46 gallon tank

Question

my tank   QUESTION: hello in my tank I use to have an jewel cichlid and red zebra cichlid and they were both aggressive to all the other cichlid and together kill many fish ( mostly feeder goldfish for catfish). but sadly they both passed due to ich. but know i have seen that my 6" silver dollar, kissing gourami,and firemouth cichlid have started to get aggressive. is this normal.

PS my larger silver dollar is only picking on picking on the smaller silver dollar.also they are two different species of silver dollars. thanks

ANSWER: Hi Ben,

It is likely the silver dollar will bully the other til it perishes also.  They turn very mean as they age, and in my experience, are awful tankmates once mature.

The Firemouth Cichlid is one of the more aggressive, small, cichlids.  It will indeed get more aggressive with age, but don't fear, it probably can't really hurt the four tankmates you named, too much, unless it gets hold of the gourami.

Kissing Gourami are semi-territorial, but are all in all, pretty good tankmates in the long run.

I wouldn't worry too much about them.  Watch them to make sure nobody gets hurt and they should be fine, but the silver dollars - You might consider removing one.

Happy fish-keeping!

Renee

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------


my tank   QUESTION: hello my aquariums' water parameters seemed of when i tested it are these parameters good
hardness : 300
alkalinity :40
PH : 6.2
Nitrate : 160
Those are just the off ones. i used test strips
My tank is south American fish mostly

thanks

ANSWER: Hello,

Please don't shoot the messenger here.  I want to give you advice, but there are some things you need to know.

The bad news:  Your water parameters are terrifying, lol.  They are off the charts too high.

The good news:  They are not THE worst I have ever seen.  But, they certainly are up there on the charts!

The hardness is extremely hard, and the PH too low, the nitrates at 160?  The fish are swimming in sewer water, basically.

How long has it been since the water was changed?  Gravel thoroughly cleaned?

The fish will eventually all die at these parameters.

They are very poor.

Please do the following:

1. Clean all filtration units thoroughly.  Replace the filter media.
2. Drain and clean the entire aquarium.
3. When washing the gravel, please clean it using a hose, and don't add any soap or biol it.  We want the good bacteria (which lives in its crevasses) to survive so when you replace it, the tank doesn't have a huge cycle.
4. Reassemble the tank and put the fish back in once the temperature reaches the right temperature.

These fish are basically swimming in poop. At 160, the Nitrates are off the charts.  They should be .5 to .10ppm, at most.

This is why your other readings are off the charts.  The Nitrates are not your only problem.  When they are this high, ammonia and nitrites are in the tank and can kill your fish.

This is an immediate concern.  This isn't something that can wait another 24 hours to fix.  Please get the water changed, the tank cleaned, filter, gravel and decorations cleaned and replace the fish, and then write me back with the tank's new readings.

In 3 days, dip the test strip again and read them.  If the ammonia is rising, or nitrates, then do a water change until everything is within the normal parameters, and reads in the "safe" levels on the test strips.

I hope this has been helpful.  Sometimes, Ben, we have to deliver bad news, but that is also helpful news for you, because you found out now that you have major issues with water quality.  You can stop the progression of the bad parameters right now and save your fish.  

Please feel free to post a followup or respond all you like and I will check off and on throughout today for your posts. :)

Happy fish-keeping.

Renee



---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Hello, thanks for the advice. I did a 50Percent water change, took out all the decor and washed them same with gravel. ai also added Nutrafin waste contol.Now all of my paramiters are good exept my water is still hard not as hard as before.

I have an other question I am thinking of getting a new cichlid Im just not sure which on. the cichlids that I like are convict,green terror,blood parot, oscar, texas, or key hole the cichlid has to be able to deffend itself.

Answer
Hi again! :)

Well, my first advice is no Oscar.  They require much larger parameters than you can provide and within just a few months, would outgrow your tank's comfort zone.

I would consider any others of the list you have there, except for the Oscar.

I bred and raised them and they need at least 55 gallons each when fully grown, in order for water to stay clean.  People put 2, 3, 4 of them in a 55 thinking it's okay and in fact, it's not.  The water often causes them to get Hole In Head and then they begin dying.  It's a very sad scenario, but it's oh-so-common.

Out of the list you have above, with the list you already hae, I would say the convict, parrot or keyhole would probably be your best bet.  You might run into some aggression issues.  Afterall, these little fellows are not raised with your guys.  But, give it 3 days once introduced, and if they can't work it out, then take the fish back.  Long as nobody gets killed, you're probably okay.

Now, you do realize with your fish near 6", you have run out of space for them, right?  6 inch long fish require at least 20 gallons each.  Incrementally the 1" of fish per gallon rule goes out the window once a fish hits 4" long...it changes incrementally to 5 gallons per inch above that.  Yours are at the 20 gallons apiece size.  I would caution against adding another fish, simply because your water parameters were so badly off kilter, and now you finally got control of them.  

So, if you choose to add another, you might see the same bad readings as before, but for now, you have a real chance of getting them under control.

Don't forget to wash gravel.  That gravel is probably pretty scary lol.  :)

Happy fish-keeping. :)

Renee