Off topic - Tropical Fish (Columbia: apartment, buy, living in)

[oriondarkwood]

Sorry don't know of any other board to pose this questions to. Has anyone has issues with Tropical Fish in the NE Columbia area (we have tried goldfish, guppies and tiger barbs)? My kid loves fish but we have yet to have a fish live more than a couple of weeks. We have Eclipse Hexagon 5 Aquarium by Marineland.

I am no expert but living in NC and NY we had no problems keeping fish alive. All our fish we have purchased from pet smart.

Any ideas or helpful hints?

[ranger17]

though no expert, i'd have to question the pump in your set up. I don't think the state you live in matters any, since the aquarium is inside away from most elements.

So my guess would be something with the water perhaps, but is the pump operating correctly?

[rubber_factory]

I had cichlids and barbs in Columbia for years.

Sounds like you aren't providing suitable water for the fish. Temperature, Ph, dissolved oxygen, etc.

[oriondarkwood]

Originally Posted by rubber_factory

I had cichlids and barbs in Columbia for years.

Sounds like you aren't providing suitable water for the fish. Temperature, Ph, dissolved oxygen, etc.

Hmm how do you measure dissolved oxygen? Temp is 78 - 84 sometimes a bit higher (my kid's room is on the SE corner of a apartment building). PH is 7.2 - 7.6. Ammonia levels are slighty high but you expect that with a goldfish.

Cichlids are cool but we don't have the space for a tank big enough for them.

[oriondarkwood]

Originally Posted by ranger17

though no expert, i'd have to question the pump in your set up. I don't think the state you live in matters any, since the aquarium is inside away from most elements.

So my guess would be something with the water perhaps, but is the pump operating correctly?

Yes however I have never dealt with this pump type before where the water goes over the filter and flows over a paddle wheel before going back into the tank. The filters I dealt with have been the plastic box type that sat on the bottom of the tank and you put in loose charocal and cotton. The other being a underground type where the water was sucked up tubing from the bottom of the tank and pushed thur a filter cartiage.

[rubber_factory]

Originally Posted by oriondarkwood

Hmm how do you measure dissolved oxygen? Temp is 78 - 84 sometimes a bit higher (my kid's room is on the SE corner of a apartment building). PH is 7.2 - 7.6. Ammonia levels are slighty high but you expect that with a goldfish.

I just make sure there are bubbles, nothing fancy.

I've used some sort of device for measuring D.O. (in Lake Murray), but I don't think this is common for aquarium owners.

Cichlids are cool but we don't have the space for a tank big enough for them.

Yeah, 5 gallons is tiny. That may be a contributing factor to your fish dying. Small tanks see much greater fluctuations in water quality than large tanks.

[oriondarkwood]

Originally Posted by rubber_factory

I just make sure there are bubbles, nothing fancy.

I've used some sort of device for measuring D.O. (in Lake Murray), but I don't think this is common for aquarium owners.



Yeah, 5 gallons is tiny. That may be a contributing factor to your fish dying. Small tanks see much greater fluctuations in water quality than large tanks.

It doesn't bubble, maybe I should buy on of those airstones? I would like to get a bigger tank however space is a issue in the apartment. Not to mention we also have a cat.

[pvjd]

I live in Birmingham, and I know there are certain towns and counties that have different ph to their water. Might be worth looking into.

[Chromekitty]

ask your fish store if they have RO water. If they do use that for the tank. You should see an improvement.