Major disaster! Need help!

[D'Cecilia]

Major disaster! Help!

so i was cleaning my tank today like usual. i took about
5 gallon out of the tank, then went out and got some
dechlorinated water and started to fill it up and it started
to get super dirty, then i dumped it all withouth realizing
and the water turned to a greenish color. I had not realized
how DIRTY my tank was, there was crap all over the place.
it literarly turned into mudd!!!!
I looked under the rocks i have and it was so dang dirty.
i tried to scoop out the stuff but i moved the wood i have
in there, and it has totally desintegrated, well the surface
part of the wood, so more and more stuff came out of
it and the water got even dirtier!!!
i freaked out and took the fish out, and now they are in
a couple container wiht some clean water...
I took the tank outside and cleaned it up real good.
and since i dont have water purifier or didnt have clean
water ready, i filled it up wiht water from the hose and
just put the filter in. so i have to wait a couple days till
the water is clean for the fish, and teh filter was pretty packed
so im sure there will be pelnty of bacteria i there.
so i guess i have to cycle the tank all over again.
but i have the fis in teh containers withtout another place
to put them.
do you guys think they'll last a couple days till the water
gets clean???

any suggestions as to what i could do?
please help.

 

[D'Cecilia]

Someone please help out!!!!
at least give me comments of suggestions!

 

[twiant]

Yea they should be fine. Just think, all those betta fish at walmart will spend weeks in a little cup. You should be OK

 

[D'Cecilia]

yeah but their betta though.
i have 4 Neon tetras in a 1/2 gallon container.
4 platties and 2 guppies in another little container.

i just hoep they dont die.

 

[D'Cecilia]

really now?

 

[MissFishy]

So you completely cleaned out your tank? You probably didn't need to do that, in the wild fish live in mucky water with no problems at all. Did you clean it out to the point where you're going to have to completely re-cycle it? I would suggest putting your fish back into the tank, there's no reason not to. In the future try using a siphon to clean your gravel, I have some instructions on my webpage if you've never used one.

 

[vahluree]

since i dont have water purifier or didnt have clean
water ready

Can you not get water conditioner/dechlorinator at your lfs to use on your tap water?

 

[D'Cecilia]

well i didnt have it last night at 10. ahah so i coudlnt
go buy some anywere!
but i have it under control, i put the fish in the tank
again today and they seem very well, i mixed up
a couple gallons of the old water and some drinking
water and tap water and its fine, i havent added any
of the decorations yet, i still have to clean them..

i dont use that stuffa nyways. i just put the water out
for ac ouple days thne just add it to the tank.
the purifier goes by really fast and i dont have money
to spend.

and yes i do know how to use a siphon, i have been
using it for monhts, but since i have big and small river
rokcs in the tank there is a bunhc of stuff that goes all the w
way to the bottom of the tank, and i guess it just starrted
to pile up in the bottom, andthen it just all came out at
once.
but i have it clean now. i think im goign to get rid of some
fish, like the platties since they poop too much. and of
the guppies too. ill just get 2 more tetras and thats it.

 

[Lotus]

So you have money for fish, but not for dechlorinator? Seems odd to me.

You should try to siphon out under the rocks at least every few weeks, or move a few each week to clean under them.

Also, hold a plate or a tupperware lid on the top of the tank when you're adding water back in to avoid stirring up the bottom. Or, just pour more carefully.

 

[D'Cecilia]

i saved up wiht hard work about 40 bucks to get
me a nice and simple set up about 3 months ago...(im really poor by the way)
i got everything abotu 3 months ago...
doesent seem odd to me that i dotn have money
to buy that stuff...i just dont have the money.
its not like im buying fish every damn day...

And if i can just leave it out for a couple days and
have the same effect then i dotn see why i would
waste the money i do have whit that.

Yes i will try that, its just so hard because the siphone goes
by too fast and water gets sucked in fast, and ebfore i know
it and have time to take all the stuff out the tank is alrady
half way emtpy. ahha but illt ry it.

i shall try that. thank you.

 

[MissFishy]

Well, I don't know if you have a heater hooked up to this tank (you should with the fish you have), but if you set water out it becomes cold, so when you add it back to your tank it could shock the fish. Like Lotus said, I usually move around my decor before starting to siphon, that way I can clean under a few things each time.

Watch out, it sounds like your tank will probably be re-cycling now since you've disturbed it, you should take your water to a fish store to have it tested in a couple of days for ammonia, read up on the cycling stickies if you've forgotten what is necessary to cycle properly. If you don't bother going through the cycling stuff again, all the money you spent on fish will be wasted since they will die.

 

[D'Cecilia]

i leaev my water out in the backyard, and i live in
az so its pretty darn hot. ahah so before i put it
in the tank i let it rest in my room so it will get to
the temperature of the water in the tank.
i do not have a heater in there though.

and yeah i remember all that stuff, im goign to get
rid of some fish because i think it will make it alot
easier for me.

when i first started the tank about 3 months ago i did
a fish in cycle, no fish have died , well 2 fremale bettas
did die because they jumped off the container i had them
in when they started to bite other fish.

so i think ill be good wiht the cycling stuff. Plus i put in all the
decorations back in, so im pretty sure there were lots of
colonies in there, ahahah or at least some algea in the
rocks and plants. hah ;

but tanks, im going o the lfs tomorrow mornign so i will
pick up a test kit (not my money, the Girlfriends) and check
the water.a nd like i said imma be donating about 5 fish so
the tank will be less populated.

thakns for making me less worried, ahah to some point ahh

 

[Stillness]

Did you even check your water parameters before that whole cleaning fit? All of that could have been unnecessary. Did you let your filter pads dry out? If not the bacteria is probably still alive and you might just have a mini-cycle.

 

[bmoraski]

what size tank do you have ?
sorry im a little confused so ill just back off

 

[jo3olous]

i saved up wiht hard work about 40 bucks to get
me a nice and simple set up about 3 months ago...(im really poor by the way)i got everything abotu 3 months ago...
doesent seem odd to me that i dotn have money
to buy that stuff...i just dont have the money.
its not like im buying fish every damn day...

And if i can just leave it out for a couple days and
have the same effect then i dotn see why i would
waste the money i do have whit that.

Yes i will try that, its just so hard because the siphone goes
by too fast and water gets sucked in fast, and ebfore i know
it and have time to take all the stuff out the tank is alrady
half way emtpy. ahha but illt ry it.

i shall try that. thank you.

1. De-chlorinator is cheaper than fish.
2. You should know for next time fishkeeping is not a cheap hobby. You cannot simply expect to by a tank, fish and add water and be done. You need to account for all the accessories, chemicals, food, and supplies for maintenance you will need.
3. This hobby can get expensive for you because if you continue to skip steps and take shortcuts, you will just end up having more problems than the average fishkeeper, costing you more money than the hobby should.
4. PLEASE SPELL CHECK. It's REALLY HARD to understand what you are trying to say sometimes, not to mention irritable.

5. I agree with Missfishy. When you stirred up the tank you saw all the mess in it, clouding the water and making the tank unsightly. It's actually not that harmful to the fish, after all it has been in the water, just out of your site. You should be able to remove good amounts of it by regularly siphoning your tank, however you will never get it all, and you don't need to.