Fish Randomly Dying????

First topic message reminder :

Does anyone know why fish would just randomly die?

So far, I've had clown loaches, random african cichlids, fire eel, plecos, eartheaters all die on me for NO apparent reason.

Everyone gets a varied diet.. no one picks on each other.. all parameters are as perfect as possible...

I've never had this many problems with fish before in my life.

They ALL came from the same place (wholesaler in Ohio)... I am thinking that their size (all under 2 inches except the fire eel) had something to do with it?

The African can thrive in 7.6 ph. I've read many articles stating this. I've not had any problem with them so they are obviously doing fine.

And I do have a 1500 gallon indoor tank that the clowns will be housed in if necessary. All the articles I've read as well as the books state that they are
slow growers. Only growing 2 inches a year if that.

Fern wrote:

mshill90 wrote:

Which fish likes the 5.5 ph?? The african Butterfly

they like from 5.5-6.5

mshill90 wrote:

Clown loaches will get to 5'', and then stop... they take up to 50 years to reach their max size. I've done my research with clown loaches.

They should hit a foot within the first year or 3 of their life, if not its because they are being stunted from being in a tank that is way too small for them. Stunting leads to improper development and ends up in a shorted lifespan.

African Butterflies actually prefer 6.5 to 7.1. MOST fish can deal with 1 ph of difference. But what do I know? My butterflies are happy and healthy, and are doing just fine in 7.6

And I happen to have a school of zebra danios in my large frontosa tank, and the ph is 8.0. And they are doing just fine, minus the one that got eaten.

Ok, not to be rude, but as an admin, I think maybe you need to brush up on your clown loach information before you go telling me that I am wrong...

Clown loaches will easily grow to 4-5'' if you are lucky, but after 5'' their growth rate slows down exponentially.

http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=93732

"Although Clown Loaches are often sold when they are on about 4cm (1.5in) long, don’t be fooled. This is their immature size and with proper care they can grow to 20-30cm (8-12in) or more! A small to mid-size aquarium will not do for fish this size, especially since they are fast swimmers and like to swim around for exercise. With proper clown loach care they will grow quickly to around 13cm (5in). After that, growth tends to slow down, but they can grow to 12 inches or more under optimal conditions."
http://www.clownloachfish.com/

I've looked and looked and looked, and I could fill up my post with links, but NONE and I mean not ONE has said that they will reach a foot with in the first year. Please direct me down the correct path...

Do you have clown loaches? I want to see yours or anyone's at a foot in a year.

Like I really hate sounding like a complete B----, but when I know that the information you are telling me is wrong, I can't keep my mouth shut.

My clown loaches are Not stunted... there is plenty of room in the tank that I have. They all pile in this super tiny stump to sleep, and when it's time to eat, they are the first ones out telling me they are hungry. I've only had one CL die, and that's because I bought him at walmart, and that was about a year ago... the other 5 that I bought with him, are the SAME exact size they were when I bought them... maybe a tad bigger, but nothing noticeable, and they had a 75 all to themselves.

I bet you're also going to tell me that Clown Loaches are easy to breed as well....

Well if all of your fish are healthy, and none of your fish are dying, which ones are the problem? I for one am a little confused.

Your tank is stocked too heavily even for juveniles. You have africans and south americans in there. All have diiferent dietary needs. Again I ask are you aware of the adult size of the fish you have stocked?

4 Frontosa 1.5" These get to 12"
1 Venustus 3" These get to at least 8"
5 yellow labs 1.5" 5"
5 Crabro Bumblebee 2" 7" and these are mean as hell
2 Demasoni 1" 3"
5 Blue Cobalt Zebra 1.5" 6"
1 Red Zebra 1.5" 6"
3 African Butterfly 3.5"
6 Pearl Danios 1" these will likely be feeders before long
18 Clown Loaches 1" as Fern said 12"
5 yellow Peacock 1" 6" to 7"
3 Geophagus Brasilensis 1.5" 10"
2 geophagus surinamensis 2" 10"
1 clown loach 6"
4 zebra loaches 1"
2 spiny half banded eels 4"
1 syndontis multipunctatus 1" 4"
5 Auloncara jacobfreibrergi 2" 6" to 7"
5 Haplochromis Borleyi 2" 9"
12 Ctenopema Leopard 1" 6"
3 L-114 plecos 1"
1 para pleco 3"
4 hi fin chinese banded sharks 2" 2 feet
1 apistogramma cactuoides .5" <---- not even sure why this guy is even in the mix.
3 geophagus steindachneri 1.5" 4"
1 tire track eel 3" 12" or bigger
2 tropheus Moorii- Red fire cracker .5" 5" should be a species only tank
1 Jack Dempsey 2'' (only in this tank because his "mate" decided to beat on him) 8"


You should really rethink your stocking strategy. You will lose a lot more fish as these all start to grow.

I have to agree with everyone above, even if these fish were not dying randomly now, in about 6 months most are going to die anyway. I would figure out what type of a tank you want and get rid of the others.

I would say your fish are getting sick from stress and then a domino effect is happening. If you have a 1500 gallon tank, now is the time to use it.

I have many different cichlids.
To mix the feeding types could be the problem.
Them water parameters could be another, and the aggression levels could be another.
When setting up a tank please research the fish.
Make sure the tankmates are compatable, and like the same foods.
Simple Africans and Americans do not belong in the same tank.
Simple the Mbuna's will kill most of the other africans if they survive the meaty diet the american cichlids need.
If the american cichlids do not get big enough fast enough to eat all the africans.
This is a hodge podge of a death trap. No way these fish could co-exist in a 400 gallon tank.
At adult size overload by about 15 to 20 fish.

Not to be rude but please do your homework before you stock a tank.
Think about the fish, and forget your feelings.