New fish help asap!

[Beccabee123]

Hello! I’m in desperate need of help! We just purchased a new little 10gal aquarium for our family. We got 6 small fish and 2 snails. The fish were all healthy looking and swimming vigorously but then about 6 hours later one had died. The others are just swimming at the top of the tank. I assumed not enough oxygen so I lowered the water level a little so the waterfall filter would cause greater agitation but the fish are still swimming at the top. They don’t seem to be gasping, and they eat when I feed them. They aren’t listless at the top either, they are wiggling around a lot. they just aren’t swimming down at all. I don’t know what to do. I’m 100% new to fish. 

If you have any advice I would be very grateful! My little kids and in love with their fish and would be devastated if any more die.

[Zac]

On 8/21/2023 at 1:49 AM, Beccabee123 said:

Hello! I’m in desperate need of help! We just purchased a new little 10gal aquarium for our family. We got 6 small fish and 2 snails. The fish were all healthy looking and swimming vigorously but then about 6 hours later one had died. The others are just swimming at the top of the tank. I assumed not enough oxygen so I lowered the water level a little so the waterfall filter would cause greater agitation but the fish are still swimming at the top. They don’t seem to be gasping, and they eat when I feed them. They aren’t listless at the top either, they are wiggling around a lot. they just aren’t swimming down at all. I don’t know what to do. I’m 100% new to fish. 

If you have any advice I would be very grateful! My little kids and in love with their fish and would be devastated if any more die.

It’s important to do a lot of research before you get fish. As like you would any other animal. They’re not a creature you can put in a tank and leave alone. 
 

Guppies are surface dwellers. Meaning they like to swim at the surface. If you don’t already have an ammonia spike…you will soon. Ammonia is produced by fish, snails, decaying matter etc. You need beneficial bacteria to break it down into nitrites, then  nitrites to nitrates. The co-op has articles about the nitrogen cycle and how it’s important to establish a colony of beneficial bacteria. There are also dozens of articles out there about cycling a tank. 
 

Your best bet is to stop feeding the fish or feed them ever so lightly. You need to invest in a good test kit like the api master freshwater kit. This allows you to test for ammonia, nitrites, and nitrates. Anything above 0ppm for nitrites and ammonia is stressful for fish and can kill them. Fish can tolerate higher nitrate levels. Most people keep their tanks under 40ppm. You will most likely have to do 50% water changes daily until ammonia drops to 0. It takes about a month or longer for a tank to cycle.

You can add a dose of a product called fritzyme 7 in your tank to help boost the cycle. When starting a new tank (especially a 10 gallon) you really want to cycle the talk with only snails or something like that.

There are an abundance of articles and videos out there explaining how to properly start up a tank. I’d suggest going to those resources. There’s a lot to learn. 
 

More of your fish will unfortunately suffer until you give them the proper conditions

Edited August 21, 2023 by Zac

[Hobbit]

Lack of oxygen was going to be my first thought, too. To be safe, you could get a small air pump and an air stone. (I highly recommend Aquarium Co-op’s nano air pumps: they’re super quiet!) Is there any chance you can get a video of the fish? You’d need to upload it to a video site such as YouTube and then post the link here.

Definitely stop feeding them until you figure out your water parameters. They’ll be fine for several days without food. Do you already have a test kit? If not, you can usually bring a sample of your water to a local fish store and they’ll test it for you.

Can you tell us more about your setup? Did you use dechlorinator, any starter bacteria, etc.

[Guppysnail]

I’m sorry you are having issues. There is a lot to learn in fishkeeping. Many many folks start right where you are. Everyone here is very helpful.  
Tanks need to establish what is called the nitrogen cycle in order to be safe for fish and deal with waste so it does not make the water toxic. 

Here is a good videos to get you started. 

 

[Beccabee123]

Thank you all so much for your advice! I’m bringing a water sample into the pet store to be tested. We used RO purified water per the advice of the pet store when we started. I’ll adjust as needed per all of your advice once we get the testing done. Also going to be looking at an additional bubbler, bubble rock, live plants, and test kits while I’m here!

[Guppysnail]

On 8/21/2023 at 12:02 PM, Beccabee123 said:

We used RO purified water

 

On 8/21/2023 at 12:22 PM, Pepere said:

Reverse osmosis water needs to have minerals added to it for the fish to survive in it.

Calcium, magnesium and carbonates.

Agree fish need electrolytes just like humans. The minerals might not be something tested for at the pet shop. Guppies especially need minerals because they are live bearing. 

[mynameisnobody]

@Beccabee123 If I were in your shoes, I would stop taking advice from any place telling you to use RO water for your first beginner tank. I’d immediately start watching aquarium coop videos. There is a ton of information there and there are also essentials you will need. I would shop on the aquarium coop site. Whatever they don’t carry, then I’d shop around for. You can usually find great deals on Amazon/eBay/ or even chewy. This hobby is as complicated as you want it to be and unfortunately they got you started in a very complicated direction. The fish you have will do fine with tap water with a bit of water conditioner added. Good luck to you

[Guppysnail]

On 8/21/2023 at 12:02 PM, Beccabee123 said:

and test kits while I’m here!

API master test kit is terrific. You also need api gh/kh test kits especially if you are going to be reminaralizing RO water. I recommend using seachem prime dechlorinator and tap water. It’s easier for new folks. It’s what I use even being in the hobby for my whole life. 

[Beccabee123]

We actually live on a hobby farm, and half well water which is pretty high in iron. Would that be a good substitute versus RO or purified water? We know it’s not chlorinated or has any additives because it is well water.

[mynameisnobody]

@Beccabee123 it depends on how high the iron is in the water. Iron test kit is the only way to truly know for sure. 

[JettsPapa]

On 8/21/2023 at 11:41 AM, Beccabee123 said:

We actually live on a hobby farm, and half well water which is pretty high in iron. Would that be a good substitute versus RO or purified water? We know it’s not chlorinated or has any additives because it is well water.

I am also on a well, with hard high pH water, and that's all I use in my 10 tanks and 4 tubs.  Instead of waiting for a water test I'd recommend changing at least 30% of the water daily until you get the test kit, then use the test results to determine when you need to change the water, and how much.  Generally, you want to keep the combined ammonia and nitrites below 1.0 ppm, and please note that that's the combined values, not for either one.

There is another potential factor here.  Commercially raised guppies are notoriously fragile.  While decades ago guppies were very hardy fish, unfortunately that isn't true for the ones that are farm raised.  Guppies raised by hobbyists are generally stronger.  When you get more fish I'd encourage you to go on Facebook Marketplace, or something similar, and see if you can find locally bred fish.

[Flipper]

@Beccabee123  Don't let all this get you down.   😒 You just want your kiddos to be happy with little pets like so many parents.  Those big box local fish stores (LFS) don't tell people about cycling a tank before getting fish.  They want you to buy everything you need all at once.  And if a child wants a fish, he wants it today, not a month from now.  Right?!!

Members gave you good advice but it will take awhile to get your tank cycled.  I'm so sorry you are going through this.  And ask as many questions as you need to.  That's why we're all on the forum.  So glad you joined us.

Once tank is cycled, just remember the following. 

Use Seachem Prime to condition your tap water and make it safe for the fish.  Match water temperature to that in your tank so the fish don't get a sudden hot or cold shock.

Once tank is cycled, change about 20% of the water once a week.  Test water parameters regularly.  If necessary, maybe you could get water from a friend or fill a jug from somewhere that is not on well water (this is only in case your water has too much iron.)

Never over feed fish.  What they don't eat decays in the water, causing trouble. 

Good luck! 

[Flipper]

On 8/21/2023 at 11:41 AM, Beccabee123 said:

We actually live on a hobby farm, and half well water which is pretty high in iron. Would that be a good substitute versus RO or purified water? We know it’s not chlorinated or has any additives because it is well water.

In my opinion, even well water needs Prime conditioner.  It has properties that neutralize toxic substances and one never knows what might leech into a well.  Only takes a tiny bit of Prime.

[Ken Burke]

Here is another video from Irene at ACO.  

 

[nabokovfan87]

On 8/21/2023 at 9:41 AM, Beccabee123 said:

We actually live on a hobby farm, and half well water which is pretty high in iron. Would that be a good substitute versus RO or purified water? We know it’s not chlorinated or has any additives because it is well water.

Sometimes yes, sometimes no and it can change by the season.  Farms, wells near farms, tend to have issues when chemicals are sprayed and that can run into mystery issues.  I just mention it as a word of caution not necessarily as a "this will/won't work".

Welcome to the forums, welcome to the hobby, and hopefully we all can get you on the right track.  There's a lot of great advice here and we're all happy to help.

[Chick-In-Of-TheSea]

I agree with the posts recommending:

water test kit 

air pump w/ airstone

The 3 water parameters you should be watching now are ammonia (super toxic), nitrite (toxic), nitrate (if above a certain level, harmful if fish reside in it for an extended period of time, like a person being in a smoke filled room).

Also be sure to dechlorinate any water you add to the tank. Even if chlorine is not a concern, chloramines or heavy metals could be and the dechlorinators will remove those. Get a good one that neutralizes ammonia and nitrite, like Prime. If your tank needs to cycle (see videos above), Prime or Fritz Complete, along with water changes, could be a lifesaver to your fish.

Live plants will “eat” harmful things out of the water, like the ammonia, nitrites, and nitrates. The more live plants, the better. Also some aquatic plants do not get “planted” - their roots have to stay out (such as Java fern or anubias). If you are shopping at a chain store, look for the shelf that has plants in clear tubes that you can buy.

Using RO water takes some research (mineralization), so I can’t speak to that topic.

You are in the right place here on the CARE forum!

Edited August 24, 2023 by Chick-In-Of-TheSea

[Chick-In-Of-TheSea]

To the other folks who have posted: given the iron situation in the water, would using a Brita pitcher work (vs RO)? Or would that strip minerals also? Anyone know?

[JChristophersAdventures]

@Chick-In-Of-TheSea Unfortunately, the main filtration in a Brita is a light duty mechanical screen and carbon to remove odors and improve the taste of the water. I doubt it would remove much of anything else. In the case of well water, it really must be tested as every well is different, as mentioned before, the contents of that water is often subject to change due to a whole host of environmental factors. If it is a good idea to test well water regularly. It could be highly superior to RO or not.

@Beccabee123 Don't give up... it isn't as complex as it can seem at first. It is a learning process and honestly, we've all lost fish to that learning process, if we are in the hobby any length of time at all... not fun, but true.

[Tanked]

After replacing the municipal water supply lines, the waterworks gave me a pitcher that was supposed to remove whatever the let loose in the supply including lead!  I recently cut open one of the filters and found exactly what @JChristophersAdventures described. 

While some filters can be certified to remove iron/lead, Brita says their pitcher filters are not.