aquarium help please

brettmirl

Hi all,

I have a small enough tropical aquarium (Hexaset 15) for about 3 weeks now. I have 6 neons and 6 guppys in it. It has a filter and a heater, two synthetic plants and an ornament.

Today, the water has turned very smelly. Any one have any idea why?

The sponge in the filter looks clean and doesn't itself smell bad. It should not need to be cleaned for about 2/3 more weeks. The temp of the water is a constatnt 25c and looks clean.

Any help appreciated.

boroughmal

When a filter is maturing like yours the nitrasomonas are eating the ammonia and the smell is the residue of that.
This happens when a new filter is getting full of rotting bacteria and the smell is ammionia like , but pungent to the noze.
Another week /ten days and your filter will be mature.
If you dont beleive me check ammonia levels against nitrite levels and you will see the circle of filtration beginning. The ammonia will drop the nitrite will rise. in that period of time you will only have to deal with a NitrAte problem as you will have too much of that and no ammonia & no nitrIte.
You can then pat yourself on the back and say well done you have acheived optimum water filtration for you fish

Keep up the good work
regards
www.fishkeepingsupplies.com
Aquarium and Fish Supply Tropical
p.s Its time to start maturing the spare bucket of water for changing the water at the required periods.
Take a bucket of water, leave in the sunshine for a day or two them syphon the top 3/4 into another bucket for the aquarium.
All the heavy residues such as iron & copper will have settled to the bottom and the sun will make the water green untill those little blighters have no more to eat and will starve to death.This equals clean water

brettmirl

Thanks for that. The smell has disappeared of its own accord, but 3 of the blue neons have died. The other fish ate 1.5 of them. Hungry feckers!