I'm back in the game, and everything died

You dumped them in a tank which probably had drastically different parameters from the one they were in at the store. I've read neons (and most fish, I suppose) don't do well when having a traumatic event occur like this.

You probably shouldn't have tried to cycle your tank with fish, but given the fact that you went this route, you should've chosen a hardier species like zebra danios and maybe only 2-3 tops. If I were you, I'd skip trying to cycle your tank using fish and go with a fishless cycle. You can spend a month or so working on your scenery (rocks, plants, driftwood, etc.) and have a nice set-up ready when your tank is actually ready for fish.

rcs0926 said:

You probably shouldn't have tried to cycle your tank with fish, but given the fact that you went this route, you should've chosen a hardier species like zebra danios and maybe only 2-3 tops. If I were you, I'd skip trying to cycle your tank using fish and go with a fishless cycle. You can spend a month or so working on your scenery (rocks, plants, driftwood, etc.) and have a nice set-up ready when your tank is actually ready for fish.

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yeah true.. I figure if they die, then that just helps my filter do it's thing.

Funny thing, the one little fish left popped right back up and is cruisin all over. Monitoring ammonia carefully over the next week. Also I put a couple of ghost shrimp in to find the bodies as I have the small bottom very covered.

More than once have I sacrificed cheap fish to get the filter kick started, I was amazed they made it the first 7 days as good as they did before heating the tank, which made me wonder.. It can be no coincidence for sure.

chocological said:

You dumped them in a tank which probably had drastically different parameters from the one they were in at the store. I've read neons (and most fish, I suppose) don't do well when having a traumatic event occur like this.

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And I think you are right. I would also add that Neons might not be harvested in a great way. They are probably stressed to begin with, poor things.

Yeah, your fish didn't have the conditions that neon tetras thrive in and so they failed to thrive. Instead of breaking out the RO system, maybe look into fish that do well in really hard water (is your water hard or does it just have a really high pH? this is important). Even some more sensitive fish can adapt if you change conditions slowly. Neons also seem to die kind of easily though so don't beat yourself up to much. It's a learning experience! Now you know what not to do next time!

Careful said:

Yeah, your fish didn't have the conditions that neon tetras thrive in and so they failed to thrive. Instead of breaking out the RO system, maybe look into fish that do well in really hard water (is your water hard or does it just have a really high pH? this is important). Even some more sensitive fish can adapt if you change conditions slowly. Neons also seem to die kind of easily though so don't beat yourself up to much. It's a learning experience! Now you know what not to do next time!

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Thought about that. Also, tested my GH and KH today. KH is high at between 120 and 180, and GH is 0 to 30.

So then, what thrives in high ph, high KH... both plants and fish. I loaned all of my reference books to my wifes brother, which I need to retrieve.

I do have an RO setup, it's been in my shed for a few years, and I could easily install it under the sink, plus the water would be good for coffee

so the neons survived a week without a heater and when you installed one they died immediately?

2pac said:

so the neons survived a week without a heater and when you installed one they died immediately?

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Overnight, well 16 hours anyway. Also, our power went out last night for about 4 hours and it was cold as hell in here... who knows what contributed.

this morning, some were still alive, just at the bottom of the tank, and a couple up side down, but breathing. By 3, all but 1 stopped moving at all. What a trooper