# Help needed!



## Innes (Jan 13, 2003)

I just looked in one of my tanks to find all these fish dead:
*2 x silver dollers
*2 x parrot cichlids
*1 x 7" sinedontis catfish
and a 14 year old spotted talking catfish which is alive but only just!
since then I moved the other fish:
*talking catfish
*4 x hopli catfish
*1 x severum

then I noticed that an old bleeding heart tetra was dead in my other tank and one of my piranhas looks like it has a spot of slime.
The only thing I can think is it has something to do with me feeding them an orange yesterday.
but I can't believe it.
I am currently getting tests on the water done and will have the results soon.
What should I do?


----------



## Innes (Jan 13, 2003)

Tests just in, and oh my God!!!
ammonia-0.4
Nitrite-4.0
Nitrate-100+
PH-5

2 weeks ago they were normal
how could this happen?


----------



## Grosse Gurke (Jan 3, 2003)

I am very sorry to hear of your tragedy. Wish I could give you some answers but I have no idea.


----------



## thePACK (Jan 3, 2003)

have you done anything differently in last two weeks?sorry to hear your misfortune.


----------



## Innes (Jan 13, 2003)

the only thing I have done differantly is adding part of a small orange yesterday.
I have changed about 75% of the water and am going to do 50% tomorrow.
I am also going to change 30% in all my other tanks just to be a bit safer.
I have also had to move the severum back because the piranhas were eyeing it up and it didn't get on with my other severum.


----------



## Xenon (Nov 15, 2002)

WOW! I have no idea what could have caused such a drastic water change!!! You said you tested the water 2 weeks ago? I dont think an orange piece wouldve caused that devastation. Can you think of ANY other things that were done differently this week??????


----------



## fishman2 (Nov 27, 2002)

" feeding them an orange yesterday." What the hell were you thinking? Yes, adding a fruit like an orange or lemon is acidic. I got a pretty good idea where you were getting these ideas from to add fruits to P's diet. But man, this is what I knew was going to happen to somebody sooner or later with all that bad advice being put out.

Feed the p's what they are supposed to eat, a meaty diet. If you want to give them vege's or fruit then buy a silver dollar. Then feed it plants, not fruits.

Sorry for your losses, but it could have been avoided if you had thought this out better. I'm sorry but it just pisses me off seeing guys follow the pack when it comes to stupid decisions and experiments.


----------



## Innes (Jan 13, 2003)

fishman2 said:


> Feed the p's what they are supposed to eat, a meaty diet. If you want to give them vege's or fruit then buy a silver dollar.


It was in my silver doller tank!
that being the reason I lost my silver dollers!
but yes I was following some advice from this board!!!
and I know that orange is acidic, but shurley not enough to drop an entire fish tank down 2 on the PH scale and add 100+ nitrates, 4.0 nitrites and 0.4 ammonia?
I agree with Xenon, it must have been something else!
but I don't know what.I also have looked more at the piranha which looked like it had a spot of slime, well it doesn't, it has just swam into a rock or something and grazed itself.

Anyway I think I have everything under control now-I hope!
so I am going to look to the future and plan my new fish, what do you guys think?
no piranhas, and the only compulsary tankmate is a severum because I can't put it anywhere else.


----------



## fishman2 (Nov 27, 2002)

Here's a safe experiment. Drop the same kind of orange peel or whatever you dropped into a plastic bucket and do a pH test. Let us know the reading you get. I think it was a combination of things in your aquarium, but don't know enough about your tank to say either way.

"so I am going to look to the future and plan my new fish, what do you guys think?" I think you'd better keep away from fruits as a feeding diet.







:rasp:


----------



## Innes (Jan 13, 2003)

I will try the experiment, I will leave it overnight and test it tommorrow.


----------



## thePACK (Jan 3, 2003)

my opinion the orange did it i never ever heard about feeding them oranges.too acidy.silver dollars eating oranges oh2:


----------



## Xenon (Nov 15, 2002)

Lets see what the test shows....plus, what thread on this board did anyone say feed your fish oranges?!?!!?


----------



## Piranha King (Nov 28, 2002)

Xenon said:


> Lets see what the test shows....plus, what thread on this board did anyone say feed your fish oranges?!?!!?


supernate21 said it on pfish.net.
wes


----------



## Innes (Jan 13, 2003)

O.K. For someone who can, and has kept fish for years, I am one stupid Motha Fukka, but I guess all of you knew that anyway!
The results from the orange experiment is just in:
*the water tested normal PH 7.5 - it was not the orange!
I have also tested my other tanks - and they are nearly as bad as "the disaster tank"







, I am now really stumped on this one!
My mind has gone to stupid drunken friends, and what have they added?
or is the water quality here been bad over the last 2 weeks? - although it is fine now.
These are now the most obvious answers.
Anyway the good news is as far as I know there are no more dead fish! 







:rockin:


----------



## WebHostExpert (Jan 16, 2003)

Has to be something you did differently
sorry to hear about your fish
a moment of silence.


----------



## SnowCichlid. (Jan 10, 2003)

hey if its was all sudden **** that then it could be from the water changes you are doing ... personally i think a 75% to 50% water cahnge if yiou say is too much ... try to keep between 20 - 30 at most ... they may have just all died from shock...even if you have been doing water changes like this for a long period of time you never know when you water conditions will just crash coming straight from the source i haver seen this happen b4


----------



## Innes (Jan 13, 2003)

snowcichlid, I did all those massive water changes to solve the problem, the fish were already dead.


----------



## (ActivePulse) (Jan 23, 2003)

man sorry to hear that , but its got to be the orange!!!


----------



## Show_Me_The_Teeth (Dec 4, 2002)

Innes said:


> but yes I was following some advice from this board!!!


Who? I know it wasn't me. I have always suggested plants and if YOU want to feed them fruit, feed them NATIVE fruit.

SMTT


----------



## Innes (Jan 13, 2003)

no fruit grows near my piranha tank


----------



## Innes (Jan 13, 2003)

I have now cleaned 2 of my tanks out and made them perfect!
It was a nightmare job, because they are on a double stand.
but now the fish are fine and in perfect home aquaria conditions







and the 14 year old talking catfish is back to its normal state.


----------



## Show_Me_The_Teeth (Dec 4, 2002)

Innes said:


> no fruit grows near my piranha tank


I mean native amazonian fruit


----------



## Innes (Jan 13, 2003)

I know


----------

