# what am i doing wrong



## bgfaith (Aug 21, 2006)

hi on saturday my boyfriend bought 6 fish he bought 3 white ghost carps and 3 blue orfels and we expected some to die from shock which 2 died the next day and today he went out and another one died and we dont know what we are doing wrong has anyone got any advice you can give us because we are worried about the last 3 and dont want them dying


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## komodbeam (Aug 21, 2006)

was the tank cycled? if not that could be the main reason for the deaths. even if it was cycled thats a lot of fish to add to an aquarium at one time. how big is the tank?


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## bgfaith (Aug 21, 2006)

i had never heard of cycling till i came on this site and the tank is 2 foot


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## komodbeam (Aug 21, 2006)

well cycling is when beneficial bacteria forms to control ammonia, nitrites, and nitrates among others. this can take awhile, 4-6 weeks. how long has your tank been running? if its two feet long it should be in the 15-20 gallon range. what kind of equipment running on the tank ( filters, heaters, etc.)? if you have an existing cycled aquarium i would take the media from one of those filters and put it in your filter with the new fish.


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## bgfaith (Aug 21, 2006)

well we have had the tank running for 2 days and we have no heater because these dont need it i dunno what the filter is so what do you suggest i do?


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## Gump (Aug 2, 2006)

cycling is when ammonia is introduced into the water then nitrites form to remove the ammonia and then nitrates form to remove the nitrites. a cycled tank should have 0 ammonia and 0 nitrites and under 20 nitrates.

You should never asume you will loose a fish from introducing it into a new tank. properly cycle your tank before you add any new fish.


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## komodbeam (Aug 21, 2006)

bgfaith said:


> i dunno what the filter is so what do you suggest i do?


your boyfriend really should not have gotten those fish.But if he got them, i would think they are HIS responsibility and he should know a little bit more about what he is doing. There are various types of filters. For a tank as small as yours I would recommend the Aquaclear 20 or 30. This is what is referred to as a "hang on back filter". You just hang it on the lip of your tank. There are smaller, cheaper hang on back filters, but in my opinion aquaclears get the job done the best. Good luck with your fish and hopefully some research.


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## Guest (Aug 22, 2006)

I'm not positive what kind of fish you are referring to because I've never heard of them. I did a search for ghost white carp and it seems like it is some type of Koi. If that's what it is, they should not get kept in an aquarium. Koi can get huge...not sure exactly how big but IMO they should be in a pond. If you must keep them in a fish tank, a really big one, like a 100g or bigger would be my suggestion. I don't think the 2 footer is big enough. 

I have no clue what blue orfels are. I searched and got nothing....if they are also some type of koi, same thing goes....a 2 footer is not enough.

Someone please explain to me what they are, if I am wrong.

Here are some articles to read about cycling a tank:
http://www.tropicalfishcentre.co.uk/Cycle.htm
http://www.thetropicaltank.co.uk/cycling2.htm This one includes fishless cycling, if in fact the fish will outgrow the tank. I think you should return the remaining fish and do a fishless cycle, then get fish that can properly live in your tank size, if the ones you have will get too large.
http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/cycling.php


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