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My angelfish and paradise fish seem to huddle around the heater quite a bit. Right now they are all very active, but about once every ten minutes or so I'll notice they're all back in the corner behind some rocks usually all facing the heater. Could this be an indication that the water in the tank is too cold, or is this most likely just a coincidence? Thanks!!

when did u get these fishes? and ur tank is overstocked.

anyway needs more info, what is the temp of the water.

It is an indication that your Angel is going
to die if it is kept in that tank.
The temp may also be too low, Angels prefer temps above 78 degrees, and preferably about 80F.
Anytime I have seen Angels do that, they usually die
3-4 days later.
Baby Angels are easily affected by disease, overcrowding,
and poor water quality.
Do you know about the Nitrogen Cycle? Your Angel will NOT
survive a cycling tank.
Cycle is the transfer of fish waste products, Ammonia, into non harmful Nitrates.
Heres how it works,
Day 1- You add fish
Day 5- Fish have produced waste (pee and poo), which
causes Ammonia levels to build up. Once reach 2.0 ppm Ammonia becomes highly toxic to fish. Fish suffer from Ammonia Poisoning, and may be susceptible to diseases such as Ich, Fungus, and bacterial infections like Hemmorhagic Septicemia.
Day 8- Nitrobacter, a beneficial bacteria, grows in your gravel/sand bed, and in your filter, and begins converting Ammonia into NitrItes.
Day12-14- Nitrites Build to High Levels, reaching 4.0ppm is Dangerous to fish, causing burning of the gills, and more susceptibility to disease.
Days 14-17- Nitrobacter Stage 2 builds up in tank, and begins converting NitrItes to NitrAtes. At this stage there will no longer be Ammonia Present in the tank, not even in trace amounts.
Days 20-35 - When Testing water, Ammonia and NitrItes will be at 0, nitrAtes will be climbing into the 10-20ppm area.
The tank is now fully cycled and safe for fish.
----
Angelfish are not hardy enough to survive a cycle.
Some hardy fish for cycling are Zebra Danios.

Please read up on the Nitrogen Cycle and get a Master Test Kit. Heres a link for more info:

[link=http://faq.thekrib.com/begin-cycling.html]http://faq.thekrib.com/begin-cycling.html" style="COLOR: #FFC0FF[/link]

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whoa there it could simply be issues like current and nervousness and light levels too, hows about posting those tank details fella- size, ammonia nitrate , nitrite , ph, temperature,filtration,additives used in water , fish stocking levels etc - then we might be able analyse something more accurately for you.

If you dont have accurate digital thermometers and stuff tho- get some quick or give the angel back to the shop asap where it might stand a chance. Giving to them back to the shop for nothing for resale would be better than just letting it wane and die.

The angels are not casual fish for beginners who dont monitor water qualities. IF YOUR TRYING TO CYCLE A TANK WITH ANGELS YOULL ONLY KILL THEM. so take em back quick.If you have a more mature tank (eg one with a filter that has been running over a month or two) with size issues it may not be so urgent and something might be done to improve things in the meantime until a better solution can be found.

Last edited by longhairedgit at 03-Sep-2005 22:51

Paradise fish prefer somewhat colder water and down to 60F won't bother them so that is not the problem. It could be lack of hiding places, agression from other fish in the tank, overcrowding, or poor water quality. Angels do prefer warm water beyond the paradise fish prefered range. If you don't get the angel out soon you are only going to have 1 fish left and my money is on the paradise fish. They can survive about anything but usually don't take well to tankmates unless they are kept in a bigger tank. The paradise fish may be the only fish you can keep in that tank.

Last edited by sham at 04-Sep-2005 14:21

by reading your other thread, i see that you went with the angels and paradise in a 10g anyways...
your fish aren't going to live very long in those conditions. you need to take the angels back and get something smaller.
i understand you want them, but have patience, if you really want them, you'll eventually get a bigger tank, but for now, you'll just kill them.
it's one thing to kill a fish through ignorance, but you now know that the angels will die in the 10g... think about it.

You guys are being a bit harsh. Going by one of the other threads he has returned the angel...

---

Before you criticize someone walk a mile in their shoes. That way you're a mile away and you have their shoes.

Actually Lindy he said he was keeping 1 angel
and a paradise fish and returning the other angels.
I still believe it has a lot to do with the tank
cycling.
The paradise fish may survive the cycle,
but the angel wont.
Not to be harsh to this person at all, we all
make mistakes when we start, espescially those of us
who listen to LFS people assuming that because they
work in a fish store that they may actually know what
they are talking about.
I still advise this fellow to read up in the Nitrogen cycle, and return his purchase of the angel and consider something much more suited to a 10g tank.
Perhaps, if he wanted something really cool, he should go for a brackish water tank and a puffer or a knight goby.


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Well, it appeared the person was planning to take the angelfish back in the following....

[link=http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/forums/General%20Freshwater/63829.html?200509031856]http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/forums/General%20Freshwater/63829.html?200509031856" style="COLOR: #004040[/link]

I wasnt aiming my comments particularly at you Sneaky, I just think the guy has been scared away from here because people can be so blunt with their answers.

---

Before you criticize someone walk a mile in their shoes. That way you're a mile away and you have their shoes.

Paradise fish are also e to beating the hell out of each other when not provided with enough territorial space, so again , not the best choice, thankfully he only has the one now. Im glad he had foresight enough to take his fish back. He should be congratulated for correcting his mistakes and at least hes still active on the site and getting advice. Never give up on a learner.

Lindys point is relevant though, and perhaps folks did dive in a bit on the harsh side. I guess its easy to see how experienced keepers might get a bit jaded with hearing the same tales of overcrowding/cycling nightmares etc. Never know, maybe the shock tactics were what did it- and caused him to do the right thing. lol. :%)

Last edited by longhairedgit at 06-Sep-2005 07:18

Hi all.
First let me say that angels WON'T survive a cycling tank and also that they are much too large for a 10 gal tank.
Second, the paradise fish is also too large for the 10 gal tank (personal opinion).
Third, the only puffer that will go nicely in a 10 gal, imo, is the dwarf puffer which is NOT a brackish water fish and also will not survive a cycling tank.
And fourth, when I started coming to this site one thing I noticed was that some ppl here are very "knowitallish", and sometimes a tad bit snotty with their replies. A newbie (no offense anyone) shouldn't be too put off by this or take it the wrong way, they mostly do know more then the new person (which is why their advise is sought out in the first place) and are only trying to pass on good advice.
p.s., not to insult the fine and knowledgeable LFS people, but one should always do research on what you like or plan to buy before you get it. The fine LFS folks are, remember, trying to SELL you these fish and a good reputable dealer will ask about your tank size, how long its been running etc. I have had Petsmart guys refuse to sell me fish that wouldn't fit in my tank (hat's off to the good guys).
p.p.s. didn't mean to go on, rant or rave.