# Urgent Help Needed!!!



## Guest (Sep 8, 2009)

I am all new to this fish keeping and have just set my new aquarium up, i have a few different breeds. I did have 2 mollies, but the male died just days after having him. Ive got a couple of neons, harlequins and a catfish. And a couple of danios. 

After loosing my male mollie and a neon to fungus, i have now treated the fungus and all seem to be a lot happier. So much happier in fact that my Mollie has just given birth!!!!

What do i do?? Please can someone help me with this as not sure what i am supposed to do with the babies? As some look dead on the bottom of the tank but 2 are swimming around. 

Am also worried the other fish will eat them!!!


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## CarolineH (Aug 4, 2009)

Ok some question first. 

How big is your tank?

How long have you had it set up?

How many new fish have you put in since you set it up?

Have you used water conditioner?


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## Guest (Sep 8, 2009)

CarolineH said:


> Ok some question first.
> 
> How big is your tank?
> 
> ...


The tank is 30 litres so not a big tank. But have only got a few fish in there which are all smallish in size.

Ive had it set up 7 days before i put the fish in and another week since the fish have been in there.

I put the mollies and harlequins in first and then a few days later put the neons and danios in after.

Yes have used a water conditioner as they had fungus have bought water testers and the water is all spot on. And have put fungus treatment in last night.

Hope this helps xx


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## animallover111 (Apr 25, 2009)

Aww kath your not having an easy time again!!!i dont know about fish but i do remember when my mums fish had babies they put the babies in a seperate tub/box thing that floated on the water to stop them getting eaten....sorry im no help....but good luck...


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## deb53 (Jun 4, 2009)

Congrats on the babies 

Do you think she has finished? Is she slim now with no gravid spot?

If she has then there are more than likely other babies hiding away. If she is still birthing then lots more to come!

All my mollies give birth in their tank I find that the floating traps are too stressful for mollies resulting in death.

As long as your tank has lots of plants and hidey holes then you should get survivors. I find that my Mollies do not eat their young. Keep her well fed ( not over fed hahah) and they should be ok.

The only fish in there that I tend to find a problem with babies would be the catfish. They do tend to find any that are laying on the gravel but they should be free swimming very soon.

Good luck. xx


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## CarolineH (Aug 4, 2009)

The tank was maybe not mature enough and the amount of fish has been too much for the good bacteria that have started to blossom within it. Please do not rely on so-called 'tank maturing liquid' as it is not as successful as plain old patience and time.

Try also not to have a 'Noahs Ark' tank, adding two of this and two of that etc. Some fish prefer to 'shoal' and feel much more secure as a result so will become stressed if there is only one or two of their own kind. Look up the type of fish you want to keep and see how long they are at fully grown then calculate to have 30" of fish eventually in your tank, once the babies you buy have become adult. Sticking to just 2 or 3 species can make a tank look really nice as it is more natural and there is less stress for species who don't get along. Mollies do actually prefer a little aquarium salt in their water whereas neons and danios don't so always ask advice in the shop. (please do not buy from shops who do not quarantine the fish they buy in - and P&H dont!) It is also worth spending a bit of money on a, aquarium book to use as a reference when you get stuck.

In the meantime, do a 25% water change, removing 25% and then replacing it with conditioned water of a similar temperature. This will help to dilute any toxins that have already built up.


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## deb53 (Jun 4, 2009)

kath123 said:


> The tank is 30 litres so not a big tank. But have only got a few fish in there which are all smallish in size.
> 
> Ive had it set up 7 days before i put the fish in and another week since the fish have been in there.
> 
> ...


mmmmm... the tank probably wasn't completely cycled when you put the Mollies in and could be why you lost the male to Fungas. Mollies are very sensitive to water quality and the stress can cause disease.

Also because of this and the fungas treatment it may have caused her to abort her babies and that is why you have some dead. Are there 1 or 2 or lots that did not survive?


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## Guest (Sep 8, 2009)

deb53 said:


> mmmmm... the tank probably wasn't completely cycled when you put the Mollies in and could be why you lost the male to Fungas. Mollies are very sensitive to water quality and the stress can cause disease.
> 
> Also because of this and the fungas treatment it may have caused her to abort her babies and that is why you have some dead. Are there 1 or 2 or lots that did not survive?


I can only see 1 that is dead under a stone. and 2 that are swimming, how many do you think she would have? xx

I am all new to this and also feel that i may of put too many different breeds in but the guy in PAH said they would all be ok in the same tank!!!

I hate pah!!! They are absolutely SH**!!!!!!

How long are the females pregnant for as have only had her 2 weeks. hmy:


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## PoisonGirl (Oct 24, 2008)

Yep [email protected] are rubbish!!

Mollies actually don't do well in community tank.... They prefer tha water to be slightly salty! They need at Least 15gallons to live happily.

Also, most female mollies are already pregnant..they release babies once a month... they can have several batches without any males being present too!

First time she has babies, she only has 12-14 and most of them are still eggs or stillborn.. So that's prob why you aren't seeing many.

You can help the babies by adding floating plants for them to hide in. And getting powdered flake food for them.

x

Found this..... http://www.aquariumfish.net/information/raising_baby_fish.htm


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## EmzieAngel (Apr 22, 2009)

I've had Mollies in with harlequins, neons and danios and they've been fine.
I've also had pregnant Mollies before, they can have babies every 4-5 weeks as they can store sperm.
Sometimes it's just natural to leave the babies alone, yes they may get eaten but it's what happens, though you might find some in a few weeks time still lurking about.
Saving them can be hard too, you need a breeder box, you can get plastic or netted ones. You have to feed them every couple of hours if you can, either by buying baby fish food, or the cheaper option of crushing up flakes till it looks like a powder.


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## Guest (Sep 8, 2009)

PoisonGirl said:


> Yep [email protected] are rubbish!!
> 
> Mollies actually don't do well in community tank.... They prefer tha water to be slightly salty! They need at Least 15gallons to live happily.
> 
> ...


Thanks you hun for the link, after reading so many people saying that mollies dont like communal tanks im fuming with PAH as the guy said they did. 
And now the other fish are going to eat the babies and i havent got another tank to put the babies in to save them!!!!

The male mollie died a few days ago so im thinking that the female is stressed as well and maybe given birth prematurely, The pair of them did just stay on the top of the water and wont swim round the tank. So am assuming they are stressed and thats what cause him to die.

xxx


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## PoisonGirl (Oct 24, 2008)

Get a breeder box from the pet shop, and try and fish the babies out and put them in there til they get a wee bit bigger.

Are you a member on your local freecycle? I got my tank from there, maybe someone has a small one you could put the babies in.

x


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## Guest (Sep 8, 2009)

PoisonGirl said:


> Get a breeder box from the pet shop, and try and fish the babies out and put them in there til they get a wee bit bigger.
> 
> Are you a member on your local freecycle? I got my tank from there, maybe someone has a small one you could put the babies in.
> 
> x


No im not but will investiage into it hun.

Thank you xxx


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## PoisonGirl (Oct 24, 2008)

You just need a Yahoo account to join, just go sign into Yahoo and search freecycle and join the one nearest you 

I got loads of stuff off mine and its a great way to get rid of stuff you don't need that still has some use in it! 

x


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## Guest (Sep 8, 2009)

Well you will all be pleased to hear that dean came home from work, we raced down pah and got a net and we have saved 7 mollie babys!!! 

What a day i have had!!! lol xx


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## Guest (Sep 9, 2009)

Thank you for all your advice, you obviously know what you are talking about so i would not take offence to any of your advice, at least i know now. 

Unfortunately not sure what i can do about it apart from take them back to pets at home and just keep to the danios in my tank. I dont think they would take them back to be honest.


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## kelly82 (Jul 14, 2009)

kath123 said:


> Thank you for all your advice, you obviously know what you are talking about so i would not take offence to any of your advice, at least i know now.
> 
> Unfortunately not sure what i can do about it apart from take them back to pets at home and just keep to the danios in my tank. I dont think they would take them back to be honest.


[email protected] will take back fish, just have a word and explain you now know better than to have accepted their poor advice and have decided to keep only the fish suitable for a tank of your size. they will take them back but may only give store credit rather than money back, if they do just take it as you can always use it for fish food/treats etc of even a few live plants which is always a good idea for a newly cycling tank like yours. good luck.


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## Guest (Sep 9, 2009)

kelly82 said:


> [email protected] will take back fish, just have a word and explain you now know better than to have accepted their poor advice and have decided to keep only the fish suitable for a tank of your size. they will take them back but may only give store credit rather than money back, if they do just take it as you can always use it for fish food/treats etc of even a few live plants which is always a good idea for a newly cycling tank like yours. good luck.


Thank you hun, i will do that then.

xx


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## kelseye (Aug 16, 2009)

ive kept fish tropical fish and they lived for years .i used to treat my water with methylene blue,aqua safe ,easy balance.methylene blue is to treat un well fish but we used to stick a tiny drop in the water when we cleaned them out we had a powerfull fillter and only put the light on for 8 hours a day as light will help produce the alge.you can buy sucker fish they do the job,

its best to treat your water.
i had mollies,neons,Siamese fighting fish ,3 pleqs,and other little fish and never had a problem with helth or alge.

also we only had our tank set up for 2 days themn put fish in so when people say let the tank mature then thats a load of bull as i put fish in after 2 days and never had any die apart from old age.dont always belive what you read


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## CarolineH (Aug 4, 2009)

Lots of people make mistakes with their first tank, don't worry.  Look out if you can, for magazines like Practical Fishkeeping etc. They normally have lots of adverts in the back for specialist aquarium shops. My sister and her OH have owned one for over 20 years but that's in Sutton In Ashfield in Notts. They quarantine all of their fish - proper facilities at their home, not within the shop. Few shops do though and all too often, the fish are delivered to them straight from the docks or dealers and go straight into their sale tanks. Not good practice but not illegal.


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## kelly82 (Jul 14, 2009)

kelseye said:


> ive kept fish tropical fish and they lived for years .i used to treat my water with methylene blue,aqua safe ,easy balance.methylene blue is to treat un well fish but we used to stick a tiny drop in the water when we cleaned them out we had a powerfull fillter and only put the light on for 8 hours a day as light will help produce the alge.you can buy sucker fish they do the job,
> 
> its best to treat your water.
> i had mollies,neons,Siamese fighting fish ,3 pleqs,and other little fish and never had a problem with helth or alge.
> ...


 and its 'advice' like this that leads to yet more people getting things wrong, 1 person with 1 ok experience does not mean they havent just dropped lucky and that their fish didnt suffer from their way of keeping them.

do nothing to your water except use tap safe water treatment, definately do not add chemicals to the water unless your fish are sick. if you do, not only will the fish be stressed from the constant chemicals in the water, but any illness they get may wind up not being treatable due to it living in conditions with the treatment already in, so it may be used to it in small doses making it less likely to be irradicated by stronger usage.

definately do not buy a 'sucker fish' to remove algae from your tanks, they are poop machines, and have large bioloads, and most do not even eat algae if their diet is properly provided for. they will slowly starve if just left to scrape the algea off your tank. if you do wish to get a plec, make sure at adult size it will be suitable for your aquarium. common plecs can get to monstrous sizes, whereas smaller types such as bristlenose stay at a max of around 5-6inches. all need different diets, most require bog wood in their tanks. research before buying.

i would also like to know what ages this poster had their fish die at, as you wont know if they have died of old age or if their little bodies had endured stresses in your uncycled tank which in fact shortened their lives.

aquarium cycling is a matter of science, research it properly and you will see. it is not a load of bull, and its rediculous that someone would write such bad information on a forum people use for help.

its all common sense so if you read up on it, its very simple to get your head around and realise its very important to understand the cycling process. yes you can add fish after 2 days, no one said you cant, however, while its cycling for 4-6 weeks,you need to make sure the ammonia and nitrite levels dont climb and harm your fish until the nitrates start to emerge and when your amonia and nitrite levels drop to 0 and your nitrates begin to climb then you are considered cycled. ammonia and nitrite burns fishes gills, and can significantly shorten your fishes lives. nitrates can only be kept under control by regular partial water changes. add live plants to reduce ammonia and nitrites, and keep water quality up between water changes even when you are cycled.


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## MADCAT (Nov 21, 2008)

kelseye said:


> no you idiot every tank ive had the fish have gone in straight away so never had a fish die due to the way i keep them so in future keep your thourghts to yourself
> THIS SITE IS FOR PEOPLE TO GIVE THERE ADVISE IF YOU DONT LIKE IT THEN KEEP YOURE TYPING HANDS OUT OF MY POSTS YOU LOSER.HAVENT YOU GOT ANYTHINK BETTER TO DO.:cursing:


Idiot and loser i dont think there is any need for that.


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## Guest (Sep 10, 2009)

I started this thread as i am and was after some genuine advice as had a very big problem, i have thanked everyone for there advice and do not feel there is need for any arguments on this thread.


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## MADCAT (Nov 21, 2008)

kath123 said:


> I started this thread as i am and was after some genuine advice as had a very big problem, i have thanked everyone for there advice and do not feel there is need for any arguments on this thread.


Sorry Kath, hope i havent offended you by my post  Sorry if i have xxx


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## Guest (Sep 10, 2009)

MADCAT said:


> Sorry Kath, hope i havent offended you by my post  Sorry if i have xxx


You are such a nutter hunny, you should know i would never think of you like that, its the others i am upset about for the arguing. xxxx


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## deb53 (Jun 4, 2009)

kelseye said:


> no you idiot every tank ive had the fish have gone in straight away so never had a fish die due to the way i keep them so in future keep your thourghts to yourself
> THIS SITE IS FOR PEOPLE TO GIVE THERE ADVISE IF YOU DONT LIKE IT THEN KEEP YOURE TYPING HANDS OUT OF MY POSTS YOU LOSER.HAVENT YOU GOT ANYTHINK BETTER TO DO.:cursing:


Kelseye...The OP has been given good, sound advice on this thread and yes I agree that site is for people to advise and whilst you may think your advice is good advice, others with years and years of fishkeeping experience including myself totally disagree. But then it is up to the OP what road she decides take.

As with all threads on this site you will get people agreeing and disagreeing but to come in and call a fellow member an IDIOT and a LOSER is utterly out of order and downright rude!!. and the absolute nonsense about keeping out of your mis-leading post I would say is... well I am not going to say it.

Maybe you got out of the bed wrong side the day you wrote this but an apology wouldn't go a miss I'm sure to Kelly who was only trying to help the OP.

To the OP... Hopefully you have been able to take bits of helpful advice from here. Those of us who have kept various species of fish in different tanks over the many many years care a great deal about the welfare and health of our fish. Its a shame that these "pet shops" who sell these fish do not employ people with knowledge to pass on to their customers.

Have you tested your water quality? I like to use the dropper method not the dip sticks as I personally find these more accurate. ( just my opinion!)

The results would most definate put more light on your problem.

Hope babies are doing well xx


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## MADCAT (Nov 21, 2008)

kath123 said:


> You are such a nutter hunny, you should know i would never think of you like that, its the others i am upset about for the arguing. xxxx


 I know yeah, there are no need for some of the comments xxxx


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## Guest (Sep 10, 2009)

deb53 said:


> Kelseye...The OP has been given good, sound advice on this thread and yes I agree that site is for people to advise and whilst you may think your advice is good advice, others with years and years of fishkeeping experience including myself totally disagree. But then it is up to the OP what road she decides take.
> 
> As with all threads on this site you will get people agreeing and disagreeing but to come in and call a fellow member an IDIOT and a LOSER is utterly out of order and downright rude!!. and the absolute nonsense about keeping out of your mis-leading post I would say is... well I am not going to say it.
> 
> ...


Thank you hun for your advice, i have done a water test and it was Spot on so pleased about that.

I still have 7 babies and they are doing well. The other fish are very nosey but they all seem ok with the net in the water.

Is there anything else i should be doing? xxxx


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## deb53 (Jun 4, 2009)

Sounds like its all going well..

Just a couple of things I would do is to make sure there is enough air flow going through the net and also not to have the light on too long as the babies may bake!!

I have a load of Molly and Pleco babies at the moment they are 2 weeks old. They grow so quick. Both these types like a lot of algae in their food so i put some boiled peas through a tea strainer. They absolutly love it.

What colour are yours??


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## Guest (Sep 10, 2009)

deb53 said:


> Sounds like its all going well..
> 
> Just a couple of things I would do is to make sure there is enough air flow going through the net and also not to have the light on too long as the babies may bake!!
> 
> ...


ah right, i didnt think of the light. i only put it on for a few hours a day but how long do u think i should put it on for now with the babies in there as well?? xx

Ok will give the peas a go. I have no idea what colour they are hun they are too small for me too see at the moment. They just look like tadpoles at the moment. xxxx


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## deb53 (Jun 4, 2009)

kath123 said:


> ah right, i didnt think of the light. i only put it on for a few hours a day but how long do u think i should put it on for now with the babies in there as well?? xx
> 
> Mmmm...
> 
> ...


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## Guest (Sep 10, 2009)

deb53 said:


> kath123 said:
> 
> 
> > ah right, i didnt think of the light. i only put it on for a few hours a day but how long do u think i should put it on for now with the babies in there as well?? xx
> ...


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## kelly82 (Jul 14, 2009)

ok im unsure what exactly i have done wrong here, but i came on this morning to a private message from kelseye titled 'idiot' and cursing at me saying they have reported me! im guessing it because this member isnt happy at their 'advice' being put down, but i dont know. i think this is well out of order though, very rude and totally uncalled for. do i bother to report them for anything or do i ignore the childish behaviour? not sure how it works on this forum but i certainly dont appreciate that from anyone!

as for you fish OP, good going, i hope all your babies make it. i definately agree that its best to leave lights off unless you have plants, you dont want the babies to get too hot  hope they start to colour up soon, thats the best part


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## Guest (Sep 11, 2009)

kelly82 said:


> ok im unsure what exactly i have done wrong here, but i came on this morning to a private message from kelseye titled 'idiot' and cursing at me saying they have reported me! im guessing it because this member isnt happy at their 'advice' being put down, but i dont know. i think this is well out of order though, very rude and totally uncalled for. do i bother to report them for anything or do i ignore the childish behaviour? not sure how it works on this forum but i certainly dont appreciate that from anyone!
> 
> as for you fish OP, good going, i hope all your babies make it. i definately agree that its best to leave lights off unless you have plants, you dont want the babies to get too hot  hope they start to colour up soon, thats the best part


If you are not happy hun then report them, that person has a bad attitude problem and needs to be told about it. Dont let people speak to you like this or bully you.

Thank you for your advice hun. I do have real plants in there but will reduce the light time right down for the babies.

Can i please ask yourself and Fishyfin another question. i have come home last night and my tank is full of algae, its a disgusting colour, now i think i know why because i bought some treatment for the fungus and it said to take the filter sponge out of the filter for 7 days, so is that the reason??

I do have a algae eater at the bottom of my tank but he is only a youngester, the tank was fine the day before so has happened very quickly. Will i have to do a water change?? As the tank has only been set up for 3 weeks so it has gone dirty very quickly in a few days.

kath xx


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## deb53 (Jun 4, 2009)

kelly82 said:


> ok im unsure what exactly i have done wrong here, but i came on this morning to a private message from kelseye titled 'idiot' and cursing at me saying they have reported me! im guessing it because this member isnt happy at their 'advice' being put down, but i dont know. i think this is well out of order though, very rude and totally uncalled for. do i bother to report them for anything or do i ignore the childish behaviour? not sure how it works on this forum but i certainly dont appreciate that from anyone!
> 
> as for you fish OP, good going, i hope all your babies make it. i definately agree that its best to leave lights off unless you have plants, you dont want the babies to get too hot  hope they start to colour up soon, thats the best part


OMG..You have been reported for giving good advice????? Absolute ludicrous.

But reading back...Is it me or has that "idiot" post been removed?? Maybe by Kelseye or the mods??

Anyway at the end of the day you gave good ,sound advice and that is all that matters.

Ignore the playground attitude and rise above it.

xxx


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## MADCAT (Nov 21, 2008)

kath123 said:


> If you are not happy hun then report them, that person has a bad attitude problem and needs to be told about it. Dont let people speak to you like this or bully you.
> 
> Thank you for your advice hun. I do have real plants in there but will reduce the light time right down for the babies.
> 
> ...


I agree with Kathryn, if someone called me a idiot on a pm i would def report them, there is no need for this sort of attitude.


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## kelly82 (Jul 14, 2009)

i have reported it and have forwarded the PM i was sent. 

anyway, back to topic. the algae you are seeing is due to the abundance of nutrients in the water. cut down feeding, make sure all the food is eaten, do regular partial water changes and make sure you use dechlorinator before adding any tap water to the tank. on a good note, the algae is fine for the fish, we just dont like the way it looks. after all it is just another plant which uses up the nitrites/nitrates/ammonia in the water-this is why regualr water changes help hold it at bay as the nurtrients are depleted with the clean water.

your algae eater, im guessing a plec, wont really do much in the way of algae control. if it is a bristlenose then it will take out some of it but you would be much better either cutting light times down or adding lots of live plants, which will benefit your tank all round. if you have a common plec it will grow huge, ive seen them for sale at 16 inches or so, and they are monster poop machines. i have a bristlenose in my tank, and they max out at around 5-6 inches, mine is fully grown but even at that 5inch or so mark it poops more than any other fish i own. your other option is a few snails, apple snails are good, as are malaysian trumpet snails (though these quickly fill an aquarium,i have hundreds!) nerite snails, though harder to get hold of are stunningly beautiful and cannot reproduce in a freshwater aquarium.

just please remember your plec will not survive on algae alone, it will need bog wood in its diet, and also regular feedings of cucumber or something similar. i cut a slice off, stab it with a fork to weigh it down, drop it in the tank, and leave it over night, by the next day most of it is gone.

if it is brown coloured algae you have in there, its diatoms, and they appear with every new tank ive ever had, they do die down over time.

water changes are your best friend, especially at the start of the tanks establishment. also, fungus can be treated using clean water, it will usually clean up any infections. rather than weakening your fish using chemicals, try a few days of partial water changes to keep conditions perfect and see if that helps before going and buying chemicals to add. i used to have a cupboard full of chemicals for treating all different illness and disease, not any more, its tap water dechlorinator and thats it, and a box of aquarium salt incase any of my new plants bring in white spot, i usually salt bath the plants before adding them to the tank now.

just make sure you keep testing that water, you are aiming for ammonia and nitrites to be at 0, and nitrates to be anywhere up to 40, preferably under 20 but its ok to be up to 40. live plants will reduce the nitrates in your tank once you are cycled too. my heavily stocked 150 gallon has 0 ammonia, 0 nitrites and only 5 nitrates, but its been a couple of weeks since i did a partial water change, and its been established for a year or more now. live plants are definately the way to go for me  hope your little fish babies are still doing well.


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## Guest (Sep 11, 2009)

kelly82 said:


> i have reported it and have forwarded the PM i was sent.
> 
> anyway, back to topic. the algae you are seeing is due to the abundance of nutrients in the water. cut down feeding, make sure all the food is eaten, do regular partial water changes and make sure you use dechlorinator before adding any tap water to the tank. on a good note, the algae is fine for the fish, we just dont like the way it looks. after all it is just another plant which uses up the nitrites/nitrates/ammonia in the water-this is why regualr water changes help hold it at bay as the nurtrients are depleted with the clean water.
> 
> ...


Thank you hun, i was worried that it would kill the fish as it looks so nasty, but will do a partial water change hun.

Thank you for all your advice you are a star hun.

Ive got a cory catfish for the bottom hun. hope that is ok. I was told he wont grow very big at all.

xxx


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## kelly82 (Jul 14, 2009)

kath123 said:


> Thank you hun, i was worried that it would kill the fish as it looks so nasty, but will do a partial water change hun.
> 
> Thank you for all your advice you are a star hun.
> 
> ...


 cory catfish absolutely perfect, although you will need another at least 2 as they are a schooling fish  try to get the same type as they tend to stick with their own types, i have 12 bronze and 10 sterbai in my 6 foot tank and they form 2 separate schools.


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## Guest (Sep 12, 2009)

ok i got up this morning and have found my Female Mollie that has given birth to the 7 babies last week DEAD!!! 

I have done a partial water change as tank had gone grubby despite my brand new filter!!! 

The 7 babies are still doing ok but i dont know what is going on and why i have lost the 2 mollies, is it because they were too stressed? 

As have heard they do not do well with the other fish i have in with them. 

I wish i could just get someone to come round and help me and tell me what is going on. I have done everything that people have told me to do and i am still loosing my fish.


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