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I understand that while everything i may have done might not be the way everyone else does it or perhaps even the best way i just dont find it very helpful to be attacked when i'm asking for help. It's funny how on alot of forums not just these here, that so many people are willing to criticize but not help. Its one thing to tell me that the conditions for living perhaps might not be the best and recommend changes vs. telling me that your amazed the fish even lived this long in that horrible enviroment. Because without personally seeing how he lives or how i take care of it you have no way of knowing that.

Continual cloudy water, and having nitrItes is showing that either the tank was never cycled, and or is having difficuly maintaining a proper bacterial colony. The fact that you're replacing the filter cartrige is killing off alot of the biofilter....since it's "gunking up" it shows that the tank is over stocked.

There's only so many ways we can beat a dead horse (why do I feel like gary).

Until the new tank arrives I'm sure doing much more frequent water changes, and dosing with a bacteria such as Cycle or Biospira will help.

^_^

the water has *never* been cloudy... in case i type that it had been

I will follow the advice until the new tank arrives and see what happens...

thanks for your help everyone

i went through the same thing but i had my oscar in a 35usg until he was 8inches when the signs started. soon after he got hole-in-head and i spent nearly $500 and got a 120usg. by the end of that week he spent in the new tank he made a major recovery and the HIH went away. so when you say you have a 18" oscar in 38usg, thats crazy! get him a BIGGER tank of his own! then he might be able to swim

oooOOOooo you typed that right, just my reading it wrong.

*grumbles about mozilla, and changed computer profiles*


hope that new tank comes soon, you'll want those nitrItes @zero asap as I'm sure that's doing something not so plesant to the guy.

^_^

Wow, this is a badly abused fish.

I'm surprised it has acually lived this long......

I agree with everyone saying that the tank condtions aren't great by any means. But how about helping the man instead of chastising him?

On the other hand..... Lots more water changes (20% of the water volume a week) will transform your tank and fish health.

Hope the Oscar recovers well, and you continue to enjoy him.

[span class="edited"][Edited by 2004-07-02 11:09][/span]

I love the way everyone will say that the fish is neglected if you saw the care put into him you would realize why he has lived so long. Personally i've sorry that i've ever joined this forum. But i do give thanks to those that have tried to help not just moan.

[span class="edited"][Edited by Lindy 2004-07-04 02:02][/span]

WHOA! 3 Months!!! I think you should take the time to do a 25% water change per week or two weeks at the max. I cant begin to imagine how much nitrates are in the tank.

I recommend doing the same as everyone else is saying, 20% water changes every week, cleaning the filters every 2 weeks or so.

Also get a larger tank. I would recommend at the very least a 55gal!

The attitude comes from caring for fish keNol,that's why we're all here, not to try and make you feel worse
I believe you do care for your oscar or you wouldn't be in here asking for advice.
But it's quite hard to give you advice when you've got something that goes against everything that we believe you should do to keep a fish happy and healthy

More frequent water changes at least would certainly help, a tank at least twice that size would make even more of a difference to this poor guy.

I've never had an issue with cloudy water and regularly use a gravel vac to keep waste to a minimum.

I checked my Nitrite and Nitrate levels about an hour ago, what I came up with was:

Nitrate 12.5 mg/l to about 25 mg/l, the color fell in between those two ranges on the chart, but closer to the 12.5

and

Nitrite was about .5 mg/l

So I did a partial water change along with replacing the filter again *which was replaced 2 days ago* and even did the gravel vac once more.

After about 40minutes with the new water in the tank he became more lively. He now will swim around slowly and surface but then tires out and goes back to the bottom after 10-15min. I already see a huge difference in his behavior. A local store around here advised me when picked up the testing supplies that our local tap water will occasionally have extremely high levels of nitrates/nitrites in the water, so its possible that at my last change it could have spiked causing this reaction.

I fully understand what you are saying, but most avid fishkeepers look beyond the fact that your Oscar has lived for 6 years, and look more at the fact that you have an 18 inch fish in a 36 inch tank.

To be honest saying that (the Oscar in the tank) plus the 4 month water changes really makes fishkeepers blood boil.

Please accept my apologies on the way you have been treated. All of the people here love their fish like they are family, I know we do in our household.

Because without personally seeing how he lives or how i take care of it you have no way of knowing that.

You're right, you've obviously done something right to keep them alive for this long. The 150 gal tank you've got coming will help matters for all your fish kerNol so hopefully that wont take too long.
In the meantime, if it was me, I'd be doing more regular water changes (25-30% weekly) to keep nitrIte and nitrAte readings down. Good luck to you and your fish

I would like to say thanks to those who understood and well i'll refrain from saying what i feel towards those that posted just to criticize.

On a bad note there are more issues with my tank that had been on order. So wednesday the building process begins for a new 225 gallon tank *thanks in part to a local shop owner who builds them on the side*

225 Gal is gonna rock! I wish I had a 225gal tank! Oh well I'll be happy with my 150gal which will hopefully be here soon

Don't sweat it, Ker...

When we get through with you your fish will live forever with big smiles on their little fish faces.

You'll thank us, your fish will thank us and Babel, my understudy girlfriend, will thank you.

--garyroland.

kerNol, Just a thought for now...I'm not sure what area of the country you're in...but I was finally able to hunt down a stock tank


They come in sizes up to 300 gallons, and while they have obvious disadvantages, it's proved a quick and relitivly easy answer to one of my tank space issues.

Here is rubbermaid's site...they're used commonly by SW people for corals ect, Many FW people have used them before as well.

Another brand that was found by a fellow board member also has a similar product, however I had some worries about using them (I doubt how sturdy they are).

Good Luck all we want is what's best for the fish.

^_^

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hu? gary + bable = i confused
and i just read this kernol, and i was sort of shocked at how some of the people acted, but not suprized u see its not often we here of things like this, but i think they should have kept their feelings to themselves and tryed to be more helpfull, i have an oscar too and i too cant see... how... but maybe ur tank is set up special and best of luck, and i hope u deside to stick around on fp, once u get to know these people u may not think of them as ahh "what that word? ah yes" gerks but these peple are very nice once u get to know them, did i just say that twice? oops oh well i need a nap anyway

Ker... follow GaryRolands advice, and i doubt you'll go wrong as far as water quality.

Um... how's he/she doing? Did you get the new tank yet?

Ammonia neutralizing products are really a waste of money when it comes to runnign a tank. That's why a tank is cycled and we try our hardest to maintian a healthy biofilter. Ammonia neutralizing is really for small tanks that recieve weekly water changes, or for use when medicating.

Removal of NitrAtes are done thru partial water changes.

^_^