GeorgeJ Posted January 5, 2022 Share Posted January 5, 2022 Really sorry to hear about this and thanks for sharing.. @Theresa_M . I just got back into it and and have been cycling tanks and getting hardy fish. Now I'm getting ready to put them all in a new 40G Breeder (currently cycling) and make a nice community tank. I'm going to print off your post and stick it on the wall as a reminder. Again sorry to hear about it.. GeorgeJ 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Theresa_M Posted January 5, 2022 Author Share Posted January 5, 2022 @GeorgeJ thanks so much for commenting. Sounds like you're getting started the right way! Congrats and enjoy your new set up! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Theresa_M Posted January 5, 2022 Author Share Posted January 5, 2022 @Goldie Blue you're not alone. I would venture to guess that most people start out in the hobby that way. I know I did!! It's such a relief when you start to see your nitrites (eating ammonia) and then, as they dwindle, your nitrates come through. It's very satisfying now starting a new tank, knowing what I know. But THIS - fish in cycle - is not fun. Good luck! You've found a great resource in this community! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aqua junky Posted January 5, 2022 Share Posted January 5, 2022 On 1/4/2022 at 3:39 PM, Theresa_M said: I appreciate that! Thank you for the encouragement! No clue. I'm still trying to work through it. As I said, it was a series of poor decisions on my part and it's hard to say. I think I probably should have started with the water change after that second random death - for sure after the third. I also should have moved the new fish to quarantine at the same time. That's what I'm thinking. Could have been an overloaded tank and I just didn't realize it. Medicating at that moment is my biggest regret, though. If you have a bunch of fish suddenly dying - all different species - over a series of a few days, it's probably(?) not a disease issue that needs resolving. Dont beat yourself up over it cause from what I read you did exactly what you should have. When things like thos happen all you can do is test test test and if the tests show everything is fine than it leaves you confused and desperate. And as far as the heater goes if the heater took a crap than the water temp would have dropped gradually so the likelihood of that being the problem is slim to none. Ive heard lots of storys of peoples tanks just resetting itself out of nowhere and if that was the case how were you to know. I think you did the samething most of us would do. On the bright side if there were any big changes you've been wanting to make well nows the time. Again im sorry this happened. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Theresa_M Posted January 5, 2022 Author Share Posted January 5, 2022 Thank you @Aqua junky ☺️ 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fishman Jason Posted January 5, 2022 Share Posted January 5, 2022 @Theresa_M I'm sorry and I feel your pain! I did something similar once. I got overeager at the LFS and brought home some festivum ciclids and killed several prized angelfish with a nasty fungus that swept through the tank. You and your tank will recover! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CalmedByFish Posted January 5, 2022 Share Posted January 5, 2022 To anyone who knows the answer: I'm having trouble putting the puzzle pieces together. Is the main problem that the bacteria crashed? It sounds like it had been fine. If the bacteria crashing is the main problem, how do we prevent that? I thought once a tank is stable, and isn't changed much, the bacteria is good to go. I can tell I'm supposed to be learning something here. To all of you who had the awful experiences in this thread, I'm so sorry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Theresa_M Posted January 5, 2022 Author Share Posted January 5, 2022 (edited) Hi @CalmedByFish! Great question. Ultimately, my bacteria crashed. What caused it is not entirely known. I took several actions to save my fish that likely played into it - a comedy of errors, so to speak (although not so funny). Look up "nitrogen cycle" or "aquarium tank crash" on YouTube and you'll see that this does happen from time to time. It's not always super clear the reasons why. Short answer to your question about the ecosystem in your tank is that, "no" the cycle is not bullet proof once established. Having said that, some people never have problems and others do. I suspect that the more complex your tank is (not speaking from any scientific knowledge here) with fish, wood, botanicals, etc, the more risk you have of things falling out of balance. BUT, that's not going to stop me from using any or all of those things in any tank 🙂 Edited January 5, 2022 by Theresa_M 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CalmedByFish Posted January 5, 2022 Share Posted January 5, 2022 On 1/5/2022 at 12:19 PM, Theresa_M said: Look up "nitrogen cycle" or "aquarium tank crash" on YouTube and you'll see that this does happen from time to time. It's not always super clear the reasons why. Short answer to your question about the ecosystem in your tank is that, "no" the cycle is not bullet proof once established. Having said that, some people never have problems and others do. I suspect that the more complex your tank is (not speaking from any scientific knowledge here) with fish, wood, botanicals, etc, the more risk you have of things falling out of balance. BUT, that's not going to stop me from using any or all of those things in any tank 🙂 Thank you. I don't know how I missed that. I've learned about how the nitrogen cycle works, but I really don't think I ever heard that it can crash without there being a big change to the tank... which doesn't mean it wasn't said. Thanks for making me aware. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Theresa_M Posted January 6, 2022 Author Share Posted January 6, 2022 UPDATE for the people who are following this post. I am so pleased to share that the cloudiness is completely gone and the fish are active and schooling as if nothing happened. Zero ammonia and zero nitrites since I did a water change this morning at 6am. Checked the water three times so far today and always zeros!! I have a trace of nitrates which means stuff is happening people! Everything seems copacetic. Will continue to monitor, but looks like I may come out of this a little earlier and better stocked than I expected. I am thrilled! 5 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeaDevl Posted January 6, 2022 Share Posted January 6, 2022 sorry for your losses, but thanx for giving the details.. as a newb i really appreciate the info.. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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