, these must be neutralized before the water contacts the fish.

The most common poison added to the water supply is chlorine. Old style aquarists will make this go away naturally by holding the water in a container and aerating it, the chlorine gas dissipates naturally. But too many times there simply isn't time, so a chlorine remover must be used. This acts instantly, but untreated water should never be added to the tank, rather put it in a bucket and add the chlorine remover BEFORE the water gets to the tank.

Chloramine is added more frequently than in the past, this does not dissipate, so a chlorine/chloramine remover must be used. Otherwise serious damage and often death occurs. Again, a high quality water conditioner will remove it without difficulty, but trace ammonia will be left from breaking the chloramine bond. That is normally not a huge problem, unless the animals are very sensitive to ammonia or the biological filter has not been established or is weakened.

Hope t