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Is it normal for them to do this (hang in one place for extended periods of time). Wondering if this falls under normal observed behavior, or if I should be worried. My water parameters are fine. It just seems like they are less active than they used to be.
10g tank
2 months old
ammo: 0
nitrite: 0
nitrate: 10ppm
ph 7.5

Thanks.

Being static in the water isnt that odd, as long as they do use the rest of the tank occasionally. If they seem afraid to move from that spot, or are congregating near heaters, or spending a lot of the time with a head down posture there might be a problem.

Just out of curiostity are the grouping under the filtration output... I have seen healthy fish spend most of their time in this location.

The behavior seems kind of random. A couple weeks ago there was one that hung out near the bottom, behind the plants. It stayed there for 4-5 days and didn't seem to eat. Then one day it was fine and has been since.

Yesterday a different one (and sometimes 2 or 3 joined it) was hanging near the surface (away from heater/filter). Not gasping, just sitting there most of the day.

Now she seems ok, and a different one is doing it! I fed them this morning and most of them were lazy about eating. Not like the little sharks that they have been before. The one that is hanging at the surface this morning didn't eat.

Hmm...the one that stayed at the bottom for 4-5 days is now more slender, which I'd chalked up to her not eating. Maybe she spawned though? Maybe the others are about to spawn? They are quite round.

That certainly is not "Normal" for Zebra Danios. There has to be a reason and establishing that could be very difficult. If all your peramiters are good that should eliminate many probems.
Is your tank 10 months old or have you have them for 10 months?

I would go back to where you bought them and ask them. If it is a problem others would have also mentioned it to them.

What else is in the tank?
What filtration are you using, water changing percentages, how often do you clean thr filter and do the water changes?

Have a look in [link=My Profile] http://www.fishprofiles.com/forums/member.aspx?id=1935[/link] for my tank info

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Betta 11Gal Desktop & Placidity 5ft Community Tank Photos

Keith

Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do.
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I've had the tank set up for 2 months, had the zebras in for about 6 weeks. Tankmates are 2 Corydoras palateus, and 1 ADF. Everyone else seems fine.

The filter is a Whisper 10, I think. Came with the tank kit. The packaging didn't say what gph it was, although that's been kind of an issue. The filter cartridge seems to gunk up really fast, even though I rinse it weekly with water changes (20%). Consequently the flow rate isn't that great. I just rinsed it yesterday(and did a water change) and it is overflowing the cartridge again. Grrr...just put in a new cartridge 7 days ago.

So even though parameters are fine maybe it is oxygen? There are some plants in there but not a lot.

so your filter gunks up every week? to me that doesnt sound right.. maybe you should invest in a better filter.

i also agree with keith.. zebra danios are pretty active fish, mine i could never get a good shot with my camera of them, they're always darting back and forth all crazy.

*Chelle*
_______________________________________________
I love the fishes cuz they're SOOO delicious...

Whisper 10 does 90gph, but is only rated for 5-10 gallons . In short, its pants.

Go out and get a nice eheim aquaball while theyre going cheap, maybe under £30, dead silent, lovely aeration from the venturi nozzle, ( much better than faffing about with nasty little buzz box aerators )and itll be weeks maybe even months before they gunk up with your stocking. A choice of different filter media, and the sponge inserts last forever and couldnt be easier to clean , in fact you can clean the modules in rotation, so theres no appreciable drop in filter performance and always plenty of time for bacteria to reassert itself. Totally adjustable for flow too, and you can put extra filter modules on whenever you wish, probably do up to a 30 gallon with 4 modules on.Cant beat em for smaller tanks. They are marine rated too, 3 year guarantee. They make excellent additional powerheads for bigger marine tanks too. You can turn them right up for a quite significant water flow or down to a mere trickle, I bought 4 of em cheap from the lfs. £10 each. I was laughing all the way home. You can even buy an awesome little kit to modify them to power undergravel filters, but personally i think the internal setup is better. I first bought one to replace an old fluval 3 , and i was staggered, it murdered it for size, quietness , and performance, and it was cheaper. Ive got 5 running , not a peep wrong out of any of them for years. Not had a single impellor spindle go or anything.


In fact of proof were needed heres my 20 gal qt, with 4 adult siamese flying foxes in it ( producing maybe 5 times the waste your danios do,) and it tests as of 12.55pm today, last water change 8 days ago (so ,im lazy lol.) ammonia and nitrite nil, nitrate 10 ppm. One carbon insert, 3 sponge, and a lil blue prefilter bit. Havent cleaned the cartridges for maybe 2-3 months. Water quality saw the blue rams through quarantine no problem.

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a245/longhairedgit/IMG_6588.jpg

and its so clear I can take pictures like this...

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a245/longhairedgit/IMG_6565.jpg


and this.

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a245/longhairedgit/IMG_6561.jpg

and in the other room , this aquaball is processing the waste from this orangey fish-like ammonia producing tennis ball thing. Its not my fish, and yes I know the tank is too small, im just proving a point.

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a245/longhairedgit/IMG_5839.jpg

The nitrite reading is probably causing the problems , danios are tough, but theres a limit, they may be recommended for cycling, but people often lose some doing that too, especially if the tank doesnt stabilise properly like yours doesnt appear to be. Its why im big on fishless cycling. If the fish look like theyre about to keel over put some of the tank water in a bucket , put the fish in and add some methyl blue, it helps knock nitrite poisoning on the head, but you dont want it in the tank cos itll probably kill the filter off. The danios may appreciate the temporary relief for a few hours though.

Thanks everyone for the suggestions. Longhairedgit, I wish I could afford a new filter right now. I will keep a close eye and if I need to I will. My other tank has an Aqua Clear and I like it quite a bit (they're cheaper than the eheims too). Finances are a big issue right now and hubby isn't that thrilled with how much I've spent already on this new hobby...

BTW did you mean the nitrAte readings could be causing a problem (as opposed to nitrites, which are zilch). I didn't think 10 ppm nitrates was that bad?

No, 10ppm, is fine on nitrate, but if the filter is clogging you might get nitrite as well as ammonia periodically, and the nitrite may hang in there causing a problem for longer. It was just a tip. Lol it was late when I replied and my eyes are blurry, misread the test results, sorry!

When you do get a new filter though, run both in the tank to get the other one cycled. Its always easy to cycle one filter when you already have another.

update:
over the last couple days fish have gotten more lethargic and pretty much gone off food. This morning two are "fuzzy" looking - not thick fuzz, I don't think it's fungus. They don't really look like spots though either. based on other things i've been reading, I am going to treat for ich anyway as that seems the most likely. Got some Kordon Rid Ich plus, baed on warnings in a couple other threads on ich meds and catfish (I have corydoras in this tank).

I thought ich showed up fairly immediately as white spots. Descriptions I have read don't emphasize the inactivity/lack of eating as a major symptom. I'm still wondering if O2 may be an issue here. If so, would an airstone help this? I'd thought these were kind of superfluous. Maybe I'd be better off just spending my $$ on a better filter?

Also, when you have an ich outbreak, do the white spots show up on decor, plants, etc.? I am seeing white spots everywhere.

Thanks very much.

I'll update as to what happens

The filter cartridge seems to gunk up really fast, even though I rinse it weekly with water changes (20%). Consequently the flow rate isn't that great. I just rinsed it yesterday(and did a water change) and it is overflowing the cartridge again. Grrr...just put in a new cartridge 7 days ago.

If you are just replacing the filter cartridge you could be going through a mini cycle each time you change the filter.

If it is "gunking up" as you state I certainly would get a bigger and better filter. Most filters you just rinse it in the change over water (I do my Betta tank weekly) and the 5ft tank monthly. Both filters are Eheims. When looking for a filter get a good one and get one for the next tank size up. When you get it connected add some "cycle" or similar product and run both filters together if not you will/could get cycling problems
The filter cartridge seems to gunk up really fast, even though I rinse it weekly with water changes (20%). Consequently the flow rate isn't that great. I just rinsed it yesterday(and did a water change) and it is overflowing the cartridge again. Grrr...just put in a new cartridge 7 days ago.


If you are just replacing the filter cartridge you could be going through a mini cycle each time you change the filter.

If it is "gunking up" as you state I certainly would get a bigger and better filter. Most filters you just rinse it in the change over water (I do my Betta tank weekly) and the 5ft tank monthly. Both filters are Eheims. When looking for a filter get a good one and get one for the next tank size up. When you get it connected add some "cycle" or similar product and run both filters together if not you will/could get cycling problems


Keith

Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do.
I VOTE DO YOU if not WHY NOT?
VOTE NOW VOTE NOW

Well my ADF that was in the tank died last nite.
I don't know if it was the ich medicine that killed him, or the ich itself, or if his overfondness for Hikari wafers finally caught up with him. Another example I guess, for those that want to put frogs in community tanks. (cursing LFS employee who said, "oh yeah, frogs do just fine with fish" )

If you are just replacing the filter cartridge you could be going through a mini cycle each time you change the filter.

Yeah, I know - I hate to change the cartridge but I've grudgingly done so twice, when the flow rate was so crappy and rinsing just wasn't cutting it. I sqeezed out the old cartridge as much as I could into the tank. I am obsessive about testing parameters though and they are always fine.

Think I need to bite the bullet and get a new filter, the zebras look bad this morning. Thanks for the advice to run them together.

I think you have learnt a valuable lesson dont always trust your LFS/sales person unless you know they are reliable and trustworthy. I suggest go to a more reliable one or ask someone else at the LFS.

We all have gone through the learning stage and it takes time to sort out good advice from sales talk. If you are not sure "DONT BUY" ask her first.

Keith

Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do.
I VOTE DO YOU if not WHY NOT?
VOTE NOW VOTE NOW

Dangit, 2 zebras have died. The other 4 are hanging in there. I haven't been able to get a new filter but it dawned on me today to lower the water level in the tank by about 1". Now the water is falling into the tank (instead of just skating across the surface) and I can see bubbles going down into the water. Presumably that has to be helping with oxygenation.

It could have mentioned before but if not it sounds like you require a good air pump and a ceramic airstone. This will circulater the water from the bottom of the tank to the top of the tank, also add more surface area.

Have a look in [link=My Profile] http://www.fishprofiles.com/forums/member.aspx?id=1935[/link] for my tank info

Look here for my
Betta 11Gal Desktop & Placidity 5ft Community Tank Photos

Keith

Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do.
I VOTE DO YOU if not WHY NOT?
VOTE NOW VOTE NOW

For future reference, take some water out of tank, put it in a bucket , squeeze the foam in the bucket, put the foam back, and ditch the gunk in the bucket. You wont kill the bacteria, the sponge will be riddled with it.

Ps , it also shows that if you were doing that your test results are completely off. The ammonia and nitrite wont be zero, and the nitrate most definately wont be zero, its beyond the reasonable spectrum of possibility to believe. Especially if you replace the filter media often, and keep dropping the gunk back in the tank.Squeezing it back into the tank also explains why it clogs up again so quickly. Youll be getting intermittant mini-cycles, alternated with high nitrate and vice versa. Your test kit must be knackered, or not used properly. Most likely option is that your getting misreadings probably caused by mini cycles and water changes. Sometimes some water conditioners really throw test kits off. Best time to do the test is at least 48 hours after a change.

Well, I have 1 zebra left.

Whatever this problem is, it hasn't affected my cories in the slightest. They are merrily going about their business! Would that reinforce my idea that this is an oxygen problem? Since cories have a labyrinth organ, do they not?

I've been treating with Kordon Rid Ich for 4 days now, with 20-40% water changes every other day. It hasn't seemed to change anything. Too little too late maybe.

You may have something there, LHG, about my filter habits. Here I was paranoid about killing the bacteria and I may have been causing a different problem. I don't think my test kits are off, though. They are new (API liquid reagents, not strips) and have seen me through 2 tank cycles and seemed spot on.