strange aquarium happenings

divinebeast

hi,
i have a 10 gallon aquarium that has
2 cories
2 danios
3 female betta's
i recently was out of town for 2 days wiht no house sitter. i figured the fish would survive fine for 2 days. when i got home however 1 of my betta's and the 2 cories seem to have lost colour. they are very pale but other then that are normal. can anyone tell me what this could mean? i am very worried.

Lupin

Hi Divine.

What are your water parameters?

lioness501

did u leave the lights on or off?? ive gone away before, relying on plug in timers(which broke) wen i came home the lights had been off for 2 days and the fish were extremely colourless and lethargic. i put the light on and in ten mins they all back to normal. if the lights r on for too long sometimes the same thing happens ime

divinebeast

well this morning when i woke up one of the bettas had died .
but the cories seem to be getting a little colour back YAY.
about the parimeters i am unsure of what you are asking considering i am all new to the aquarium thing but am eager to learn all i can. also in response to the light question i did leave it off. i guess maybe that could explain things considering there wasn´t any disease in my tank.

Julie's Julies

Water parameters are the levels of ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate in your water. A new tank needs to cycle: fish produce ammonia through their gills and in their waste. Ammonia is toxic to fish. Bacteria develop that convert the ammonia into nitrite (still toxic to fish, but less so than ammonia), and then other bacteria develop and turn the nitrite into nitrate (much less harmful to fish). Once nitrates appear in your tank, it is done cycling. This process can take several weeks to complete. You will need to get an ammonia test kit, a nitrite test kit, and a nitrate test kit, and I would also recommend getting a Ph test kit (Aquarium Pharmaceuticals is a good brand). They are expensive, but they are necessary for the well-being of your fish and they do last a long time.

Once the tank is cycled, a weekly water change of 25% is recommended so that the nitrates do not get too high. While nitrates are not as harmful as ammonia or nitrites, they are still not good for fish and a high concentration of them can also lead to unwanted algal growth and other problems.

If your tank is newly set up, this cycling may have more to do with your sick fish than the light situation. There are several good explanations and such in the section "starting a freshwater aquarium."

Best wishes to you and your tank! It is a fascinating hobby.