White fuzzy stuff person...

Question
Hello Karen, the website wasnt working sending it as a reply so I tried this, I am the one who had the sand substrate and the problem with white stuff. Now I have changed out the sand to gravel and all is good but I am now trying to find out what fish to get. Thanks for the extensive information. I have heard that goldfish tend to be "dirty" fish and I am not sure whether I am ready to deal with that kind of a fish. I had previously had a large marble angelfish, whom I had had for over 6 years, he recently died and so I am starting over, of course then came the substarte issue. Also, about the catfish, I had bought a few other varieties to add to my tank but as soon as I added them, my original albinos just sat on the gravel. This concerned me and wasnt normal behavior for my original friends. It suddenly occured to me that maybe the original catfish didnt like the others but I was also puzzled because everyone says they love schools, so I left the new cats in for a while to see if they adjusted. A week or so later, the behavior was the same. The original albinos were just sitting on the ground and not even eating, nor where the other cats. So I removed all of the new cats and just left my original cats in the tank to see what would happen. Soon enough, the original albinos began acting as normal and began eating again. For some reason, my original albinos like to be by themselves, do you have any idea why they would react like this? I took the other new cats back to the store cause I didnt want my original cats to act as they were, it obviously wasnt good for them considering they werent even eating. On a different subject, back when I had first gotten my recently past away angel, he was just a little fry no bigger than an inch and he was purchased with two other angels of the same size and color. Soon after adding them to my tank, this is several years ago, the other two angels began to pick at the angel I choose to keep and thay had completely taken off his fins. Well, I had a soft spot for the one who was bullied so I took him out and put him in a hospital tank and hoped he would recover. The other two baby bullies were returned to the store due to they incompatibility. Soon I was over joyed with the condition of the bullied angel, he had began growing his fins back and started eating again. Soon I returned him to the regular tank and he fully recovered and I had kept him for over 6 years. He grew into a beautiful angel who retched around 4 inches plus beautiful fins. Why would the babies have done that, I thought they could be in groups? I am considering getting an angel but would love to have more than one but do not want any to be picked on. Also, with just one angel, what would be some other bigger fish to keep with it whom would co-exist peacefully? At first after my angel died I was hesitant to get more but I realize I really enjoyed my angel and would probably enjoy another. Finally, how long do angels usually live? Mine was around 8 years old, is it normal for it to have died? It had no signs of sickness so I just assumed it was time for it to pass but am curious the usual age they get. Thanks again. Oh, I almost forgot, I have gotten the test strips and the only thing with my water is the ammonia is right above zero and the ph is low, but I have done water changes and it has managed and I am waiting for it to regulate. My corys are super happy now and swimming around like normal and eating as normal. Oh, I have also added a small sword plant to help with the cycling. I do not plan to add fish until it is closer to normal but am asking these questions so when the water is ready I am too. Thanks so much again.


Answer
Hi Rachel,
That is a little unusual behavior for your albinos. Fish do have their personalities and obviously your original catfish just didn't like the idea of intruders! They must have decided that the tank was their territory and maybe the different color and pattern of the new friends  was just too different for them to accept. I know my albino swims around the others in my tank but it does seem (I am sitting here right now watching them) that he does like to be a little more off to himself than to be in the exact same location as all my others. They all have different patterns and of course he is albino. Since they are in the 75 gallon there is more space and everybody just swims around each other and all are very busy rooting around in the sand.
According to all that I have read, concerning angelfish, is  that they can live up to 10 years. It really depends on the water conditions and also the temperature. The temperature seems to determine a lot. When they are kept at lower temperatures such as around 74-76F they live longer but their immune system is less responsive. When they are kept at higher temperatures such as 80-82F they don't live as long but they spawn more frequently. The higher temperatures increase their metabolism and they tend to "burn out" quicker therefore they don't live as long. So I would think that you did a good job with your angelfish to have it live as long as 8 years.
Now concerning the problem with angels fighting. I have had the same problem over and over. They are cichlids and cichlids always have the tendency, and so do so many other so called peaceful fish, to have their territory disputes. I have had trouble with four angels that I originally bought when they were small. They got along fine in a 55 gallon for quite a while. Then they just decided that one of the males was not their friend anymore. They all took turns tearing up his fins. I finally had to move him to another tank. I have also seen alot of my baby angel fish being nippy with each other and they are really small. You really can never be totally sure with cichlids as to what their behavior will be.
As for angel fish tankmates, you could try gouramis. You just need to be careful that you don't get any type of fish that might have a tendency to be nippy and tear up their fins. It is hard to get larger fish that won't have a problem with territory or possibly be a fine nipper.I have a gourami with mine and haven't had any problem but they are in a 75 gallon and the room does help prevent some problems. I have heard of discus being kept with angels but I have never tried this combination myself.
Best of luck.
Hope this has helped,
Karen