All fish are swimming at the top, !! whats wrong !!

11 posts • Page 1 of 2

Discuss all topics related to freshwater and planted tanks.


letha
 
Posts: 22
Joined: Mon Apr 16, 2012 11:00 pm

All fish are swimming at the top, !! whats wrong !!

by letha

I cleaned my tank and put fresh water in it today. I put water conditioner in it and furtilized the plants. I checked the water with Tetra easy strips, these easy strips says everything is normal or ideal.

What do i need to do?

Confused
Letha


Okiimiru
 
Posts: 275
Joined: Thu Feb 05, 2009 10:19 pm

Re: All fish are swimming at the top, !! whats wrong !!

by Okiimiru

Test strips are notorious for reporting one value when the real number is actually different. I wouldn't trust it. If all of your fish are swimming at the top that means something's wrong (maybe you poisoned them with your fertilizer). I recommend doing a 50% water change with dechlorinated water.


letha
 
Posts: 22
Joined: Mon Apr 16, 2012 11:00 pm

Re: All fish are swimming at the top, !! whats wrong !!

by letha

Thanks, I replaced 2 gal in a 20 gal tank. I thought I would wait about an hour, but not sure.

Thanks
Letha


letha
 
Posts: 22
Joined: Mon Apr 16, 2012 11:00 pm

Re: All fish are swimming at the top, !! whats wrong !!

by letha

OK I went back and re-read your email. I have replaced 50% water. Add a little conditioner. I also cleaned my filter, what a mess.

Everybody is back in their places.

From now on I guess I will clean my filter every week with my tank.

Lesson learned.

Thanks for all the help
Letha


natalie265
Site Admin
 
Posts: 746
Joined: Sat Nov 01, 2008 9:48 pm

Re: All fish are swimming at the top, !! whats wrong !!

by natalie265

Be careful in cleaning your filter. Make sure you rinse it gently in dechlorinated, tepid water, and don't let it dry out. Otherwise, you will kill off your beneficial bacteria. I think cleaning the filter weekly is overkill.


Okiimiru
 
Posts: 275
Joined: Thu Feb 05, 2009 10:19 pm

Re: All fish are swimming at the top, !! whats wrong !!

by Okiimiru

I really hope you used dechlorinated water like I advised in my post.


letha
 
Posts: 22
Joined: Mon Apr 16, 2012 11:00 pm

Re: All fish are swimming at the top, !! whats wrong !!

by letha

well no I did not use that water, I used tap water. Where would I get dechlorinated water from? Please tell me why to used dechlorinated water. My fish and snails are happy, going about their business.

Thanks,
Letha


Okiimiru
 
Posts: 275
Joined: Thu Feb 05, 2009 10:19 pm

Re: All fish are swimming at the top, !! whats wrong !!

by Okiimiru

Chlorine is a poisonous gas that the water treatment facility adds to our water to kill bacteria. Killing bacteria keeps us safe from water borne bacterial diseases and saves lives. But not all bacteria are bad; the nitrosomonas and nitrospira bacteria in your aquarium filter are helpful. ( http://www.fishkeeping.co.uk/articles_5 ... rticle.htm ) Adding chlorinated water to your aquarium will kill the beneficial bacteria and uncycle your tank. So normally aquarium hobbyists remove the chlorine from their water by adding a few drops of dechlorinator before adding the tap water to their aquarium. Most dechlorinators have the active ingredient of sodium thiosulfate. You can check whatever solutions you own already to see if any of them have sodium thiosulfate in them. You can also call up your local water plant to see if they are adding chlorine or chloramine to the water. Usually it's twice as strong a dose of dechlorinator for chloramine, but check your product label first and listen to me second. Yup. If you check your solutions and don't own anything that removes chlorine, I recommend Dechlor by Weco. My bottle lasted years and years and years. Picture: http://dfmlo8oja8g1e.cloudfront.net/114 ... 515751.jpg


dumanicus
 
Posts: 1
Joined: Sun Jul 01, 2012 10:29 pm

Re: All fish are swimming at the top, !! whats wrong !!

by dumanicus

letha wrote:
> I cleaned my tank and put fresh water in it today. I put water conditioner
> in it and furtilized the plants. I checked the water with Tetra easy
> strips, these easy strips says everything is normal or ideal.
>
> What do i need to do?
>
> Confused
> Letha
It sounds like a problem with your oxygen levels . An air stone will help and water changes. I use 2 buckets with sealable lids. I fill one with tap water and then place the lid ontop, but not sealed, i keep it loose so the chemicals can escape. After 5 days i put an air stone and heater into the bucket over night. The following day i remove water from the tank to the same level as the new water in the first bucket. I never use chemicals for this . It kills algea and the tank stays nice and clear.


dream2reef
 
Posts: 521
Joined: Sun Jun 20, 2010 4:19 am

Re: All fish are swimming at the top, !! whats wrong !!

by dream2reef

Yea I rarely clean my filters only when there is a blockage and/or slow moving water. I take a bucket of water out of my tank and use that to clean it then put it right back in the filter. alternating filters that need replaced to never go into a mini cycle. Make sure you have plenty of oxygen in that tank too that makes a world of difference in your fish and overall appearance of the tank water.

All fish are swimming at the top, !! whats wrong !!

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