Don't Make these 5 *COMMON FATAL FISH KEEPING* Mistakes!
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- Опубликовано: 12 сен 2024
- Avoid and don't make these 5 common fatal fish keeping mistakes! You've talked to me about them and I've done several of them myself. You're probably doing number one on the list. It's very common, but can be deadly!
Can you think of more that were not on the list? Mention them in the comments and I might include it in a video or a live stream.
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I spent countless hours researching how to do everything "right" but I didn't test my aquarium water to get a base line after cycling the tank. My fish lived 2 months. Not exactly sure what happened but I suspect something was wrong with my water levels. Since then, I bought a master kit so I have an idea of my baseline. Makes it easier for beginners to have some info on their water quality.
I would add don't chase numbers especially like PH. Fast changes are hard on them. Stability is a wonderful thing.
So true. We do better letting our fish adapt then risking sudden shifts in PH that can be fatal.
Excellent advice, Ben.I’m guilty of #1, and after experiencing about 3 ammonia spikes, I now feed my fish in my community tank every other day to 2 days, and so far so good!
i think my biggest mistake is when i have gone out to buy new fish has been not trusting my instincts about a dirty store tank or poor quality looking fish because of the hunger to have new fish that day, i have now learned to walk away and wait until i see healthy looking stock .
I have a friend who is a manager at my local fish shop...it amazes me how many times they have to quarantine some of their tanks due to outbreaks of white spot (ich)
for me, Quarantine without meds will eventually lead to a major disease outbreak. I use IchX and General Cure for other parasites without fail.
Unfortunately some shops are on a shared filtration system and a disease in one tank means it's in all the tanks. Recently PetCos and other big pet stores are using filters only on a limited number of tanks, with each rack having its own sump.
@@BenOchart i have looked at retail sale fish systems and many have UV sterilizers which is very effective against ich and other parasites. Bacteria not so much so....
Yes...I think he has a few separate systems but each has several tanks on them so when it happens it takes down a few tanks at a time.@@BenOchart
Thanks for mentioning heater controllers. Didnt know something like this existed. I will have to check these out.
I talk about controllers in more detail here: ruclips.net/video/MPWxY2nahjM/видео.htmlsi=15H7N04nxUlwTrt8
I have had trouble in the past with trying to add a new fish to an established tank and finding that the fish you planned on putting together are not compatible at all no matter what you do. (Rearranging decor big water changes etcetera).. Now what when trying to avoid MTS lol. Especially with large South and Central American cichlids. You bring them all up together small they get along..
That was my life when I first started with cichlids. "Oh, he's pretty!" was the only criteria. Then the battles and deaths started. Even when they grow up together, some fish just can't be together.
When doing water changes, I learned to add the water conditioner just before adding the new water and not after doing it. I got scared in one occasion; the fishes were gasping for air in the surface. Apparently, there was too much chlorine or other chemical in the faucet water that day.
I made that mistake in my pond. Killed my prize Koi.
@@mikeeljahosafats3231 I'm sorry about that. Thank God I didn't have any loss because I added a second full dose of conditioner when I saw the fishes gasping for air. Around 5 minutes later, they were Ok.
Yikes sorry to hear that
Ouch. Sorry to hear…
Thank goodness I'm in the country with my own well ...no city water here😜
I still suggest that you test from time to time Paul. I had one person on a well that was cross-contaminated by farm runoff and created a huge nitrate spike.
For person who has multiple tanks. Do regularly water change at max 4 tanks / day.
Fatigue can ”kill” joy of keep fishes.
Damn where all your tanks sick at the same time? I run 4 tanks as well and it happened to me. I start using own tank siphon house so I don’t spread parasites/ diseases.
@@Joes_Aquatics quarantine tank always come first.
I have 1 quarantine tank. Special for sick fish/fishes
This is the problem with MTS. I've seen it. People get too many tanks and it stops being fun and turns into dreaded work. I suggested to people in the past to cut things back to the number of tanks they had when they were enjoying the hobby the most. I'm almost at my MTS limit. The 60 gallon I'm thinking about adding be about as much as I want to maintain without it getting into more work than fun. Don't get me wrong. I actually enjoy the work, up to a point.
Excellent info
Glad you liked it
Great topic. For me NOT using meds in quarantine is a fatal mistake. Cory at Aquarium Co-op describes in detail why parasites survive on fish that carry, vs demonstrate symptoms of disease. Quarantine without meds is a disaster waiting to happen. I quarantined Dennison Barbs for 30 days, yet they contaminated my whole fish room with Ich within 3 days of adding the fish to the display tank. Those barbs never demonstrated any ich. In the last 7 years I have had two chlorine kills as a result of water changes. After the fact I discovered that my water utility has super charged the pipes with chlorine. Usually happens during the fall and Spring in my water district. Prevention? have chlorine/chloramine test strips awailable, give the replacement water the "smell test", and GRADUALLY add replacement water (with SAFE) especially for smaller aquariums, use a powerhead to more rapidly distribute your dechlorinator.
Same I had Camallanus worms. In my opinion one of the hardest worms to rid of especially when fish turn lethargic
Question, if you're always treating new tap water before adding it (or while adding it if using a python-type system) wouldn't that neutralize even a super chlorinated water?
I know Cory recommends his "trio" of meds when fish are in QT. I think he developed that because he imports from the Far East where parasites are common and different from what we get locally. I'm an under medicator ... even with my own health, I tend to avoid medicating unless something is obviously needing it. Overmedicating has led to super bugs, flesh eating bacteria that antibiotics can't stop and in the fish world I've heard that some strains of ich are now resistant to meds.
At any rate, you've got to go with what you feel comfortable with and have had success with and it's working for you John, so I wouldn't change anything.
My super chlorination issues have only occurred in my two 54 gallon aquariums. With a 50% water change and my replacement hose flow, I can refill in 4 minutes. I believe I was adding chlorine faster than the SAFE could neutralize it. I now add the replacement water over one hour and add more SAFE. Never a problem in my big tanks because they take an hour to refill and I add extra SAFE to be cautious
BTW, Ich is a parasite, not a bacterium. No chance of an antibiotic resistant Ich organism arising since antibiotics are useless against Ich parasites. Good luck on your method.
Excellent video as always ben👍
Glad you enjoyed it
Great tips
Good advice Ben. Here's two more not medicating correctly, chasing numbers and over reacting.
All good points. Thanks for watching and commenting.
Great tips as usual. Quick question, what kind of wavemaker are you using in that tank? That looks like amazing flow and surface agitation for oxygenation of the water.
It’s made by Svanur model W-40 from China. I’m not sure if they are available any more.
Many times heaters malfunction if they were not fully submerged, sometimes fishes kick them out of the suction cups and they start floating on top, this can cause them to over heat and cook the fish
My Red Terror is constantly knocking the heater off the wall. I think he's going after the little pleco that lives in there and hides behind the heaters. Fortunately newer heaters have shutoff functions when out of the water. I believe the Co-Op ones do and certainly the Hygger bigger units both shut off and give you a waring on the control unit outside of the tank.
hi ther this was a good video about ( MAS LEASES ) you miss one more don't keep the lights on to long depends on the type of aquarium you have an the fish
I agree. I have mine on timers that limit lights to 6-7 hours a day max.
Great knowledge!! Thanks Ben !!
Yep Ben great tips as always. I think the over feeding is my biggest fault. But you will also see your water quality turn a little hazy with continued over feeding. I stopped feeding my big fish 2 times a day as I saw my water getting a bit hazy.
I've gone to once a day with the bigger fish. The fry and grow-out fish get fed twice but in all cases it's a portion that gets gobbled up in 30 seconds.
like the video. thanks Ben
Patience!!
Probably the most important word in fish keeping.
Ben,
Great stuff I love these videos. I quarantine at least a few weeks from the big box stores they tend to have the most issues. Not having any meds on hand should be one of the list. Many people don’t keep ich or any parasite meds on hand until something happens and than they freak out and have to try and find it and it could be to late by than. Over feeding is definitely an issue and I feed once a day for 6 days than I fast on the 7th day to let the fish clean out and to let the bacteria catch up if needed. The mess less is definitely something I live by I don’t do big water changes and filter maintenance on the same day. I also try not to do all the filtration the same day if I can help it. I had it happen where I did all the maintenance and the water change and had a huge ammonia spike that ended up killing the fish it was so irritating. Uggh. Great tips.
I hear ya. Did you get some cloudiness before the die-off after you did too much? I had that and failed to recognize that it was a bacterial bloom because I had rebooted the BB. That's how I lost my Starry Night and it still stings when I think about it.
@@BenOchart yes it went cloudy and all the fish were gasping for air slit was bad and so stressful. 😥 I had no idea what I did or what I needed to do it sucked.
Good morning Ben
Ben have you ever been in a church and felt like the message was just for you. Well this video was that for me.
🤣🤣🤣 it wasn’t, well maybe a little 🤣🤣🤣 Happy New Year buddy.
Great video.... Love that hat
That's "Murphy," Cory's big puffer fish on the hat.
Great video I did a water change using my out side faucet to refill the tank not thinking about the weather outside and filled it with much to cold water and some of fish died.
Some never match temp when filling. I always do. No need to shock the fish. My problem is that my water heater takes a few minutes to heat up. So I think I'm filling with 78F but then check after 10 minutes and it's 86F. So I have adjust several times when filling up the larger tanks.
Hi Ben . Do you prefer to grow your fish or buy fish at a decent size?
That's a good question. I enjoy both for different reasons. I love growing them out and watching them blossom and color up. This was especially fun with African cichlids. I'd buy 4 or 5 and hope there was a spectacular male in the batch. When you get one it's like winning the fish lottery. Plus, when you grow them out it's under $10 a fish, compared to $45+ when you buy an adult colored up male. I'm currently growing out 5 albino acaras and it's going to be a lot of fun watching them color up. All that being said, With my bigger tanks, I need to buy bigger fish or it could take a year or more before it was safe to add them to the aquarium and join the older bigger fish. In that scenario I need to buy them already grown out. Unfortunately when you buy a bigger fish you usually have no idea how old he or she is and you might get one that only lasts a year because it was pretty old when you bought it. Lots of pros and cons to both.
Like this one
I need to go bring out my old tank and start over. 😊
Adding fish in an un cycled tank - we've all been to anxious, especially when new to the hobby, and put fish in spanking brand new tank and filter.
I just started a new tank with aquasoil and sand cover. I only covered the front half. I put plants in. I then fed the plants in the water column. Now all my plants dying quick! I think too much ammonia in the tank? Not sure?
The plants love ammonia. There's usually a melt from the shock of getting planted. It passes and then the plant comes back. Drop a few root tabs, that should help. Here are the ones that I use: www.aquariumcoop.com/products/easy-root-tabs?sca_ref=3301874.0yH4KEHjB2
I was horrified when I did not realize how to regenerate Purigen. I replaced it back into my tank and within 30 seconds I knew that I had not eliminated all of the bleach. I lost three neon tetras within a couple of minutes. From now on, I only use fresh Purigen. I felt so bad. 😢
I recharged Purigen many times and have not had an issue. I will admit, the first time I did it I was a bit nervous since bleach and fish are a very bad combo. Sorry you had that outcome.
I brought ICH into my aquarium by adding a fish I bought from my local box store....something I usually wouldnt do. It was a new community tank and honestly I dont have the patience to wait a month....I would today though lol
I buy fish twice a year generally. If I cannot wait for the quarantine or do not have the room, I medicate the entire tank with IchX and General Cure. Cory at Aquarium Coop has reported that he has used this combination for tens of thousands of fish and they all survive, and it kills most parasites.
@@HalfManHalfCichlid thanks
@@HalfManHalfCichlid I was able to cure the ICH.
Not cycling the brand new tank. Huge mistake
My biggest mistake is stocking too fast and no quarantine. Ended up Camallanus worms and lost fish. Not to mention what a pain in the butt it was to rid the worms out. -Expensive mistake -
I wish I had a dollar for every time I wish I had been more patient and every time someone has mentioned how vital patience is to keeping fish.
I hope that in 2024, the Canadian government will repaeal their ban on fish meds..
I've been watching Canada, having visited several times and really enjoyed the country and the people, but sadly I don't anticipate that the countries leaders will be moving in the direction of less regulation in any aspect of life. I hope I'm wrong.
Are all us fish keepers PCOD
There's some truth in this comment, LOL!
But not everyone has an established quarantine tank
A small plastic RubberMaid tote will work in an emergency.
A sin is not adding live plants.
Plants really improve an aquarium in many ways. I wish AC, SA & CA Cichlids didn't destroy them.
Another common mistake is don't drink too much beer, and then take an emergency tinkle in your aquarium.
Everyone's done that at least once right ?.......?
...uh...no, LOL!
Guilty as shit of #5
PS I didn't mean to make you cringe watching me feed my fish. Lol
🤣🤣🤣
I have a friend who is a manager at my local fish shop...it amazes me how many times they have to quarantine some of their tanks due to outbreaks of white spot (ich)