African cichlids are dying!

Question
For the past two weeks my african cichilds have been dying off. This is the third one that has died so far. I notice that they just sit in the bottom of the tank breathing extremely fast and im not sure what to do right now my albino african cichlid is sitting at the bottom of the tank. Im lifting him up for air but the minute he gets out of my net he just sinks down....he does not want to eat at all and i dont know what to do please help!

Answer
Hi Luis,
Check your water quickly for oxygen.  They seem to be lacking oxygen.  Make sure you have lots of water movement in your tank.  Let the water from your filter splash water down to the water in your tank.  Leave a space between your tank, and filter.  An air stone will also help.  Do a 30% water change.  Check your PH also, it must be alkaline between 7.6 and 8.0.  Check your ammonia, nitrites, and nitrates levels.  Your ammonia must be zero, your nitrites zero, and your nitrates must be low.
This is the main things that can happen when fish are dying off, and have trouble breathing.  Also, you must never overstock your tank, or add too many fish at once, as this would change your water chemistry, killing off all your fish.
I hope this helps.
Lynda