New Aquarium cannot keep beginner fish alive

[Mellyroo]

Can you please help us figure out why our glo fish tetras are not surviving our tank transfers? We had 3 in a 5 gallon and as soon as we transfer them to our brand new 20 gallon they died. At first we thought it was the bubble wall making too much current - as we found all 3 inside a decoration dead. We have had our water tested every time before transferring and it’s perfect.  So we turned off the bubble wall and had the water tested again- same thing, 3 new fish all three died over night.  I don’t understand, as we acclimated them and made sure they were good before releasing them. And it’s weird because the first three were fine in their tiny tank, but died in the much bigger tank.  The pet store cannot figure out what is wrong, and we are just looking for advice as we love tetras, they are our favorite fish, we love their personalities, but won’t buy more until we can figure this out. Any suggestions? We buy 3 at a time so they have a school to swim with, in hopes of buying more in a few weeks, but we can’t get the tank started up. I’ll send picture of our setup. The first pic is how we found one of the most recent dead fish, the other two were on the floor. The second pic is where we found all 3 inside that three dead. Thanks so much everyone.

[Brian]

Weird.   Is the pet shop having any problems with their fish?  
Does this pet shop have the same water supply company as you?  
Is the filter, gravel and decorations all from the older tank?

Also for one fish to be floating so soon suggest gases have accumulated in the fish.  When they first die sinking is normal.  They will float days later once gas as started to accumulate.  
Us there anything new added to this tank?  And this tank was rinsed and or washed 

[Scapexghost]

Perhaps some sort of contaminent got into the tank. Did you clean the tank or any of the decorations with soap? Perhaps something in the tank is leaching something into the tank. Are any of the decorations not designed for fish tanks?

This you test the water in the 5 gallon? Even if the water parameters in the 20 are good, if they are wildly different from the parameters in their old tank, the shock may have killed them.

[JoeQ]

Do you know your water parameters including your temp? Do you know the stores parameters temp included? How did you acclimate? It sounds like they died from shock. 

[Tanked]

so many questions/possibilities.  

I'm seeing a completely enclosed tank. Turn the bubble wall on. 

The fish moved to a larger box.  What else did you change?  What is the temperature in the aquarium?  Who is doing the water tests, you or the pet store?  Are there other dead fish in the tank at the fish store?  The fish die over night. How do they act prior to that?  How long were they in the 5 gallon tank?  Were the fluorescent stones also in the 5 gallon aquarium?

[Patrick_G]

What process did you use to cycle the 20g tank? Is the 5g tank cycled? 
Can you post your water parameters and temperature? 

[Griznatch]

 I would echo @Patrick_G's question.  An uncycled tank could cause what's happening to your tetras.
Here's a handy link on the nitrogen cycle that might clear up some issues you are having.
https://www.aquariumcoop.com/blogs/aquarium/nitrogen-cycle?_pos=3&_sid=19eb9cef6&_ss=r

[Cinnebuns]

Even if the water is fine before you add the fish, adding the fish adds ammonia. If the tank is not cycled, then there is no way to get rid of the ammonia and the fish will die. I'm guessing that's what's going on. 

[Mellyroo]

Well the snail and loach are still alive.  All the decorations were cleaned with only warm water no chemicals, and all bought from a pet store.  The temp is the exact same as the small tank at 76.  We cycled the new tank for 2 weeks so bubble wall was on, aqua safe was added, along with slime coat, and filter cartridge was left in the whole time so that there would be beneficial bacteria growing.  Water was clear a few days after setting up, then went through the cloudy stage a few days while found through the bacteria colonization, then cleared up again. I tested it myself every day. I will attach the water comp 

[JoeQ]

Im no expert on cycling, im sure more knowledge people will answer.  But If you had that high of an amount of nitrites, your tank was not fully cycled and you should not have been told your water was safe for fish. 

[Mellyroo]

You’re probably referring to the old aquarium - it was a bit high but since we were getting ready to switch over we were told not to do anything with the old tank.  I’ll circle the new tank numbers in purple - I’ll take a new strip test and post that too.  We did NOT have the glow rocks in the old aquarium. I can take out all the glow rocks and re-clean all the decorations too. 

[Mellyroo]

Turned the bubbles back on so you could see it.

Edited May 28, 2022 by Mellyroo

[JoeQ]

Im not sure with your test results since i have not used those strips, but from the sheer amount of bubbles on the surface I would think something ammonia or med related was going on. 

Edited May 28, 2022 by JoeQ

[nabokovfan87]

On 5/28/2022 at 12:16 PM, Mellyroo said:

Essentially, your filter doesn't support enough bacteria right now.  You're getting a massive ammonia spike when you add the fish in, and then you're having other parameters change dramatically as a result of all of the fluctuations.

What we need to to is figure out how to best "fix" the filtration.  The easiest way is going to be by adding some aquaclear sponge material into the compartment.  Let me grab a video.  It would also be helpful if you could provide the specific filter model you're using.

If you have questions please feel free to ask and I'm sure many of us will have lots of valuable experience doing this.
 

 

another method might be to add a pre-filter sponge as well, if that is an option.

[Mellyroo]

Here is a pic of it - not sure where else to find more info about the filter.  How do you know about it not being enough bacteria? Trying to suck it all in lol.

[Patrick_G]

Based on the results you circled in purple your tank wasn’t cycled. You’ll want to wait until the Nitrites drop to zero before adding fish. 
 

Here’s an informative article on the Nitrogen cycle. 
https://www.aquariumcoop.com/blogs/aquarium/nitrogen-cycle?_pos=1&_psq=cycle&_ss=e&_v=1.0

[Chick-In-Of-TheSea]

On 5/28/2022 at 5:41 PM, Mellyroo said:

How do you know about it not being enough bacteria

The nitrites were > 0.

Adding bacteria to the water is a great idea at this stage.

[Shea Loner]

I've never had a petsmart water test done. But I would be more worried abut the  .5 ammonia reading. That along with a nitirite above zero means your tank is NOT cycled and will kill or damage most fish. 

On 5/28/2022 at 2:23 PM, Mellyroo said:

 

Do you have fish still in the 5 gallon? Does it have the rings or a sponge in the filter? I would take the "used" media out of the 5 gal and place in the new tank. Fit it in the filter if possible or place near the bubble wall. You will need to add some kind of food source for the new tank bacteria. I'm not certain on the new recommended method, but I would add a pinch or 2 of fish food then wait a week and retest your water.

[Patrick_G]

@Mellyroo, you just need a bit more time, I had recently cycling tank get stuck at the stage yours is at, but it eventually happened. If the five gallon has been set up for a long time then it’s filter will be filled with beneficial bacteria. Like @Shea Lonersaid, you can take some media out of it and put it in the new tank. That’ll help jumpstart the last part of the cycle and bring down your Nitrite. 

The toxins generated by three Tetras in 20g of water don’t really amount to much, but it’s the simplest answer to why they’re dying. Just in case it’s something else I would try and find another fish store, preferably a local independent one with good reviews. Try buying your next batch of fish from them. 

 

[nabokovfan87]

On 5/28/2022 at 2:41 PM, Mellyroo said:

Here is a pic of it - not sure where else to find more info about the filter.  How do you know about it not being enough bacteria? Trying to suck it all in lol.

Cool, there IS some ceramic in there, but not much.  You can very likely fit more.

Essentially when you're modifying a filter there's a few choices.  All of them are centered around how does the filter operate and how do you take advantage of the flow path itself.  One of the easiest ways to mod a filter is to just fill it with sponge.  Based on the top down view it looks like....

Blue = Flow in, there should be a small inlet here when you look inside.
Red = Flow out,  Right now the ceramic media bag would be on this red side of your cartridge.
Green = sponge = mod



Essentially you'd just have to measure the length, cut it to fit, then you're good to go.  If you wanted to have sponge and ceramic, you'd just leave a gap on the red side and then you would slot the media in there.

If you have a filter that flows bottom ---> top and not only left to right you could do something like this as well.

[Tanked]

On 5/28/2022 at 3:06 PM, Mellyroo said:

We did NOT have the glow rocks in the old aquarium. I can take out all the glow rocks and re-clean all the decorations too. 

My only concern with the glow rocks is that they may not be aquarium safe. That will usually be stated on the label.  The poly-resin rocks and other decorations are generally considered to be safe. Cleaning the decorations again will remove some of the BB that you are trying to create.

[Mellyroo]

On 5/30/2022 at 9:47 AM, Tanked said:

My only concern with the glow rocks is that they may not be aquarium safe. That will usually be stated on the label.  The poly-resin rocks and other decorations are generally considered to be safe. Cleaning the decorations again will remove some of the BB that you are trying to create.

Well shoot - I haven’t cleaned them yet, I’m trying to pick out all the glow stones though.

[Minanora]

I'm sorry you're having issues with your setup. It'll level out before you know it.

Depending on the 5 gallon tanks filter, you could squish it out into the 20g to help seed the tank with beneficial bacteria (bb).

Your snail and otocinclus catfish (oto) will help the tank cycle as well. I would keep an eye on your oto. His tummy should look like a little pearl. Hopefully you get diatom algae growing soon for him to eat. (It'll bloom on it's own and look bad then clear up after a month) Otos love blanched squash as well. I would put a slice in for him. If otos don't get enough food they stop eating and waste away. Cory/aquarium co-op has a great video about otos. They're one of my favorite fish. You can leave the squash slice in for 24 hours and then pull it out.

Your tank will stabilize. You're on the right track. Looking forward to seeing the progress!

[Mellyroo]

On 5/30/2022 at 11:15 AM, Minanora said:

I'm sorry you're having issues with your setup. It'll level out before you know it.

Depending on the 5 gallon tanks filter, you could squish it out into the 20g to help seed the tank with beneficial bacteria (bb).

Your snail and otocinclus catfish (oto) will help the tank cycle as well. I would keep an eye on your oto. His tummy should look like a little pearl. Hopefully you get diatom algae growing soon for him to eat. (It'll bloom on it's own and look bad then clear up after a month) Otos love blanched squash as well. I would put a slice in for him. If otos don't get enough food they stop eating and waste away. Cory/aquarium co-op has a great video about otos. They're one of my favorite fish. You can leave the squash slice in for 24 hours and then pull it out.

Your tank will stabilize. You're on the right track. Looking forward to seeing the progress!

Thanks!! 

[Mellyroo]

On 5/28/2022 at 5:57 PM, Chick-In-Of-TheSea said:

The nitrites were > 0.

Adding bacteria to the water is a great idea at this stage.

Thank you